K1 Path: July 2010

We flew from to Miami the first day, spent the night there, and then went on to Haiti the following day. In Miami, we stayed in the Embassy Suites Hotel. It is a very posh hotel, and it felt a bit strange staying there when we were on a mission trip to one of the poorest countries in the world. That didn’t stop us from enjoying the pool and breakfast buffet, though. For me, it was great to be back in the warm weather and humidity. I’m always so cold in Colorado, even in summer.

When we got to Haiti, it was even a bit warmer than Miami, and they threw everyone right out into the heat. Immigration was in a building that looked like it was originally a warehouse. It had a roof made of metal sheeting and felt like a human oven. It honestly must have been about 15 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than standing outside in the sun.

The Haiti team in Miami

Thankfully, there were several fans blowing waves of heated air at us while we waited in line. After being dragged painfully slowly through the immigration line, we picked up our bags and made our way outside to experience the heat and humidity first-hand. One of the Haitian guys working with the missionary organization was supposed to meet us outside with a sign. As we left the warehouse, we entered a narrow area between the building and a chain link fence. We were bombarded with offers from people to help us with our luggage and give us a ride to anywhere in the world, but there was no one with a sign waiting for us. We walk the half-mile distance the gate that would let us outside of the secured area. Sure enough, waiting at the gate was Jeanson (pronounced like Johnson) waiting for us with a sign. Unfortunately, on the way to the gate, we managed to pick up a small group of Haitian men who were “helping” us get our luggage to the truck, but $10 later, we were free of them. Shortly thereafter, Pastor Tim, the missionary we would be working with in Grand Goave showed up with the truck. We loaded up, hopped in the truck, and we were ready to hit the road. The only problem was that Pastor Tim was waiting for some building materials to clear customs, and he didn’t want to make the 5 hour round trip again to pick them up when they were just on the other side of the fence. He told us that they were meant to be cleared in about an hour and that he was going to take us to a place where we could get some lunch. The lunch stop was a gas station not far from the airport that had air conditioning. Apparently, it was also the place where the local community gathered to watch the World Cup football matches on TV because it was nearly full. However, instead of a football match, we got to watch and hear the Shakira “This Is Africa” video about 18.5 times.

After lunch, we headed back to the airport to pick up the goods. Once we arrived, Pastor Tim told us that it would be another 10-15 minutes, so we got out of the truck and sat down under a tree to wait. After about an hour passed, Pastor Tim came back and told us he needed one more signature from someone who was out for lunch, but that the signer would be back in about 10-15 minutes. About 45 minutes later, Pastor Tim came back and said that the signer still hadn’t arrived, and even though the signer would probably be there in about 10-15 minutes, he was going to send us on ahead to the mission site in Grand Goave. He told us that on a normal day with no traffic, the drive from the airport to Grand Goave took about 45 minutes, but there was never a normal day, so the trip would take about 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Loaded up and ready for our 3 hour ride to Gran Goave

The cab of the truck had room for three people, so we sent Estela, Rich, and Becca up front. The rest of us jumped up into the bed of the truck with all the luggage. It was pretty cramped, but gave us the opportunity to see a lot of scenery along the roadways and get some “fresh” air and by “fresh” I mean straight from the exhaust pipes of the other vehicles. We even had the privilege of experiencing it for nearly three hours until we arrived in Grand Goave.

Driving through Port-Au-Prince, we saw a lot of the damage done by the earthquake and loads of tent cities, but we also saw how the people are moving forward with their lives.

Some of the damage leftover from the earthquake

While everyone else in the bed of the truck was taking pictures of and staring confoundedly at the ruins of many of the buildings, I was watching the people, the survivors, and how life goes on because it has to. People were buying and selling, coming home from work and school, bathing, eating, drinking, laughing, and crying. While life in Haiti is different in many ways from life in the U.S., a lot of the everyday activities were the same. No matter where you go, people are people. They have hopes and dreams, jobs, responsibilities, and families. Parents want a good life for their children, and everybody wants to be loved.