HINCHE: No earthquake devastation, no running water or electricity- just poor.

Welcome song from Pre-K Students in Jacmel!

JACMEL: Nuns, Schoolkids, and Puerto Rican Volunteers!

FLOOD!

On our second day of our visit to Haiti, we left the Salesian Provincial House in Port-au-Prince and travelled over the mountains and about 60 miles south to the town of Jacmel, where we would stay for the next couple of days. The ride, which is usually about two hours long, instead took five hours, because of the insane traffic in the city, the rain, and then a FLASH FLOOD that was about 3-4 feet deep! The nuns' driver, Phillipe (shown in the video driving the car), wanted us to get there as soon as possible so right after this video was made- he drove straight through the flood! Fortunately, we made it through with out any issues!

The Salesian Provincial House & Orphanage (in PAP): Home of Independent Women

PORT-AU-PRINCE: Seems like Only Yesterday

On Sunday June 20th, we flew from New York City to Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital and largest city. From the airport we drove all the way to the opposite side of the city to the Provincial House of the Salesian Sisters, which became our 'home base'. The Provincial House is located on a hill overlooking the entire city of Port-au-Prince. The view of the city and the surrounding area from the Provincial House was absolutely beautiful, however, after driving through the city we knew that life in the city was anything but beautiful.

The view from the Provincial House

When the earthquake occurred on January 12, 2010, the majority of the Haitians affected were from the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, since its epicenter was about 20 minutes outside of the city. Most buildings and houses are completely destroyed, with only remnants of their original foundations still standing. The streets are completely packed with people, as well as hundreds upon hundreds, of tents on the sides of the roads. The city looks like the earthquake hit yesterday because nothing has changed. A vast amount of Haitians, who were affected by the earthquake outside of PAP (Port-au-Prince), have moved to and camped in PAP because that is where all the foreign relief and aid is coming from and being distributed. So, in other words, the city has become even more densely populated, and with that, trash and debris flood the streets and sidewalks, like an open dump. As we saw all of this from an air-conditioned car, we couldn't help but feel a little bit guilty for the life we live, and for complaining about things that really mean absolutely nothing- especially when you see people in tents laughing and having a good time. These people may have no money or home, but they are still happy and upbeat- why can't we be that way too? It really put our lives into perspective.

Tents on the middle of a boulevard.

A building destroyed from the earthquake. That was 6 months ago.

Trash on the street. There is no education about litttering

Our Destinations...

Here is a map of the places we went. We went to three cities: Port-au-Prince, Jacmel, and Hinche. As you can see, we covered a lot of land!

A Few Things You Should Know about Haiti

Now, before we talk about our trip, we feel it's important for people who are reading this blog to know some facts about Haiti. Before the devastating earthquake on January 12, 2010, most Americans did not know much about Haiti, or couldn't point it out on a map. We hope that this will give you a better understanding of where we were and what we experienced.

HAITI

Size: 27,750 square kilometers (10,714 square miles), slightly smaller than Maryland.

Population: 9,203,083 people (DENSELY POPULATED, especially in the capital, Port-au-Prince).

Language: two official languages; French and Creole. Creole, which is a combination of French with native African languages, is mainly spoken at home, while French is spoken in the school or work setting.

Ethnicity: 95% black, 5% mulatto

Religion: The country is 80% Roman Catholic and 16% Protestant, and its people are extremely religious, however, more than 50% practice Voudoun (Voodoo), the ancient religion of the native people of Haiti. Voodoo is not a form of witchcraft or some dark, cultish practice, for information on it, check out this short article.

History: Haiti's political history is quite dramatic. Haiti was originally a French colony which ultimately gained its independence in 1825. Check out this website for a brief, but informative, history on the nation.

From June 19th to July 1st...

Hello, we are Barbara and Katey, a mother and a daughter from San Francisco, California.

Just a few weeks ago, we returned from a life-changing trip that will be impossible for us to forget. For twelves days, we travelled and worked throughout the country of Haiti, learning much about its people and the difficulties they face. We believe that who we met and what we discovered, taught us more about ourselves and put our lives into perspective.

So, we created this blog to share that experience with you.

We hope you enjoy it!