arriving port au prince

I flew into Miami on Sunday and spend about 6 hours at the hotel by myself before I met up with the rest of my group from Chicago: Babette, Jenny, Jeanine, and Phil. By the time they arrived, we were all famished. So, we headed out to a restaurant called Catch of the Day to take in some of the Latino live music culture and a great last dinner in The States.

We arrived back at the hotel pretty late and had a few hours of sleep before meeting again at 4:30am to head back to the airport. Exhausted, but on our way, we loaded our plane to Haiti. The man sitting next to me was on his way to pick up his daughter for adoption. It was great to talk to someone who was using an orphanage like the one we were going to!

We entered the airport off the ramp (no sky walks to deboard the plane). Our welcome was a great live music band playing a happy Haitian tune (sponsored by the local cell phone company). We breezed through customs and immigration. Leaving the airport was a bit more difficult. I liken it to the experience of landing in Douala, Cameroon, where it seems like nearly everyone is vying for your attention and your money.

Our ride and a security guard found us, though, and we commenced our drive up into the mountains beyond Port au Prince. The drive was colorful and not adrenaline-inducing as I had expected. Tap-taps (so-called taxi vehicles that require the passenger to "tap-tap" on the roof to encourage the driver to stop) lined the streets with eye-catching colors and designs painted on them. Colors were splashed against buildings, shops, at the fruit stands, in artwork, on handmade crafts, and even in the flowering bushes and trees. There is very little "dull" about this Haitian country or people; everything and everyone seems vibrant and alive.

(the vehicle in the photo is a bit larger than a "true" tap-tap. It's actually a truck that takes workers up to pick their fruits and vegetables up the mountain).