Week 1

Well week one in Haiti is done and its been quite the experience so far.  I nearly missed my flight in Mpls.  From Mpls we flew into Miami where I had a 4 hour layover and got to meet most of the guys ill be staying down here with.  As we flew into Port au Prince you could see shipwrecks scattered throughout the bay and smoke from burning garbage piles.  After we landed and found our bags we attempted to find the bus giving us a ride to the resort that we will call home for the next 9+ months.  As soon as we left customs we were “attacked” by airport staff trying to help carry our bags and make a quick buck.  Finally we found our bus tipped the 10-15 bag boys that were carrying our luggage and made our way down Route 1 out of Port au Prince.  The driving here is out of this world.  Words can’t describe the mayhem that happens on these roads.  It’s basically a 2-lane highway with 4 lanes of traffic and no speed limit.   Motorcycles ride the shoulders with small pickup cabs called “Tap Taps” that are always packed with people.  Regular cars, busses and semis ride in the middle and try to dodge each other as the road winds along the coast through villages packed with people.  The drive to and from work is wild to say the least and its not uncommon for us to see a newly flipped vehicle each day.  Our resort, Moulin Sur Mer, is right on the ocean and has exceeded my expectations already.  The food has been surprisingly good with fresh fruit and eggs being served at breakfast and a supper buffet that ranges from fresh seafood to lasagna.  Were on the road by 6:30 every day and make the 50 min drive to Les Moulin de Haiti.  Onsite activities are slow because of customs and the lack of a competent labor force in Haiti but mid January we will be busing in 130 Dominicans and hopefully the pace changes.  Lunch at the site is usually just plain white rice sometimes spiced up with beans.  Today we made a trip into Port au Prince to do some shopping.  When the plane landed it was dark by the time we hit the road so I wasn’t able to see the damage to the town but today everything was visible.  There is still tons of collapsed buildings and tent cities sprawling out as far as you can see.  Sunday is our only full day off and I’m planning on visiting an orphanage near our resort owned by an American we met at supper a few nights ago.  I’m still working on getting a Haitian phone but my Skype account is Karl.Kratzke and I usually go on every night so add me and I would love to talk with you and catch up.