Last weekend I had a little fun messing around with iMovie and created a short video of our time spent living in Haiti. During our time there, we occasionally filmed moments and interactions for the sake of memory, but never had the intention of actually making anything of them. The filming is shaky and the quality is low, but it's fun to look back and remember bits and pieces of what made up our days there.
You can click this link to view the 5 minute video, but don't forget to make it full screen and turn up your volume so that you can get the full experience ;)
Traveling to and from Anse-a-Pitres last week was quite the adventure. From our house to the small coastal town is only a 90 mile stretch, but the journey itself took a little more than 9 hours each way. I wanted to document a few pieces of our adventure, but it's turned out to be a long post. So, if you're interested in the crazy details, click the link below! Mothers, you've been warned...
Our tap-tap the other night looked like it had recently been on an episode of "Pimp My Ride" (or "Pimp My Tap-Tap"). It had completely cushioned seating and a freshly painted interior, and was decked out in fluorescent multi-colored lights around the words "Jesus Love." We are keeping it classy in Haiti!
The other day we hopped on a usually over-crowded tap-tap to find it almost empty, except for a woman and this little guy, on his way to become supper...! There's a saying we've learned for moments like this, when something is typical for Haiti (a really bad road, no electricity, or a chicken on a tap-tap): "Sa Ayiti"-- "That's Haiti."
Once they left, we had the whole tap-tap to ourselves... and then realized we had ridden 20 minutes in the wrong direction, turning our 45 minute commute into a 2 hour road trip.... Sa Ayiti!
The tap-tap is one of the public transportation options in Port-au-Prince. It is basically a pick-up truck with a built-in bench on either side of the truck bed, and a metal cover over it. They are usually decked out in bright swirls of color, with portraits of Jesus or LeBron James ;) About 6, sometimes 7, people can fit on one side. You get very up close and personal very fast...
The system is nothing like a normal bus system back home. There are no signs, no maps, nothing official about it. There are dozens that fill the streets at one time, and they all go on different routes. You basically have to ask the driver before you get in if they are going to your destination. As far as payment, you just have to "know" how much it is- again, there is no map or official system. We have been asking Mimi which routes to take, and how much each will cost, so that the driver can't rip us off just because we're American and don't speak Creole.
Driving in general is insane. There are a few paved roads, but most have potholes left and right. Cars and motorcycles weave in and out of traffic, freely honking as a means of communication. It is so fast-paced and sporadic...
So, to sum it all up, here's a video that perfectly depicts how I feel riding through the streets of Haiti:
The last few days we have been spending our mornings reading on the front porch, where there is a nice breeze...
The gate that leads to the street from Mimi's house. We spent the whole day navigating tap-taps all on our own!
We found this little hotel restaurant while we were waiting to meet up with a friend, and had some egg sandwiches and a coke (all for about 5 bucks!). Yes, that's Edward Scissorhands on tv ;) and in english!
We helped this woman and son by paying for their tap-tap fare (only 10 gourds a person, which is about 25 cents), and then she helped us by leading us to the building we were looking for. We have interacted with so many people that are genuinely concerned and want to help us find our way around! P.S. That is a tap-tap on the right. I will describe those in more detail soon!
We also spent time at an American friend's house, where they had about 30 other Americans over to hang out and eat burgers. Pretty much everybody there was in some job having to do with development, so Andrew loved every minute of meeting people and exchanging phone numbers :)
Now we continue our search for an apartment close to these new friends!
What is everyone back home doing for the 4th today? We have been navigating around via tap-tap (on our own!!) all day-- more to come on that story later. We also got invited to a party tonight, hosted by some of the guys Andrew has been talking to the last few months who live in a city called Pacot. We are looking forward to being able to speak normal english to people other than ourselves, and are hoping for a cookout or sparklers ;)
In the meantime, click below for some pictures to summarize our last few days...
