Visit to Hinche, Haiti

We arrived in Haiti on the 2nd, but this is the first time I’ve had a chance to write down any notes. What an interesting place! Just driving from the airport to the hotel and office on the first day was an experience. I’ve been several places where riding in a vehicle can be very exciting, but Haiti may take the prize. Streets are narrow in most places, barely two lanes wide. Those streets are shared by cars going both directions, motor bikes, people walking, ox drawn carts, donkeys, horses, and bicycles. You’d be amazed how many lanes you can put on a two lane road. There are no road markings, even at intersections. No stop signs; no yield signs. Basically, everyone moves into the intersection at once, and the most aggressive come out the other side first. Turn signal not required. In fact, turn signals, tail lights, and headlights appear to be optional. Now your horn on the other hand….. I think they may actually ticket you if that doesn’t work!

Our second day here, we took a small, 6 seat plan (including pilot) to an area called Hinche. This is in the Central Plateau area of Haiti. Flying over the country gives you a great appreciation for just how beautiful this country is. The scenery goes from the beach, to hills, to mountains, to this very large flat area north of Port-au-Prince. You also get an appreciation for the problems of Haiti. Years ago, the island was de-forested. From what I understand, many of the trees were cut down to provide building materials and fuel. Later, a commercial logging company came and removed the remaining commercially viable trees. Many years have now passed, and you’d think some organization would simply come in and replant. Unfortunately, too many years have gone by, and with nothing to hold the soil on the rocky slopes, all the top soil has washed away into the ocean. As you fly over, while it is green from grass and brush, you also see the soil is incredibly rocky. This is part of the reason why any tropical storm or hurricane is so devastating to the island.

Airstrips in remote parts of Haiti are a bit different than we’re used to. The landing strip in Hinche was a gravel and dirt path just off of the center of town. When not receiving planes, it’s used as a bicycle path, meeting point, and grazing area for the local animals. Air traffic control is a guy on the cell phone talking to someone back in Port-au-Prince to let them know the plane has arrived. There are two guys on bicycles that ride up the runway as the plane circles yelling at everyone to get off the strip. Apparently this works well sometimes, and not so good others. The good news is the pilots are very good at missing all wildlife and people remaining on the air strip. Even the dog that ran in front of the plane at the last minute (and the child that ran after it trying to catch it) survived just fine.

The first thing you notice about Hinche is that everyone has somewhere to go. I don’t know where they are all going, but it seems like the whole town is on the move. You generally don’t see people just sitting around. Everyone is either on the way to the well, on the way to the river to wash clothes or bathe, on the way to town to trade / sell items, or back after having done so. We saw several people with motor bikes, and many had donkeys or horses. While folks here clearly are below the poverty line, people obviously care about trying to make the most of what they have.

The hotel we stayed in was called the L’ermitage de Pandiassou, and is actually just a little outside of Hinche. This is a beautiful location, with very nice, beautiful buildings. It looks completely out of place compared to the rest of the city. The hotel is set back quite a bit from the road, and is totally quite. Electricity is provided by generator, and amazingly it has hot running water. We met the owner on Friday evening. He is a doctor in Port-au-Prince, and purchased the property in Pandiassou a little over two years ago. He and his wife thought it would be interesting to run a hotel. They built one building as the family home, and then decided to turn it into a restaurant for the hotel. While the setting is amazing, it was a bit disconcerting to share your room (and bed) with some very interesting bugs. The fans were helpful, but when the generator cuts out, it gets awfully hot in the rooms.

We also realized that speaking French would be real helpful when in remote areas, and neither of us speak a word. When we checked in, we were told we had to order dinner then (this is at 9am). We did so, but then we couldn’t get anyone to bring it to us. We finally got it figured out, but they decided only one of us ordered, so we split one meal between us. The next morning, no breakfast, because it turns out, you have to order that at dinner the night before. We got smart then, and ordered dinner, but somehow, they misplaced the order. It’s a good thing they figured that out while we were talking with the owner, or we would not have been given dinner that night either. On one hand, that’s good for the weight loss plan. On the other, you can only skip so many meals (or replace with granola bars) before you start to get a little light headed!

Overall, a great trip to Hinche, then back on the little airplane for the return to Port-au-Prince this morning. This afternoon, our hosts took us up to an area just outside of Port-au-Prince and we visited the Baptist Mission. I’m trying to translate the brochure we received, but in general, a couple from the US come here in 1943 and started this mission, providing education, medical support, and practical training to people in this area. To get to this mission, you drive basically straight up into the mountains. The roads are incredibly narrow, and built right into the side of the mountain. There is no margin for error when driving on this road, as there is no real wall between you and a straight down drop in some areas. People here build their cement homes right into the side of the cliff. I would hate to have to walk up to the main road from some of these places. Yet they do it, and are able to do it carrying heavy loads. Even the children.

Tonight, back at the Hotel Karibe. It’s great to visit the field, but I have to admit, air conditioning is really nice. I also like the fact I have no small, creeping visitors sharing the room with me. Well, there is the small lizard I saw run out of the closet and under the bed, but he seems content to sleep on the floor, so he can stay.
More tomorrow!