Jacmel

We stayed in a smaller town in Haiti called Jacmel! It's southwest of Port-au-Prince, and on the coast of the southern part of the country. It's a beautiful little town, and has a lot of potential for a tourist industry. There is a lot of New Orleans and French influence in the buildings and architectural style.

The city does have electricity, not everyone has access to it and it is not consistent. In the immediate city there is running water, while on the outskirts there are water stations and pumps where people go to get water. There is also a river that is used for everything; washing clothes, bathing, getting water, watering livestock, washing cars, and more. Going to get water (as we learned on the worksite) can be quite the ordeal. Some children won't attend school because they are needed to carry water, which can take hours out of the day depending on where the family lives.

Decorated store front

The people of Jacmel are so creative and artistic. There was a wall down by the ocean that was completely mosaic. All of the buildings are brightly painted, and look different than the next. On the street corners each person finds a different way to arrange their goods to sell. And there are advertisements for "Digicel" (a cellphone company) everywhere.

People get around using cars, tap taps, or motos. Tap taps are brightly painted buses or pickup trucks with seats in the back that allow for many people to crowd into one at once. Motos are motorcycles that are used as taxies all throughout the country, and they are everywhere.

Haiti is truly an island in the Carribean. The crystal blue water and palm trees! I think people often forget that, and only think about the poverty and the rubble from the earthquake. But at the end of the day it is still a beautiful island, with beautiful scenery just like Jamaica or Puerto Rico!

As most of you know in 2010 there was a devestating earthquake in Haiti that left the country in ruins. Without a government there isn't a real way for the people to get help and to rebuild. There are places where you can see the devistation from the earthquake. But there is also a lot of growth in Jacmel too. I had a hard time distinguishing the difference between a building going up and one coming down, or an old building that was just starting to go. One cool thing, we wanted to see a tent city outside of Jacmel but we couldn't. There is no longer a tent city around Jacmel, everyone has been able to rebuild or move in with family into a permanent home instead of a tent!

We got all kinds of reactions from the Hatians. The kids would often wave to us. Other people would ignore us, wave to us, shot rude things at us. It was hard because we stood out so much in this town, we were a group of white kids traveling in a truck. In Haiti missionaries aren't always appreciated, the Haitians are very proud of their hard work (as they should be) and some don't want free hand outs. Others understand that we are not here just to hand things out, but to try and help people start over and provide for their families and give back to the community.

Us in the small truck

*Joy of Day 2: Seeing the passion for the Lord of the Haitian people in their church service, and then celebrating the day of rest at the beach!