AFD Haiti Day One

Well here we are! I must say it has already been wild ride. We arrived today around 5pm. We are staying at a guesthouse about 10 minutes out of Port-Au-Prince.  We all pretty much agreed that things are worse here than we imagined. Dr. Zollinger has been to Haiti before and mentioned there have been some vast improvements since his visit one year ago. From a first time perspective seeing poverty on this level, firsthand, is very powerful.

The airport situation was interesting. Once we got off the plane we could immediately feel the humidity of the 87degree air. It felt awesome. Things smelled different, and the signs were all in Creole. Walking through customs was a breeze even with our goofy dental equipment. The airport only lost one bag. It happened to be all of Karens personal items. We are hooking her up with stuff until she gets her things in.

Most of the towns people that we saw on our way to the guesthouse were eager to smile at us and give us a wave. There were also a few unsavory characters that did not respond in the same way. The families were lined up all along the roads selling items or cooking food on the streets. There were several fires along the side of the dusty roads. People burn all of the garbage here. The smell is a little different from home. In our 10 minute drive from the airport we saw at least 7 goats, 3 dogs, and about 10 chickens.

The guesthouse is wonderful, it has everything we need. They even have 3 resident dogs!! We had tacos for dinner and ice cream for dessert. We went through all of our supplies to get them organized and played UNO afterwards. (Kalli lost).

Well even though its only been a half day we have already seen a lot and laughed a lot. We look forward to a full day at the home for sick and dying tomorrow.

We will keep you updated!!

Annie