a1331: From the U.S. to Dondon / From Dondon to the Citadel (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: GUY S ANTOINE <GuyAntoine@windowsonhaiti.com>


My youth in Haiti, up to the age of 19, was filled with discovery and
wonders and instilled in me all the values I have needed to lead a
level-headed and family-oriented adult life in the United States.  I
now have three children who can hardly imagine anyone growing in
a country so backward and devoid of infrastructure as Haiti is.  How
would they survive without their electronic games, without electricity
24 hours a day, without this and without that?  As I always say, to
their disbelief, I would never trade one day of my growing up in Haiti
for a day of privileged living in the States.  I was very privileged too in
Haiti, in different ways.  I had the loving, though nonsensical protection
of not just my immediate family but a community of first, second, and
third cousins, uncles and aunts, and elders I always respected, not
knowing but sensing that at some level, I was related to them too,
related to everybody around me.

And I learned from their wisdom. And I could recognize how many
ways people struggled to achieve respectability while living in various
states from financial freedom to abject poverty.  In my parents' eyes,
it would have been the greatest offense (it never happened), if I had
shown the least bit of disrespect to the poorest family member.
Material privileges most certainly did not matter in that respect, and
a show of affection could only be measured by how close these elders
were to your own family tree which truly extended to the entire village.
Though I was born in and went to school in the North's capital city,
Dondon was the town that held all of my emotional strings, for being
the town where I spent most of my vacation time, the town where my
father was born and raised, and my grandmother's, and my great
grandfather's, and  three other generations before that, all the way
back to this freed slave named Chicotte and this French settler named
Thomas Ménard. Yes, I am six generations removed from either Africa
or France, but 100% human and Dondonian. But I broke the chain. My
children do not know Dondon, may never know it... perhaps will learn
about it from my writings.  Though they do not know it, a measure of
Dondon flows through their veins.

I went to Dondon only twice in the last thirty years. Did not feel the same.
You truly cannot go back home.  It's a new day.  Too many have broken
the chain like me.  This link to History has forever been destroyed.  We
live now in a globalized world, where people move from towns to cities,
from cities to other countries, leaving broken links to friends and family
all over the place.  Life is often too frenzied to allow us to pick up the
pieces.  But I do remember... a place called Dondon.

===============================================

Sent: Monday, September 15, 1997 9:48 AM
Subject: Dondon and its caves

A correspondent (David Lyall) from the list asked me the following:
"The mention of the caves is interesting, so I was wondering if there could
be anything like a guest house in Dondon. I was told that Milot has nothing
of the sort, but it seemed quite a nice little town. It even has electricity in
the evenings they say.  Are these caves the ones mentioned in the 1872
tour of Haiti that was posted?"

I will post my answer here, because of the general interest:

I only vaguely remember the references to Dondon in the 1872 tour of Haiti
that was posted.  Of the caves that I know, Voute des Dames would likely
be one those caves.  It owes its name to two big stalagmites, which are side,
by side and presumably in the shape of two ladies.  Due to Dondon's
elevation and climate (it gets misty and very cool at dawn, and most
especially so during the early part of the year - the closest thing to winter
in Haiti - it is likely that there are more of those cave formations.  They
may have some anthropological value.  I have heard (but cannot certify)
that when some of those caves were (re)discovered, they contained some
Indian artifacts.  As you can well imagine, those artifacts would have
disappeared as soon as they were discovered.  I am even surprised that
there are any cannonballs left in the Citadel, especially of the small variety.
Every time I went to the Citadel, I would make it a point to come down
with a couple of those baby cannon balls (they were so cute), and nobody
ever stopped me.  In doing so, I was following the action of countless others.

Common to those caves however are the great many bats that cover their
ceilings.  Some ceiling corners appear at first to be uniformly black until
you point your flashlight at them.  You then discover that it is of a LIVING
darkness, not to be disturbed (speaking from first-hand experience!). This
explains to some extent the great number of small bats that flew to Dondon's
skies at dusk and fascinated me in my youth.  Many were the unfortunate
ones that flew into my room and got trapped and later subjected to my
experiments:  Can bats puff on a cigarette?  Holy smoke... you bet they do!

As far as I know, there aren't any guesthouses in Dondon, though the local
priests or ministers could help you in that respect.  I don't know whether I
would recommend Dondon as a place to visit, really.  In adult eyes, it is a
rather poor and desolate community.  In my eyes as a young child and early
adolescent, it was a place of enchantment.

As for electricity, we had it generated on and off, more often off than on, by
a few Delco generators.  Thank God we did not have electricity on a regular
basis.  I am, of course, not talking from a development approach, so spare
me the rebuke, but I can't imagine the nights of story telling about Bouki and
Malice, zombies and loupgarous, would have fired up my imagination in
quite the same way, had they not been told in the dark.

===============================================

From: Robert Corbett
Sent: Friday, September 12, 1997 6:50 PM
Subject: From Dondon to the Citadel

In Guy Antoine's post about swimming [not posted here], he mentioned
growing up in Dondon.  That led to the following exchange between us,
and I thought it might be interesting and a challenge to others of you.
Guy agreed I could share it with you.

Bob Corbett
===============================================

Guy, I've never been to Dondon, though I've funded a couple of small
economic projects there.  However, in Hugh Cave's 1952 book on
Haiti,  HAITI, HIGHROAD TO ADVENTRUE, he talks about going
up to the Citadel on a back path out of Dondon, rather than the more
traditional route from Milot.  Do you know this route, which I'm sure
you must, how difficult is it? Is it particularly pretty?

I can't believe I'm even asking this question. I have a horrible bad left
knee.  Walking is one of my favorite activities.  However, for about 9
months I've been confined to bicycling since it doesn't hurt my knee.
A couple of weeks ago my physician gave me a knee brace, and now
I've been walking a bit -- only one or two hours at a time -- and now
I'm already dreaming of some harder route up to the Citadel?????  I
must be partially insane.

But, I'd still like to know.  :)

Best, Bob
===============================================

Sent: Friday, September 12, 1997
From: Guy Antoine

Bob, I'll tell you what I remember.  However, I am drawing from
reminiscences dated from over 20 years. [Over 30 years, at this
point in time, March 2002.]

The way to the Citadel from Milot is MUCH MORE frequented than
the path from the 'avant-bourg' of Dondon, for the following reasons:

a) the tourists often start from visiting the Sans-Souci palace in Milot
and continue on to the Citadel.

b) at different points in time, the road up the mountain has been well
managed enough for Jeeps and other utility vehicles to make it
halfway up to the Citadel.  Even further with mules and horses.

Such is not the case for Dondon, where you go up the mountain the
old-fashioned way: WALKING.  There are no tourist attractions nearby.
However, on the plus side, the slope is gentler, and you can generally
make it to the top in less time and with less exhaustion.  I have gone
to the Citadel from Milot maybe twice, but from Dondon at least a
dozen times.  I ALWAYS looked forward to the challenge in my youth.

Are you up to the challenge?  I agree with your assessment that you
must be partially insane.  And whatever sanity you have left may be
gone by the time you'd make it down the mountain.  I would not
recommend it, but if you are determined to throw caution to the wind,
then go the Dondon way.  The Force of my direct ancestors will be
with you.

Guy
===============================================

Sent: Sunday, September 14, 1997 11:59 PM
Subject: From Dondon to the Citadel: Antoine's sister corrects his memory!

Bob, here are some comments about our exchange from my sister in Haiti.

Guy, you could make it to the Citadel from Dondon in less time, because
your legs were fresh and the road is in fact shorter.  But I have always
believed that the slope from Dondon was steeper, not gentler as you claim.
Since you were always so full of energy, the fact that it took less time
translated in your mind into a gentler slope.  I don't believe that this is the
case.  In fact, this is one of the reasons that most visitors would prefer to
get there from Milot, aside from visiting Sans Souci of course.

However, you are right to champion the way from Dondon, in spite of the
absence of other nearby attractions.  For one, it's less touristy. For another,
at a certain point on the way up, you get a unique perspective of the fortress.
It reveals itself in its entire length, most imposing and breathtakingly beautiful.
In addition, if one has the time to visit the area extensively, there are the caves,
Dondon's claim to geographical fame: Voute des Dames, Voute a Minguet,
and Voute Marc Antoine. I have heard that they have recently discovered a
fourth voute, even larger than the others.

Bob should certainly wait for a full rehabilitation of his knee, but I believe
that it will be worth his while.
===============================================

Sent: Monday, September 15, 1997 2:45 PM
From: Max Blanchet

In recent years, I have visited the Citadelle at least 3 times, always via Milot
and the better known access trail.

If my memory serves me correctly, the trail from the Citadelle to Dondon goes
through the castle or fortress built for Madame La Reine and her entourage.
Our guides always mentioned that fact to us.  Is this correct?

It would seem to me that if nothing else, the Citadelle-Dondon trail would be
well worth taking to give visitors the opportunity to visit that part of the
complex.

Max Blanchet
===============================================

 Max is entirely correct.  However, not much at all remains from the old fortress,
and only the most adventurous tourists would want to stray from the beaten path.

Guy S. Antoine
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