a1206: Re: a1182: What if? (fwd) + Traveling in Haiti (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: JHUDICOURTB@aol.com

Feeling safe anywhere often has to do with a feeling of confidence and
familiarity .   When we are in the US hearing about the crimes that happened
in Haiti our imagination plays tricks on us.  To feel safe in Haiti we must
tell ourselves that the majority of people in Haiti are honest hard-working
innocent people, most of whom are struggling to make a living.  One must also
think that in Haiti you have to expect the unexpected.  You are no less safe
than in the USA except that there is no 911 or AAA.  When you have a problem
you need to count on the people who are with you or that you encounter. It's
always more comfortable to be welcomed by people who live in Haiti than to go
completely alone. I think the most important security measure one needs to
take when going to Haiti is to always have with you before landing in Haiti a
quart of drinking water, some hand disinfectants, and your own tissue paper.
New bacteria are  the major enemy of the visitors.  One also needs to put
aside the mindset that we have in the US that bathrooms and food are always
readily accessible.  In Haiti those 2 are few and far between.
What if Corbett or Guy Antoine maintained a list of suggestions for places to
stay in Haiti and places where one can stop to make a phone call, to eat,
or find a clean bathroom.  Those last 2 don't always go together as they
usually do in fast food restaurants in the US.
Last year around Carnaval time a USAID employee in Jacmel put together a list
of Hotels and bed-and-breadfast in the Jacmel area.  It would be very useful
to start with that list and have a list of places around the country and what
to expect from them.  For example:  The Hotel in Seguin (in the mountains
between Kenscoff and Jacmel) is very comfortable with private bathrooms,
enchanting environment, very slow food service, and payment expected in US
cash.  There are very good places to stay in Camp Perrin, Mirebalais, Fondwa
(on the way to Jacmel), Petit Trou de Nippes, Value (near TiGwav).  Any more
out there?  Some expect US dollars, some are in Gourdes, most will not take
credit cards.  Some people on this list may have stayed in those places and
could give short descriptions that could be kept in a special file by
Windowsonhaiti or Corbett...
When going on Nationale #1 to the North for example, the DeliMart in Bon
Repos is a good place to stop to pick up your drinking water and snacks.  The
beach hotels from Carries to Trou Baguette usually have clean public bathroom
but no fast lunches.  The best place to stop for a fast Lunch is the grocery
store in the middle of the Montrouis market area.  The food is clean and
tasty and they'll turn the fan on for you when you sit down to eat.  The
bathroom is not clean.  The Xaragua Hotel has a public Haitel phone.  You can
usually buy a phone card from the Hotel receptionist and call around the
world.  There is also a phone calling place at the Shell station right past
the Montrouis bridge.  There they dial for you and you pay by the minute...
There is a good food store and snack bar on the North side of the Saint-Marc
main square but most of the stuff sold there is imported.  After the dustbowl
between SaintMarc and Gonaives (if you are going that way you in a car that
has no air conditioning you should have a dust mask and a scarf for your
hair) there is a clean Texaco station at the Gonaives entrance.  You can go
into the food store to ask for a key the clean bathroom outside... Enough of
that...
For those who think of Haiti as a place of chaos I will suggest of different
image.  It is an island that is made up of islands.  So many times in Haiti
one drives through what feels like Chaos, dirt, fear, and anger, and enters a
side road or driveway which leads to the the most beautiful and peaceful
place on earth.