After spending a wonderful weekend with Gwenn and Nick, it was time to say goodbye. Kyle and I both needed to head to Port-au-Prince, where we would part ways. Kyle had a flight back to the States and I needed to meet up with Qasim (my Haitian friend from my cholera unit days). To avoid the whole traveling alone in Haiti thing, Qasim offered to be my escort for the day.
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4 tap taps later, and I finally arrived in Titanyen.
Tap taps are painted trucks or buses that serve as Haiti's form of public transportation. They are cheap, chaotic, crammed, and hot (thus, most Americans won't use them). Before the end of the night, I had inherited the nickname "tap tap." Every conversation began the same way : "Hey I heard about you. You were the one who took tap taps to get here!!"
Never again. Next time, I take a moto. :)
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Arriving at Mission of Hope was equally chaotic. Apparently, no one knew I was coming in that day. I had only one number and one name (yes, I realize I should know better), so of course no one knew me or who I was talking about.
After getting my license and bags confiscated by the security guard . . . after roaming around the compound looking for a white person to help me . . . and after explaining my situation multiple times . . . things finally got worked out.
I think it's just fact that anything that can go wrong will go wrong in Haiti. Haiti should come with a disclaimer: it will take you 3 times longer than planned to accomplish whatever you have in mind . . . something will go wrong at some point in the process . . . but it will end up working out how it's supposed to in the end.
Compared to life in Seguin, Mission of Hope is like staying at a hotel. And this is where I'll be honest. . . I have felt uneasy, and even guilty, about staying here. I've realized that for some reason, I have it in my head that I have to be just as uncomfortable or as limited as the people I'm serving. I'm not sure why exactly, except that maybe it's because most of my time has been in Seguin, where this is often the case.
God is teaching me to accept gifts from others and blessings from Him.
4 tap taps later, and I finally arrived in Titanyen.
Tap taps are painted trucks or buses that serve as Haiti's form of public transportation. They are cheap, chaotic, crammed, and hot (thus, most Americans won't use them). Before the end of the night, I had inherited the nickname "tap tap." Every conversation began the same way : "Hey I heard about you. You were the one who took tap taps to get here!!"
Never again. Next time, I take a moto. :)
Arriving at Mission of Hope was equally chaotic. Apparently, no one knew I was coming in that day. I had only one number and one name (yes, I realize I should know better), so of course no one knew me or who I was talking about.
After getting my license and bags confiscated by the security guard . . . after roaming around the compound looking for a white person to help me . . . and after explaining my situation multiple times . . . things finally got worked out.
I think it's just fact that anything that can go wrong will go wrong in Haiti. Haiti should come with a disclaimer: it will take you 3 times longer than planned to accomplish whatever you have in mind . . . something will go wrong at some point in the process . . . but it will end up working out how it's supposed to in the end.
Compared to life in Seguin, Mission of Hope is like staying at a hotel. And this is where I'll be honest. . . I have felt uneasy, and even guilty, about staying here. I've realized that for some reason, I have it in my head that I have to be just as uncomfortable or as limited as the people I'm serving. I'm not sure why exactly, except that maybe it's because most of my time has been in Seguin, where this is often the case.
God is teaching me to accept gifts from others and blessings from Him.
Love, Janae
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