Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Sounds & smells of Haiti


I’ve spoken how alive the city becomes, so quickly, with shouting, blaring radios, honking, and the constant din of traffic. What I neglected to mention was how my first couple of nights here, I heard loud music from down the laneway that sounded kind of like Cuban music, and I wondered if there was a club where we could go to see live music. Ha! I’ve since been told that the music is coming from a brothel! I’m glad I didn’t take a stroll down there to investigate, hehe.

I’m learning that Grassroots has become a bit of a stopping ground for other volunteers in Haiti; some come here to give a bit of time, and others have come here when they just need a mental break from the work they are doing. We’ve seen many folks from ‘All Hands Volunteers' and a number of other volunteer organisations. There are two different teams of people based here who are installing and delivering water purification and filtration systems. Grassroots is a terrific networking hub for people who want to come and  participate in a worthy endeavour here in Haiti. 

The smells...hmmm, well, they're not really the sweetest. Haiti is filled with smells...of decay, of garbage burning, of vehicles that are pumping out black smoke, of urine, of feces, of overflowing garbage...I would have to say I haven't smelled (m)any good smells, apart from cooking smells. Oh, and then there's my smell- I'm sweating up a storm here in this hot clime, indeed. Of course, I have yet to stick my nose in the lush hibiscus plant in the backyard, or any other flowers.

Some of the guys at the site, rocking out the rubble crusher! 

Look how beautiful they are- these three were kind enough to invite me in to see their homesteads yesterday.


A contrast to the traditional homes in Haiti, this plywood house is one of the styles of new homes 
that is being employed by foreign contractors in Haiti. 'They' say they're not temporary, but I've seen how poorly plywood stands up to water, so I wouldn't consider them permanent by any means.

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