This has been a week full of adventure. Specifically, I experienced a lot of firsts on Monday and Tuesday as we travelled to 2 of the extension schools of Centre Lumiere. Just like my trip to Boval last week, Esther, Marcelle, and I visited 2 more schools earlier in the week. We planned to visit the last 2 the second half of the week, but because of worries of political unrest on Wednesday, they have been postponed to next week.
On Monday, we travelled to Montoban to visit Christa's class. It was initially our intentions to to travel to Bouffard with was much further away, but no one told the American that sunscreen was needed for the 2 hour ride on the back of the truck :) Needless to say, I have slowly been learning what things I always need to have on hand. I feel like a mother carrying a diaper bag around! You must always have: water (clean water is not readily available), sunscreen (everyone fights for shade), sunglasses (dust and wind dry out contacts in no time), book/something entertaining (you will always be waiting for someone/something), cell phone and cash (emergency), camera (photo opportunities always abound), snacks (you DO NOT eat on the streets), handsanitizer (should be self-explanatory), and patience (people will continue to talk to you even after you say “I do not understand!” and “I do not speak Creole!”).
Back to Montoban... so, since I was unprepared for the trip to Bouffard, we decided to take a different course and head east 2 hours back toward Port au Prince. I knew that this included moto-taxis and “tap taps,” but, man, was I in for a surprise. Everyone stares at the “blanc” (white girl) anyway, so if you don't want to draw any more attention to yourself, you show no fear! The day began with a half-mile walk out to the main road from Centre Lumiere. That included crossing over a river by stepping on tires filled with stones. All I could think was, “Kelly, you're going to fall in...” until I made it safely across. I'm still fearful every time we cross that way.
When we made it out to the main road, we waited for our “tap tap” to take us into town. The Medical Team's staff is not allowed to take ANY public transportation in the country if that tells you much about the safety of these things. Basically it's a Nissan pick-up truck with bars welded to the sides to hold on to. After flagging down a “tap tap,” you climb into the back and stand amongst all of the people. When your stop is approaching, you stomp on the bed of the truck or slap the side to signal to the driver that you want off. At one point, I counted 22 people standing in the back with me. Everyone holds on to everyone else for stability. They have no fear; I could not show any!
In the city of Les Cayes, we caught our second “tap tap” of the day. This time there was a covering over the bed of the truck. Lucky me, I got to ride in the back on the way there. There is a bench on each side for people to sit on, or you can stand on the tailgate and hold on to the top of the cover. I learned you don't want to be the person that sits right behind the crew cab, because every time the driver puts on breaks, you are squished more and more.
Our destination was off the main road, so we had to take “moto-taxis” about 5 miles up the mountain. Basically 3 people squeezed on the back of a motorcycle with no helmets riding through gravel and streams and speeding around large dump trucks. Every Haitian has a story about a horrible wreck they've had on their motorcycle. I don't want to add one to the list.
On the way back, Esther and I got to ride in the front of the “tap tap.” If I wasn't scared before, I was definitely scared then. With all the decals and dirt on the window, I couldn't see out the front; I have no idea how the driver could as well. And, when we stop for gas, you leave the vehicle running because it wastes gas (and money) to have to re-crank it. All in all, it was a great experience (insert sarcasm here).
On Tuesday we headed to Zanglais, and the experience was relatively the same. I knew what to expect this time, which was much nicer. Except, on the ride back, I thought a rock flew into the window and popped me on the arm. It didn't take 5 seconds, though, for me to realize that I had been stabbed, bit or stung by something because the pain shot up my arm nearly instantly. I watched as my arm turned red and began swelling. Since I had no idea what got me, I was determined to find it for myself. One person said it had to be a mosquito and I thought I was going to fall into the floor laughing. When I finally spotted the nasty yellow jacket on the ceiling, I was told that it couldn't be a sting because it didn't swell enough! Maybe the light wasn't very good in the bed of the truck? Anyway... the fever finally went out of the area and it's starting to itch today, so it's healing as it should.
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