Haiti Trip January 2009-Port Au Prince

We rode back to PAP with a driver from Haiti Children's Home. We had decided to eat lunch at Visa Lodge and then hire a driver to take us to For His Glory to pick up Kenson and then on to Eagle Supermarket where we met a missionary family who was hosting us for the night. That meant we had several connections we had to make on our own without any help from a specific organization. D was quite worried about it. He always feels like he is responsible for our safety when in Haiti and not having a set plan makes him a bit leary.

We initially tried to call the driver that we had planned to use but kept getting hung up on. So I asked the desk clerk if she knew of a driver who could take us. While she was working on that, the driver who we were originally going to hire called us back so we ended up going with him to pick up Kenson. We had the address of the orphanage and the name but those of you who have been to Haiti know that isn't always sufficient information. The driver wasn't sure of where we were going and as we were driving was telling us how the house numbers don't match up on the streets in Haiti. For example, number 34 is across the street from 89. "That is where the confusion is, " he said. Eventually, things started looking familar to us and we got to the right place. (We weren't really lost just not 100% sure of where we were going. Enough to make D a bit crazy but that's okay. He didn't have far to go to get there.)

At the orphanage, Kenson's birth mom was waiting for us. We asked her to wait while we unloaded some donations and ran and took pictures of the rest of the kids for the families who are still waiting. Then we came back to visit with her. When we came back, she was sitting on the wicker sofa, putting lipstick on. That might sound a little strange in a place like Haiti but it's really a sign of respect. She wanted to look her best for us, to impress us, if she could. We sat with her for an hour or so and then said we needed to go. We got in the van with Kenson and she stood next to the window and waved good bye to him. It all defies words. It is such a weirdly wonderful awkward thing.

Then we headed to Eagle Supermarket to make connections with a missionary family from my hometown who had volunteered to host us in their home for our last night in Haiti. Connections made, no problems. (One more worry to cross off D's list.) Our host family was wonderful. We got to enjoy a hot shower, an American meal, tv, and a comfortable cooled home. They also arranged a driver to take us to the airport the next morning. We got to have our own space but also be hosted and catered to in some ways. Very nice.