Day 2 - Part 2

February 23, 2011 - Day 2 Part 2

11:30am check in and breakfast at l’hotel LErmitage de Pandiassou

12:00 travel to COBOCOL meet WV Headquarters staff and facilities

6:00pm COBOCOL to l’hotel l’Ermitage de Pandiassou

After giving the pilot a mini applause for his skill at landing the plane on the “landing strip”, we crawl out of the plane and are greeted by Sagnol and our two drivers. Sagnol comes from WV Headquarters in Hinche and he will be our travel guide and translator as we visit the ADP’s over the next few days. It seems everyone is quite interested in our arrival and a few children saunter over to watch us as well. We crawl into the trucks to take us to the hotel to drop off our “luggage” ;).

The streets are very busy and alive with activity. People, goats, cattle, dogs are everywhere, crates, dirt bikes, motorcycles crowd the streets. It is not a long drive to our hotel but it is apparent that Hinche is a growing village. We drive in to the gated area of the hotel and down a long “road” of rock, park in an area where building is going on and then walk down a stone walkway to the hotel. The lobby is nice with some beautiful woodworking in it. Unfortunately my room is not ready for me to drop off my “luggage” so I leave it in Laura’s room for now. It is weird being in a strange place for the first time, unsure what to make of it all and knowing you’ll need to make yourself comfortable enough to sleep there. The place seems ok, I know that WV puts us up in the best places possible, but I can’t help but wonder…

We have yet to eat breakfast because of our early start the staff of the hotel agree to give us a late breakfast snack to hold us over until lunch at the ADP. It is yummy, pastries of a sort and real lemonade! We are refreshed and ready to start out on the next leg of our journey. Little did we understand the words “rough roads”!

The road from Hinche to COBOCOL is a dirt, mud-caked, rutted cavernous strip of land. Never have I felt so at one with the settlers headed west to build America! Seriously I debated if travelling by wagon may have been easier! I know I’ve commented on it before but the driving is very aggressive in Haiti so consequently the driver guns it until he hits another pothole or cavern and then guns it again. Of course this sounds very fast, but is inactually very slow, hardly ever going faster than 30k/hr in between ruts, and the rock makes the road extremely rough. I am also sitting in the back of the truck, sideways, making the bumpy road even more interesting.

The poverty looks different here. The “shelters” are still not secure, most homes are pieced together, some plaster/cement, some wood, some material, but the space between them gives it a different feel, less destitute somehow. Goats, oxen, dogs, roosters, chickens are wandering along the road and land. A group of men are putting up cell towers in the most remote of places. I have never seen so much dirt and dust everywhere, covering everything. As we get closer to the COBOCOL ADP it becomes obvious that there is more of a sense of community here. Houses seem a little closer together, there are wells, and where there is a well there is a crowd of people gathered.

As we turn into the long drive into the COBOCOL ADP Headquarters I can’t help wondering what we will see there. We have waited a year and a half to finally get here and now we are arriving. I anticipate a staff member greeting us and taking us into the headquarters to show us around. As we pull up in front of the building, all of a sudden I get a glimpse of what is before us.

A long banner reads Welcome to COBOCOL ADP and there is an Haitian flag on one side of it and a Canadian flag on the other. Behind it stand a youth band, fully uniformed, waiting to welcome us with music. I can’t even explain the emotions I felt well up inside of me when I realized that they were waiting for us. We were warmly greeted by the ADP President and then the youth played for us a couple of songs, in the middle, the Canadian National Anthem. I can’t tell you what this did for me. It wouldn’t have occurred for me to do the same for them had they been visiting my country. This was an expression of what they valued, a gift of respect for our country. They had learned this piece especially to show us honour. There wasn’t a dry eye among us. This entire welcome was more than we could have anticipated, and honestly put us back a little that they would do so much to welcome us to their ADP.

After official greetings, including a piece presented by a student on the hope and appreciation they have because of our support, we are welcomed into the building for a tour. They are obviously very proud of their building and introduce us to many different department heads for Logistics, Heath Nurse, Education, Sponsorship, the secretary. The secretary just radiates joy, she is absolutely beautiful, her eyes dance, her face smiles, her countenance welcomes whole heartedly. As Bernie and I prepare to leave the sponsorship office I notice the picture of my sponsor child Micheala on the wall. My heart soars with the connection, there beside her is Bernie’s sponsor child, both with the supplies we brought with us last year. WE have an instant connection with the Director of the Sponsorship Program, as it is because of him that we have the connection we do have with our sponsor children.

From there we gather in the conference room and sit in a circle with 20 plus people, all united with one purpose, for the future and development of the people of COBOCOL. It is an amazing honour to sit with these people and listen to them and watch them as they proudly present their area of expertise, the developments and accomplishments they have made together, their biggest hurdles to overcome. I scratch wildly, pen to paper, trying to capture all that they have presented us, to take home to Frederictonians. I want to absorb and understand everything, so I can best represent these people.

At 2pm we break for lunch, a buffet of Haitian food. Rice with beans, fried banana, beet salad, lasagne, chicken legs and spice cake. We are waited on and treated like royalty. First they ensure all our needs are met and then quietly serve themselves as well.

From there we met with the 3 local government officials of the neighbouring community of Hinche. It was interesting to watch the 3 communicate with the World Vision staff. Each person bringing their expertise and concerns, values and objectives to the table and manuvering the dance of partnership together. From the passion of the ground workers to those in charge of processes. However, the lack of sleep coupled with the intense heat and high carb lunch made for sleepy Canadians, and our engagement began to dwindle toward the end of the meeting.

Thankfully from the meeting we went to further explore the facility. We were able to watch some students train in woodworking, sewing and making patterns. We watched grain be processed in their mill, visited the library and computer building and finally ont eh way home, the tree nursery. The nursery especially interested Bernie. I was travelling in the vehicle with the Director to the Mayor of Hinche, and as I was the only one who could speak French we were having a labored on my part, but very interesting discussion on a variety of topics. When he noticed Bernie’s particular interest in the soil I struggled to remember the name of soil in French. It was hilarious as I finally ended up referring to Bernie as a Dr. of dirt. I think I confused him more than anything. What is particularly awesome about this particular project is just how well done it is. Bernie was extremely impressed with how everything is run. Basically the staff grow healthy fruit trees to distribute freely to the ADP participants to combat deforestation, and in turn add the benefit of fruit like oranges, lemons, banana’s their diet at home.

It was a wonderful day. After little sleep, loosing or, at least, giving up our luggage, traveling by plane and truck the drive home on that horrible road in the dark was absolutely exhausting. All of us were extremely tired and longed for bed and sleep. Ready for whatever tomorrow brings!

~H