Haiti Blog Day 1
Well we have arrived!
It was a really a day full of travel and introduction to Haiti. We arrived at MSP International Airport at
the very early hour of 4:30 am. The team
gathered for a pre-trip photo, full of expectation and not a few nerves! After a few confusing bag check and security
situations we made it through to our gate to find that we nearly had the plane
to Atlanta to ourselves. Likely a combo
of it being 9/11 and the fact we were flying into the path of Hurricane Irma.
Even the cabin crew was amazed and graciously loaded us up with extra
snacks. We could sit wherever we wanted,
lots of space, what a blessing.
We arrived in Atlanta to some very stormy dark weather and a
pretty empty airport. Most shops were
closed but were able to grab a snack, as Delta was unable to supply food
because of the storm. This leg of our
flight was very interesting to say the least, mostly due to the prep speech of
the pilot as we prepared to take off. It
was pretty long but the jist of it was “ if you were expecting a smooth flight
today, you can just forget that, we are, after all, flying by a
hurricane!” Sufficiently scared and
expecting the worst flight ever, we were pleased to find it really was pretty
smooth.
We arrived in Haiti on time and in good shape, if a bit
weary from the early start. We navigated
the mass of humanity trying to help us with bags and found our bus (aka Tap
Tap) ride to the Healing Haiti guesthouse.
There we were greeted by welcoming staff and seven dogs (including 2
puppies). Those of us missing our own doggies
were happy for their company. We settled
into our bunkrooms, had a delicious dinner and hiked up to a very welcome cool
dip in the local hotel pool.
As we turn in for the night, we are so thankful for a smooth trip and safe arrival. We look forward to our first day of serving the Haitian people and pray that mutual respect and learning guide us through the days ahead.
-Paula
