"I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know: the only ones among you
who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve" Albert Schweitzer

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Surviving The Port Au Prince Airport Experience

There are few things as unnerving in Haiti as the arrival in the airport and passage to Hopital Adventiste.  What follows is our brief survival guide.  
The Immigration portion is relatively painless except for the long lines.  We noted with amusement then frustration as the leaders/organizers of a couple of the larger volunteer groups bullied their way to the front of the lines.  Apparently, they were demanding special dispensation for members of their team ostensibly because they were there to save Haiti.  The only problem was the majority of the arrivees were volunteers as well so there was no indication for preferential treatment.  This selfish behavior drew the ire of a few  of the locals and escalated into an embarrassing shouting match.  As mentioned in a previous post, there are few heroes in Haiti so please be patient and wait your turn.
Once you make it through the Immigration ordeal, Customs is relatively painless.  We carried letters requesting exemption from tariffs but the Customs personnel appeared to be unimpressed and largely ignored them.  Agents may want to take a look inside your bags but we were not aware of anyone pressured to pay duty for medical supplies.    Never the less, I would recommend obtaining the introductory papers that can be procured from Loma Linda University Global Health Institute.
When you leave Customs, if at all possible, stay underneath the covered walkway before exiting through the Red Gate.  Not only will you be protected from the brutal rays of the sun until your transportation arrives (which could be hours), you don't want to head out into the sea of humanity prematurely for reasons outlined below.
Before exiting the Red Gate, make sure that you confirm that your driver is outside the enclosure.  He will usually be holding up a piece of paper with identifying information that you will be able to recognize.
As soon as you pass through the Red Gate, hordes of entrepreneurs will descend upon your luggage expecting to be compensated even if they lay hands upon your gear momentarily.  Our recommendation is to make sure that you have a few $1 bills ready for the airport.  Do not open up your wallet with multiple bills exposed.  Find a couple of the ringleaders and hand out no more than two dollars/bag in gratitude for them transporting your gear to the vehicle. 
Multiple others will cry foul and demand reimbursement but stand firm as you will never come close to appeasing everyone.  Climb into your vehicle as soon as possible to escape the mob.  Another option is to solicit your driver to help navigate the impasse however that tactic will be dependent upon how fluent you are in French/Creole or how well your driver understands English.
The drive from the airport can be harrowing but you will observe things that will remain in you memory for years to come.  It was comforting to know that we were in good hands as we were driven to the hospital.

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