The Broken City

Yesterday we took a trip to downtown Port au Prince, which was hit the hardest in the earthquake.  The sights overwhelmed me by the end - so much devastation.  Picture this: beautiful old buildings, 3-4 storeys high, with old & unique architecture, lining the streets.  The envision these buildings missing large parts of walls, sloped, falling, rubble at the bases of the buildings, beams exposed, large pieces of concrete hanging from the floor above it; in some cases the buildings look as though they could fall in the next major wind.  Directly under the awning of each building sits person after person, selling their product - a tiny selection of shoes, fruit, gum, purses, clothes, paintings...anything they can really....and their are thousands of these people in front and almost under each destroyed building.  And then, of coarse to finish the scene, thousands of people on the street buying items, sacs on top of heads, tap-tap’s, loaded with people, all attempting to be the first to get through the chaos... and motorcycles carrying anything that it can have near miss after near miss while weaving in and out of traffic.  During this, what appears to be a mess of traffic, each vehicle is laying on the horn to speed pass the next vehicle.  Riding in the back of a tap-tap is also a unique experience, as the passengers get to look out the back of the truck bed at all the passing sights, a breeze making it’s way through to each person - this breeze also filled with dust and emissions from every vehicle that passes.  By the end of the trip, this also became overwhelming to me.  I was craving the smell of fresh air, but as soon as we left the city core, the smell of burning garbage and polluted stagnant water filled the air instead; and even back at the base we still could not escape the smoke from the garbage.

When you are immersed in the middle of this devastating, and seemingly hopeless situation, it is hard to see past it all.  How can things change?  Where do you begin when EVERY building needs to be re-built?  When EVERY previously green space is inhabited with tent after tent - people’s new homes?

Once back in the quiet of the complex I began to remember the reason we came: it was for the children.  To help equip and change a new generation.  WIthout Jeremy here, there would be 100-120 adults without an English teacher, and English is the new hope.  If we can help stimulate the children to dream and discover new things and want change, then that is the beginning of the future to come.