I have arrived safely in Haiti!! I got in yesterday afternoon around 2 and had no problems with the flights! I actually somehow got put in first class for my Miami to Haiti leg so that was a nice little bonus! I know I said that my biggest concern when I was leaving was navigating the Haiti airport by myself and it went way better than expected!
When I came to Haiti last summer, getting through customs was a nightmare. After we got off the plane they shuttled us to this room equivalent to a basement with maybe one oscillating fan in the corner. Add about 300 people to that and in a foreign country and you have a big ole mess. And to add to that, they only had one carrousel to retrieve your luggage and if you're not fast enough to get it from there, someone will take it and just place it randomly in another part of the room, usually having to pay to get it back.
That's the expectation I had going into yesterday so I was bracing myself on the plane for that madness. I had heard that the airport had been redone recently after being hit by the earthquake but I was not expecting this! I was the about the sixth person off the plane (thanks first class!), walked straight up to the multiple customs desks, ac included, and then proceeded to go to the multiple carrousels and wait for my luggage. I was amazed at how easy it went! And to top that off, I saw another lady, Rachel, that had on the Praying Pelican shirt so I was lucky to see someone that was going to the same place!
Bethany, a PPM missions coordinator, picked us up at the airport and took us to Kingdom Hotel, which is where we would be staying for the night. I met up with the other girl staffers here and had been in Haiti for maybe an hour when we went to the orphanage where one of the girls lives full time. We all piled into the car and battled the Haitian traffic, almost running out of gas, and visited with the boys there for a while!
Once returning back to Kingdom we had dinner and hung with the rest of the staff. We enjoyed a night full of laughter and jokes and I was ready for bed!
We woke up this morning and had some breakfast and just chatted about the week to come! Most of the team this week is working in one location but everyone is pretty much on a different schedule. At breakfast we got word that the current Miss Haiti was at the hotel and lucky for us we got to see her from afar!
My team from the states doesn't arrive until tomorrow so I will spend the day at Kingdom napping, reading, and maybe taking a swim in the pool. Pray for the team's arrival tomorrow and that everything will run smoothly during the week!
Until later,
Emma
When I came to Haiti last summer, getting through customs was a nightmare. After we got off the plane they shuttled us to this room equivalent to a basement with maybe one oscillating fan in the corner. Add about 300 people to that and in a foreign country and you have a big ole mess. And to add to that, they only had one carrousel to retrieve your luggage and if you're not fast enough to get it from there, someone will take it and just place it randomly in another part of the room, usually having to pay to get it back.
That's the expectation I had going into yesterday so I was bracing myself on the plane for that madness. I had heard that the airport had been redone recently after being hit by the earthquake but I was not expecting this! I was the about the sixth person off the plane (thanks first class!), walked straight up to the multiple customs desks, ac included, and then proceeded to go to the multiple carrousels and wait for my luggage. I was amazed at how easy it went! And to top that off, I saw another lady, Rachel, that had on the Praying Pelican shirt so I was lucky to see someone that was going to the same place!
Bethany, a PPM missions coordinator, picked us up at the airport and took us to Kingdom Hotel, which is where we would be staying for the night. I met up with the other girl staffers here and had been in Haiti for maybe an hour when we went to the orphanage where one of the girls lives full time. We all piled into the car and battled the Haitian traffic, almost running out of gas, and visited with the boys there for a while!
Once returning back to Kingdom we had dinner and hung with the rest of the staff. We enjoyed a night full of laughter and jokes and I was ready for bed!
We woke up this morning and had some breakfast and just chatted about the week to come! Most of the team this week is working in one location but everyone is pretty much on a different schedule. At breakfast we got word that the current Miss Haiti was at the hotel and lucky for us we got to see her from afar!
My team from the states doesn't arrive until tomorrow so I will spend the day at Kingdom napping, reading, and maybe taking a swim in the pool. Pray for the team's arrival tomorrow and that everything will run smoothly during the week!
Until later,
Emma
I'm super excited for you Emma!! I can't wait to hear all of what God is doing/ will be doing throughout your trip!! Don't forget to be refueled through prayer and time in the Word! I'll be praying for you!! God is going to use you in so many ways this summer.
ReplyDeletesounds like a great adventure, Emma! You're an incredible lady. I'm praying for God to use you greatly in Haiti for His sake.
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