Q&A

Thank you for your comments and emails. I always look forward to reading them.


Here are the answers to your questions:

Why another Blog?
Before I left for Haiti many of you asked me if I was going to Blog? I said I would if I have access to the Internet. Unfortunately, the connection we have in our building is not reliable. So I cannot update the blog as often as I would like too and adding a photo can take hours which is fine but I don‘t always have a connection for that long…mostly. The purpose behind the blog is to share with you my experience in Haiti and to show you some of the devastation caused by the earthquake. I am amazed how a nation can adapt is such harsh conditions and how one can survive with just the bare minimum. The best way to describe it is, the Haitians made the best of a really bad situation.

Why are you in Haiti?
My work sent me to Port-au-Prince for 6 weeks. The work I do here is not a secret (unlike my job in Ottawa which is so secret even I don’t know what I’m doing!) but I do not want to talk about it on my blog because my blog is personal and what I post is all done on my personal time. If you would like to learn more about what I do in Haiti send, me an email and I will gladly answer it.

Do you feel safe in Haiti?
I do…sort of. As I said, I live in a really nice condominium with a breathtaking view of PaP. I am living the life of a drug cartel. The building is surrounded by 12 feet high concrete walls with barbwire and security guards armed with 12 gauge shot guns. I can’t go pass the walls unless I am in the armoured SUV with my “special friend” I cannot walk anywhere! So yes, I do feel safe and I hate it. I feel like I am under house arrest “a la Conrad Black” except he’s free and I am not!

Are you living in a tent?
No. I live in a really nice 1-bedroom condominium built 2 years ago with a magnificent view of PaP.

Can you walk around in PaP?
I cannot and that pisses me off to no end! Yes, I know there is a lot of crime and violence in certain areas of PaP but I do not go to those areas. I am no way near those areas. I personally do not care that I could be prone to be harassed by beggars that is something I can deal with. When I travel to a foreign country, I like to mix in with the locals. I know that I stick out like a soar thumb here but to me that is not a valid excuse. Unfortunately, I do not get to walk around in Haiti….yet. The photos you see of PaP and Pétion-ville are taken from inside the SUV when I ride to and from work.

WTF does PaP mean?
It's an acronym for Port-au-Prince. The Capital of Haiti where I work

What do you mean by “special friend”?
My body guard. A really nice dude born and raise in PaP and he's got a great sense of humour!

Where is Pétion-ville?
I just saw the sign this week where Pétion-ville begins. It is not obvious. I posted a photo in the album. I thought Pétion-ville was a district of PaP but it is not. Pétion-ville is a city and it has its own mayor, council and police force. Go figure.

Can you go to restaurants or visit tourist sites?
Yes and no. We do go out to restaurants. The four I have been too are really nice. They all have white tablecloth, servers dress in black and white uniforms, and most of them the dinning area is outside in a courtyard with palm trees and tropical vegetation. Very classy and of course expensive. I really want to try the chicken they sell on the sidewalks but I have been told not too and this is why: there are three types of chickens. 1) Grain fed, 2) factory fed and 3) free roaming street chickens that eats garbage and whatever else they find, of course that is the type of they sell on the streets so I am still debating if I want to try it. I will keep you posted on that one.

Have I answered your question?
If not write a comment or email me at kerryandluc@videotron.ca