It has been 5 years since my last trip to Haiti. That was in 2009 with a group traveling with the CNP of Haiti. This is a different sort of trip; I am with Haitian Homes for Haitian Children (HH4HC). More on them later.

Today was a travel day. We left Atlanta at 6:40 AM. Had a layover in Miami and then flew to Port-Au-Prince. We arrive too late to continue on to Jeremie our destination, so we spend the night in PAP.

This is my first trip back since the earthquake of 2010. The good news is that some things show signs of progress. The airport has improved. We have an actual gate,  rather than rolling stairs. Customs is working well. They moved folks through with a minimum of delay. Baggage claim seems to be same equipment but we clear customs with our bags quickly.

The bad news is that there are still signs of the earthquake, four years later. I don‘t know if my pictures will show it but there are still tent cities. Really slums of tightly packed rectangles of tarps or tin. A tent would be nice. There are also some villages of small fabricated homes, with solar panels. Our guide tells us they are intended to last three years.

Finally I must share that a great deal of PAP looks and feels the same. While evidence of they earthquake stands out at times. See the Episcopal church and the central Cathedral. Much of the day-to-day signs of life remain. Street vendors, hawking drinks, sidewalk displays of fruit, clothes, sugar cane and motor oil abound.

Haiti at its roots is a land of eminence contrast. Abject poverty, infiltrated by all the glitce of modern western culture. Cell phones, luxury cars, laptops, discos and cable TV.

Tomorrow we head to Jeremie; to check in with the families and children that HH4HC serves.

Visit www.HH4HC.org