TravelStream™ news feed for member cmj on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/cmj en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Fri, 28 Aug 2009 12:03:31 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1229478660/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1229478660/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1229478660/tpod.html Fri, 28 Aug 2009 12:03:31 -0400 Haiti in the aftermath of the 2008 hurricanes: Volunteer traveling by a disaster junkie

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Gonaïves, Artibonite, Haiti

In my first week in Gonaives, I've contributed more positive work and met more fantastic people than in the rest of my 2008. I'm still a little overwhelmed by all the stimulus, and without much perspective, I think it best to just set the stage.

There are about 35 of us here at any one time, and each day we work with 6-10 Haitian volunteers on 3-4 projects. We have two tap-taps for transport, open air pickup trucks that we fit up to 20 people in, with five wheelbarrows, shovels, buckets, water, and our bags. The roads are easily the most danger part of our day, but I've yet to see an accident.

The volunteers I've met here are from 10 countries. Most have previous experience with a HODR project. I'm one of the few who started looking for a way to help in Haiti, and found Hands On. Most are disaster junkies that keep a close eye on the disaster assessments done by Hands On to determine the feasibility of a project. This is HODR's 10th project since the 2005 work in Thailand following the Tsunami, and they have a very loyal following of volunteers. The current challenge is to catch up the fund-raising to match the amount of work done on the ground.

The majority of the work we do is removing mud from homes. I've worked on five houses so far. The shortest we finished in a half hour with a team of six. The longest, Natasha, has been four days with a team of 12, and we're going back tomorrow. If the mud is dry but not concrete, not very deep, and we have someplace accessible to wheelbarrow it to, the jobs go quickly. But some houses are hip deep in slop, and we have to build ramps with scrap wood, cinder blocks, an ironing board, or whatever is around to get the wheelbarrows in and out. I spent an entire morning on my second day at Natasha's just building ramps up the mud pile so we could dump on the back of it. I helped each barrower keep it, and them, from sinking.

We also got a bit of press attention this weekend, with two photographers from NEED magazine shadowing us for three days. Paul Corbit Brown specializes in humanitarian, social justice, and environmental photojournalism. And not surprisingly, when he showed me his West Virginia coal mine slideshow, I recognized Francesco and his portrait project. Paul knew Francesco and Jordan, two friends of mine from Common Ground in New Orleans. Paul and Bronson took thousands of photos and recorded interviews with volunteers. When they asked me if I would go on record, I had to decline since I'd been here such a short time. I'm still learning about Haiti and HODR, and I don't want to color the piece while I'm still forming my opinions. But I hope we see ourselves in the February issue of NEED.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228962120/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228962120/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228962120/tpod.html Wed, 10 Dec 2008 22:07:30 -0500 Haiti in the aftermath of the 2008 hurricanes: Volunteer traveling by a disaster junkie

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Gonaives, Haiti

There's no better way to learn about a place than to get out in it.

Yesterday I ate a light breakfast in anticipation of a 3.5 hour SUV ride on horrendous roads from PaP to Gonaives, my home for the next 8 weeks. All three of us newbies, Lea, Francois and myself, took some Dramamine and buckled up. I was a bit concerned at first by how fast Gideon was driving, but after he didn't run anyone over during the first hour I dozed off for an hour or so. No one believed that I was able to sleep through this ride which has turned several vols green already.

After a quick lunch and some orientation by Bex, we went to our first mud site. The hardened vets told us how this was the easiest mud job they've ever seen, but it was backbreaking and left me exhausted after the 2.5 hours we put in. The task was moving a foot of wet dirt from a covered outdoor space that was used for church and community functions. Local kids pitched in while adults watched and teenagers chatted us up. It was strange working with an audience of 25 at times, but they don't have any tools to help with.

Today I joined a group distributing tool kits delivered by OXFAM. We unloaded the wheelbarrows, shovels, picks, bokets, boots, gloves, and dust masks. The wheelbarrows were assembled by OXFAM volunteers without screwdrivers, so we spent hours tightening every bolt. We assembled the kits, and proceeded with what the police on hand described as the most orderly distribution they had seen. Families had received tickets over the past two days to arrive at staggered times to collect their work supplies. Everything was loaned for two weeks with instructions to return them for other families. But the wheelbarrows were so cheap, made of tin and poorly designed, that I doubt any of them would survive a few days of use.

I'm overall very impressed with the operation HODR has established in two months here. They obviously have learned from their previous deployments and have a remarkably smooth operation considering the location. But since I'm still new, I'll wait a bit before daring to describe my new community.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228795560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228795560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228795560/tpod.html Mon, 08 Dec 2008 23:36:24 -0500 Haiti in the aftermath of the 2008 hurricanes: Volunteer traveling by a disaster junkie

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Port-au-Prince, Haiti

At first glance, Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital city, is very like many other big cities in very poor countries. The traffic is chaos, the pollution atrocious, and pedestrians risk their lives walking on every curb. There are a few nice stores mixed in with street vendors selling everything from bicycle pumps (I haven't seen a bike here yet) to oil paintings to mattresses.

I had an airport pickup to St. Joseph's Home for Boys, my guest house and the unofficial HODR PaP HQ. The house is amazing, with stunning rooftop views. But it's the boys that make the house unique, and everyone here is friendly and helpful. Michael has been here since 1985, and he's built something to be very proud of. Street kids and orphans come here to be part of the family, participating in classes, doing chores, and reminding guests that the youth of Haiti have so much to offer.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228738980/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228738980/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228738980/tpod.html Mon, 08 Dec 2008 07:46:20 -0500 Haiti in the aftermath of the 2008 hurricanes: Volunteer traveling by a disaster junkie

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States

I had an overnight layover in Fort Lauderdale today. I got about an hour of sleep in the hotel, so I should have probably saved my money and just slept in the airport. The wi-fi connection is better here anyway.

I just overheard this conversation on the airport radio:
airline woman: "I need a few bags pulled from the carousel. A passenger fell on the escalator and he may need to go to the hospital."
baggage man: "Port au Prince I assume?"
airline woman: "Yeah, paramedics are on their way so we'll know soon." in a tone that suggests this happens fairly often.

For my friends in the Boston area, HODR is hosting a Holiday fund raising party this Saturday, Dec 13. I'm planning on joining them for 8 weeks in Gonaives working to help restart the lives of hundreds of thousands of Haitians from the summer hurricanes. If anyone goes, let me know if you think of the people you meet there.

For those not in Massachusetts and feeling in a holiday giving mood, please consider making a tax deductible donation on the HODR website. If you would, put my name in the "on behalf of" box and help me gain some street cred with my new unemployer. From what I hear, the Haiti project is more expensive than expected and we could use some funding for the new year.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228666500/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228666500/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/5/1228666500/tpod.html Mon, 08 Dec 2008 07:18:47 -0500 Haiti in the aftermath of the 2008 hurricanes: Volunteer traveling by a disaster junkie

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

San Francisco, California, United States

Departure from my base for the past two years. I've come to consider San Francisco home, and I'm not sure I would live anywhere else in the US. But it's time to start wandering again, and the first stop is Haiti. I'm scheduled for 8 weeks of volunteer work with Hands On Disaster Response in Gonaives.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1142524800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1142524800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1142524800/tpod.html Thu, 09 Oct 2008 22:11:27 -0400 After learning of Hurricane Katrina's scope from Tsunami devastated Thailand, I'm motivated to find or recreate in New Orleans the international volunteer tourism that profoundly improved Thai lives.

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

Today we launched a school exchange program. We left from our home at St. Mary's School of the Angels and went to the lower 9th's MLK elementary school to begin the cleanup. The school board had made no effort to initiate the cleanup and rebuilding, and after 6.5 months the residents asked us to end their waiting. With hundreds more in support outside the school, about 85 volunteers illegally entered the school with police watching and began the cleanup process. It will take several days, and then a long process of mold remediation and rebuilding, but at least it's begun.

I would have liked to join the crew myself, but at this moment I'm off to the airport...

The press coverage is mixed, but still interesting to see the other viewpoint. Out stance is that if we wait for FEMA and the insurance companies, the residents will never be able to return.

http://www.wwltv.com/local/stories/WWL031606tpstormschools.302f33bd.html

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/2479891.html
http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/2486366.html
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/the_stars_align/1133498280/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/the_stars_align/1133498280/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/the_stars_align/1133498280/tpod.html Wed, 13 Aug 2008 15:15:28 -0400 My 9-month solo journey on Star Alliance, ATW. Flights were obsessively planned, nothing else is.

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Lake Tekapo, New Zealand

I'm excited to be off on my own for a while. The constant planes, buses, trains and boats kept me propelled on someone else's schedule, so it's a relief to have the freedom of my own car for a while. The rental company blessed me with an incredibly sexy '98 Mitsubishi station wagon. At least I have room to spread out.

Lake Tekapo is my first stop. I arrived mid-afternoon and set up shop in the Lakefront Backpacker Lodge. After a three-hour walk up the lake and back by way of the observatory, I settled in for a quiet evening. A group of Magic Bus tourers was melting marshmallows around a campfire. Inside, a large group of couch potatoes were roasting their eyeballs on a really bad Tommy Lee Jones movie.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1150052580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1150052580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1150052580/tpod.html Mon, 29 Oct 2007 03:31:14 -0400 After learning of Hurricane Katrina's scope from Tsunami devastated Thailand, I'm motivated to find or recreate in New Orleans the international volunteer tourism that profoundly improved Thai lives.

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Two weeks back home in Chicago was more than enough, in my current state of mind. I'd like to have more time to visit my friends here, but the need to keep moving was ever present in my mind. After five months back in the States, tomorrow I'm flying again. This time it's to Buenos Aires to spend the winter learning Spanish and snowboarding in Argentina.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1148354880/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1148354880/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1148354880/tpod.html Mon, 29 Oct 2007 03:28:59 -0400 After learning of Hurricane Katrina's scope from Tsunami devastated Thailand, I'm motivated to find or recreate in New Orleans the international volunteer tourism that profoundly improved Thai lives.

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

Slidell, Louisiana, United States

The first stop out of New Orleans was not far at all. We drove 75 minutes east to Bayou Liberty Relief, a camp set up as a retreat for burnt out volunteers. They sure found a couple. We spent two nights and a day there, camping, canoeing, and listening to Guy Davis perform a free concert for local volunteers. It was just what we needed to begin the process of clearing our heads.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1148246160/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1148246160/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/cmj/kats_korner/1148246160/tpod.html Mon, 29 Oct 2007 02:57:54 -0400 After learning of Hurricane Katrina's scope from Tsunami devastated Thailand, I'm motivated to find or recreate in New Orleans the international volunteer tourism that profoundly improved Thai lives.

Jump to the full
entry & travel map

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

I'm having a tough time characterising my experiences here in New Orleans. After about three months of exhaustion and elation, immediate action and paralysis, back-breaking work and easy friendships, all I'm certain of now is that it's time to move on. Maybe I'll be able to sum it up in a few paragraphs after some more time. But more likely is that I'll always remain unsure of what I saw. There was too much to absorb, with too much on the line, for it to be simple. Feel free to ask me about it person some time; talking through it has been therapeutic so far. I'd like to get to a point where I want to return someday and continue.

On this Sunday afternoon, Chris and I are packing up and escaping.
]]>