Day 1

My day begun at 2 am. I had to be at the airport at 4. I got there on time and there was already a line forming at the check-in counter, but there were no employees there yet. A man in front of me left (presumably to go to the bathroom) and left a small duffle in line. The woman in front of him starting getting very anxious, saying "it don't take that long to pee!" She tracked down a TSA agent to tell him there was an unattended bag. They didn't seem to care. This increased her agitation. She told three other people and was saying things like "Well we are all gonna die if it's a bomb!" She was starting to scare a little girl in the line. Someone announced that check in outside was available and she bolted out of there. The bag still sat there. A TSA agent finally approached the bag right as the man returned. He said, "Don't leave your bag." And that was the end of that incident.

I finally got to the check in desk at 5 am. A friend of mine purchased my plane ticket using miles earned with her American Express. When I had tried checking in online the day before, it told me that I needed to present the credit card to check-in. My friend called Delta and they told her it wouldn't be a problem when I came to the airport. When I tried to check-in at the airport, the agent told me I needed the card. I explained to her that my friend had already gone to her airport to have to card swiped and called twice to make sure it wouldn't be a problem. She called over her boss. He said to her "Why does it say card found? Was it reported stolen and then they found it?" I interjected and explained the situation (since the first agent hasn't said anything to him). He told her to go ahead and check me in and print my boarding passes.

I finally got to my gate and right before they began boarding they announced that the plane was actually parked at another gate. We all got up and moved. The flight was also overbooked so they were asking for volunteers to give up their seats. We started boarding, but the computer wasn't working so the agent had to tear off everyone's bar code and then scan it at another gate. Surprisingly, we took off only about 10 minutes late. 

Once I got to Atlanta, I had enough time to eat and change my clothes into something more fitting for Haiti weather. I would be catching a ride with a group from Alabama that was heading to the same city as me. That's all I knew about them, but in case they were also flying through Atlanta, I started asking everyone if they were from Alabama. None of them were. I met a nurse who was going to Carrefour to work at a clinic and do home visits. We had fun observing the Christian subculture of missions teams. Who decided bright matching shirts tucked into belted khaki pants is what one is supposed to wear on a missions trip? This nurse, Benjamin, turned out to be a great help when we got to Port au Prince. He had a small issue at customs and I was able to help him out of it. Then he watched my stuff as I used the restrooms and waited with me as I asked every passerby, "Are you from Alabama?" Eventually, someone said yes. My next question was, "Are you headed to Jacmel?" When they said yes, I said, "Great! I'm getting a ride with you." They looked very confused about this random girl inviting herself into their van.

I still wasn't sure if I was on the right van, but if I at least got to Jacmel, I knew I could find someone that knew Sarah and could get me to her. The 2-3 hour drive was gorgeous. During the drive through Port au Prince, I saw how the city had changed since the last time I was there. The last time I was in Haiti was a year after the earthquake and there was still a lot of rubble and tent cities. There was less of that this time. The Presidential Palace is completely gone now. Once out of the city, we took a windy road up and over the mountain ridge. It was gorgeous. Up in the mountains it got cool enough for me to put on my sweater. It started to rain lightly and we saw a rainbow over the green hills. 

We arrived at the organization the team was working with. When we got out of the van someone asked me if I was Carsen and told me Sarah was on her way to get me. I made it to the right place! She took me to where I'm staying: a small upstairs apartment about a block from the clinic and her home. She then gave me a tour of the clinic. We quickly drove down to a neighborhood soccer game to support a boy who put the game together. I had street food for dinner and we watched a movie. Falling asleep was difficult. I'm no longer acclimated to the heat, humidity, and noises of Haiti. I finally fell asleep around midnight and was up with the morning sun and roosters. I fell back asleep for a little while until the sounds of Haitian church, shouts of Hallelujah, came in through my windows.