Upon arriving at Toussaint Louverture International Airport, I got a sense that much has improved. I walked through a tunnel to exit the plane and then took a bus to the immigration screening site. People spoke without fear. I did not see any armed security. Nor did I feel the weight of the government sifting through every ounce of my personal belongings. I walked out of the airport once I located my bags. The old airport has merged with the old military airport extending the area servicing the public.
Once outside, Port-au-Prince is a buzzing town and the streets are overcrowded like they have always been. There is a tent city in the open fields adjacent to the airport but throughout much of Port au Prince, tents are interwoven into the remaining buildings that are still standing; sometimes as a single tent or as groups of tents, however many can fit.People have not waited for handouts. They use tents if available or fabrics or pieces of plastic or tin mixed with braided twigs to create a space for shelter. People walk the streets in large numbers, each going about their own affairs, unshaken by the memory of the earthquake. I saw people going on with their lives as the trauma they suffered has passed and they bravely prepare for what might occur next. They behave like a new day has dawned. People welcome a helping hand, but they are not waiting for it. Some people have added metal beams to delay the collapse of their homes in the event of another earthquake. Many of those in tents have opened businesses in hopes of forging a way out of poverty. I saw few police officers. Understandably, there are few, about 3000 police officers for the 9 million people in the country. I felt safe walking the streets of Port-au-Prince, likely one of the safest large cities of the world.My immediate problem was finding a public bathroom, (a task that is particularly challenging for females).Of course, this problem is not new, and for the first time appeared to be minor when placed in the context of the many challenges of daily life here in Port-au-Prince. The streets have been cleared of a lot of rubble. Many buildings have been leveled and new ones are being built. Nonetheless, there are swats of neighborhoods that are several square miles and inaccessible by car for lack of roads. Small corridors separate each home.The rubble in these areas is more difficult to clear. The government will need to bulldoze new roads into these communities- a politically charged undertaking. Much of the land has no title, complicating rebuilding efforts.Complicated or not, people are rebuilding. From much of the rubble, new life is emerging.New enterprises, new ventures, and new international partnerships are forming to assist Haiti’s resilient and unbroken population.
