Clowning in Haiti

I just finished a trip to Haiti with a fantastic non-profit company – Clowns Without Borders.  This is the first time an aerialist has worked with them and possibly the first time an aerialist has performed in Haiti.  We stayed for two weeks and entertained children around the country with our red nosed antics.  Here are some journal entries and reflections from my time there.

Nov 19th, 2013 — Port au Prince

Poverty is apparent everywhere.  The houses look like converted bunkers, everything is cinderblock and metal with sheets of plastic and wood filling in the gaping holes.  As we drive from the airport, the dust is so thick our eyes water and we pull up our shirts to cover our noses, preferring to breath our own sweaty odors over the suffocating mix of dirt and car exhaust.

Seven of us are crammed into the back of a tap tap — a small, partially covered pick-up –  with most of our luggage.  It takes over an hour to arrive at our accommodations, inching forward up a never ending hill in bumper to bumper traffic, unfazed utilization of the sidewalk as a passing lane doing little to ease the congestion.  When we finally crest the top, a group of men are rowdily taking shots in the center of a traffic circle as we crawl around to the left.  They take a moment to stare at us in quiet disdain and then resume their drinking.

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