Thomas Gabriel Day 2

Darkness descends on Haiti very quickly. There is no twilight worth mentioning and after our epic journey, most of us retired to bed at around 11pm. It was odd to be sleeping in a room that would next be used by the new owners of the house. The houses consist of three indoor rooms, an outside toilet and shower and a covered area outside for cooking. The houses have electric light, electricity points and running water in the toilet. They are basic – breeze blocks with a corrugated roof. When compared to the shacks we saw on the way in, they are fine sturdy buildings! Haven thoughtfully provided mosquito nets for the beds and electric fans to keep the air moving. I think most of us had a fitful night of sleep. With four adults sharing a house, there was little room for manouvre in each bedroom – about enough room for two beds and two suitcases. Between the jet lag and the humidity, the excitement and the strange location I think most us us woke at least twice during the night. The cocks crowed at 2am, 3am, 4am but I think they were finally silent when dawn came at sometime after 5am. One or two goats in the compound were also keen to have their voices heard which added to the background noise.

The first two hours of the first day were what I would call organized chaos, with people looking for their group leaders, taking instruction on what was to be undertaken and generally gearing up for the tasks ahead. I was allocated to a group who aim to build a classroom extension for the local school as well as erecting an outdoor basketball facility. The group quickly became a team and there were constant reminders to drink plenty of water. We are from all over Ireland and got down to the task in hand quickly and with intention. By lunchtime we heard that two people in another team were suffering the effects of heat. During the morning, I had an opportunity to visit other parts of the site – it was a beehive of activity everywhere, in spite of the sun! I know that I read about Haiti being hot. I know that during the briefing sessions, we were told it would be hot. But spending a day working under an intense sun was a very real but very rewarding challenge. It’s been very humbling to spend time with such committed and hard working people. Lessons learned from the day mean that we will aim to be on site by 5:30am tomorrow morning in order to take advantage of the relative coolness of that time of day. By mid-morning, the heat is likely to be unbearable.

The local children are fascinated by our presence and were all immaculately turned out in their uniforms. All the girls had lovely ribbons in their hair. They smiled and laughed a lot. It was good to realise that what we are doing will be of direct benefit to some of these children. The day ended with a chance to shower and then have our evening meal in the communal tent. The food has been very good so far – long may it continue!!

Tomorrow is likely to be another tough day but hopefully one that is as rewarding as our first day has been!