View from the road on the way to Jacmel.
Stories from the field
Haiti Diary: Sophie Chavanel
On the way to Jacmel
August 30, 2010
Today I traveled to Jacmel to document some of our hurricane preparedness activities. It takes between 3 ½ -5 hours to reach Jacmel from Port-au-Prince. The road winds dangerously up through the mountains. My heart was pounding in my chest!
Accidents are frequent on this road, especially with tap-taps that drive at full speed with people on the roof. I even saw one tip over, but luckily no one was injured. Despite all that, I continue to be struck by the beauty of this country.
Although the damages caused by the earthquake have left a tragic scar in Haiti, particularly in the cities, the countryside is certainly not the pile of rubble I had imagined it to be before I arrived. It is lush and green and gorgeous.
“On January 12, 2010, the earth shook violently Haiti. I sat in the newsroom of Radio-Canada in Montreal when I heard the news. The days and weeks that followed were full of extremely strong emotions when I saw, like you, the images of a country of rubble. I then made a decision. I didn’t just want to report the events, I wanted to be there. I then started a new journey as a delegate of the Red Cross.” – Sophie Chavanel, Canadian Red Cross delegate, Haiti.
Sophie Chavanel is the senior communications coordinator for the Canadian Red Cross in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Sophie is a former journalist and joined the Red Cross team in Haiti in August 2010, where she will remain for 12 months. Follow her activities through her field diary below or on twitter at http://twitter.com/SophieChavanel.
