Safety in Carrefour, Haiti What do other Racers need to know in order to be safe? Current safety protocols/precautions in place? Any relevant issues/concerns? Any precautionary suggestions?
People’s Opinions
Grace International – We were not allowed to leave the compound that we were living at without being escorted by a staff member of Grace International. The compound is divided into different sections by a series of gates and walls. The section that we lived in was guarded by 2 gate keepers and knew who was allowed into our area and who wasn’t. Our host also ran a private security company out of the compound and has trained security all around the place.
Pastor Wilnord Safe neighborhood. Double locked doors in the compound we stayed in. I felt very comfortable walking around even as it was getting dusk
Ministry Summary
Ministry Summary in Carrefour, Haiti Breakthroughs? Suggestions? Concerns? On a scale of 1-4 (1 being not at all, 4 being absolutely) how strongly would you recommend another World Race team go to this ministry location & why?
People’s Opinions
Grace International – Grace International is a multi-faceted ministry with 4 or 5 different ministries on campus. They run children’s homes, schools, a hospital, radio station, church plants, and various other ministries around town. Most teams only teach English in the primary school on campus and host English clubs, but with the ministry being so diverse we were able to ask to help in other areas. We had a team member who was a pre-med student allowed to help in the onsite clinic and me and my wife who both have degrees in Mass Communications were able to help with the radio station. Don’t be afraid to ask if there’s a particular ministry you want to help with.
Pastor Wilnord – I would rank contact as a 3Speaks very good English. Will do anything to help you and make sure you’re healthy. Hosted 3 or so teams before us. Has ministry to do, just work on helping stretch his bubble or “ministry” and maybe do more things. We had too much free time, but this contact has potential.
Pastor WilnordVery orderly, specific ministry. Gave us a detailed schedule day 1.Visited schools during recess time- led games&music anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours. Bible studies at church with young adults. House evangelism.Only did “ministry” for a maximum of 3 hours in one day. Had to fill downtime.Try to stretch Wilnord in “impromptu” ministry like ATL or something like that. Try to make use of the translator money and do more ministry instead of only using one for 2 hours and then leaving.
Lodging
Lodging in Carrefour, Haiti Where did you stay? What were the accommodations (sleeping arrangements, toilets, showers, etc.)? Cost (per person per night in USD), Contact info.
People’s Opinions
Grace International – Lodging was pretty good this month. We stayed in the upstairs of an unfinished hospital. It was a very nice facility, but there were some comforts that weren’t available, such as hot water, AC, and 24 hour electricity. WiFi was available, but not very consistent and sometimes would connect but not be able to load anything. The building was powered by generator and the electricity would not stay on the whole night which means that your fans would not stay on all night either. Our team got creative with dealing with this since the building would get hot after the outage. Some team members slept in the hall where there is a large breezeway and some teammates slept upstairs on the roof. The roof is a great place to watch sunsets, workout, tan, watch boats go by and think, etc.
Pastor Wilnord Stayed in a large 1 floor house rented out for the month from a member of Pastor’s church. Paid $200 for whole month. No furnishings. Has one shower, but have to get water from outside (no running water inside).
Food / Meals
Food / Meals in Carrefour, Haiti What did you eat? Where did you get the food? Cost (per person per day in USD)? Contact info (if applicable).
People’s Opinions
Grace International – This was kind of a tricky issue for us. Grace was very generous and allowed us to pay them a very discounted price to stay there. Normal price for a team to stay there is $50 per person per night, we were allowed to stay for just $10, but our host emphasized the strain that it was to do that for us. We had to fix lunch everyday and were served a very light breakfast in the morning. Our treasurer was able to get home office to give us some extra cash to buy snacks and lunch food which was fairly affordable. But our $10 had to pay for food, cooks, translator, and gas for the generator. The reason I mention that here is because the food is where we really felt it. We only had three different dishes on a rotation that they could afford all month and that was it. Good thing is that they were all delicious, but be ready for repeat meals.
Mangoes – cheap. 4-5 for 40 Gourde off streetApples – expensive. 2 for 50 GourdeBananas – cheap. Buy by the bunch. idk price.Meat – too expensive*if buying food for yourself, get creative. meals will be simple. Try to find a local to help you try to buy stuff off the streets, but other than that you’ll go to Delimart and food will be expensive, but it’s the only grocery store.
Make sure to clarify immediately with contact about food. Contact thought our $5 pppd was for 1 meal. Needed to last 3 meals instead. They will be very simple meals (we had cooks come in). Also WR is trying to set a precedent in Haiti that we do not pay for cooks. We were trapped into it from the beginning. If contact says anything about cooks, politely decline
Transportation
Transportation in Carrefour, Haiti What transportation did you use to enter the country? Where were you coming from? What transportation was used to move throughout the country? Be sure to include the cost per person in USD and contact info if applicable.
People’s Opinions
Grace International – We were driven to places in tap tap’s and big passenger trucks that were caged in. depending on where we were going and how many people were going depended on which mode of transport we took.
Motorbike ride into Delimart are only 50 Gourde per person
Pastor Wilnord.Even contacts might charge too much for a personal tap tap if they know the driver and are trying to help them out financially. If prices seem too high, explain how we need to pay local prices.If traveling to Delimart make sure to pay absolutely no more than 300 Gourde one way. Once in town though tap taps are only 5 Gourde per person to hop on.
Medical
Medical in Carrefour, Haiti Information on local hospitals / doctors / pharmacies. Where would someone go in a medical emergency? (addresses and contact info).
People’s Opinions
Pastor WilnordIf your contact has a personal doctor and your medical needs only require a clinic, then probably just go with that referral.If you don’t have that personal connection, you will end up paying a Lot of money
Adventist HospitalIf at all possible do NOT go at night. They scam anyone, and will do anything to make you stay overnight and charge you.If you go at all. Make sure to either have Pastor Wilnord or a translator that can put their foot down and won’t let them push you around.Medical care was fine, but we had a bad experience when we had to go at night even with a good translator
Communication
Communication in Carrefour, Haiti Did you have cell reception / Internet service? Where? Carrier / Provider, where did you get phones / SIM cards, cost? Country code?
People’s Opinions
Our Samsung team phone wasn’t compatible with Haiti sim cards fyi
Financial
Financial in Carrefour, Haiti Location of banks or ATMs, notes about transaction fees, best places to exchange money, and other money related advice.
People’s Opinions
Grace International – As I’ve mentioned before, We were under a very tight strain financially this month with our host. Our treasurer also had to get home office involved with our payments as well due to the banks only allowing us to pull out a certain amount at a time. The office had to wire the money to the organizations office in Miami. You will also run into three different types of currency here: USD, Gourde, and Haitian Dollars. Haitian Dollars are a made up currency that Haitians have invented to make more money. A lot of times restaurants and other vendors will switch their prices to Haitian Dollar when they see white people walk in. Because it is not an official currency be sure to ask what the going rate is for Haitian Dollars as it is subject to change.
Haitian dollar vs. Gourde*The Haitian dollar is fictional, doesn’t exist, but if prices are in Haitian dollars then the exchange rate is 1US to 9 Haitian dollars*45Gourde to 1US
Haitian dollar vs. Gourde*The Haitian dollar is fictional, doesn’t exist, but if prices are in Haitian dollars then the exchange rate is 1US to 9 Haitian dollars*45Gourde to 1US
ATM right across the street from the DeliMart.NOTE: Change is hard to get in Haiti. Literally whenever you can, try to break for smaller bills.
Translators
Translators in Carrefour, Haiti List any local translators – name and contact information, languages spoken
People’s Opinions
Grace International – We could only afford one translator for the whole month. His name was Jackson and he was very good to us. He became part of the team by the end of the month. If AIM has increased your budget for the month you may be able to have two, which in some instances would have been very helpful. If anyone on your team speaks french, they should be able to hold their own with high school aged students since their schooling is in french. A lot of people also know nominal English and can carry on short conversations, but nothing fluent at all.
Pastor Wilnord He uses two translator friends: Jefferson (preferred) relaxed in conversation. Has a fire himself for sharing gospel Walton (still good) Pay $15 per day
Off Days / Fun Activities
Off Days / Fun Activities in Carrefour, Haiti What activities did your team experience? Recommendations? List locations/contact info. Any locations to be avoided? Any extra safety tips for off days?
People’s Opinions
Grace International – Adventure days are kind of few and far between due to security issues. You might be able to go to a beach resort for a day and swim and eat. There is also a hotel in town that has a pool and restaurant that is a good getaway for married couples and day trips. I also would recommend going to see the lighthouse and going up to the top if the lighthouse keeper is there. He charged us $10 for 5 of us to go up, this was of course after some negotiating.
Sports ComplexHas full field turf soccer field where there is always someone to play. Try to go with Israel and Sampson if you’re with Pastor Wilnord.6 of us went and it was only 375 Gourde for a one day pass.If possible, bring own soccer ball
Hotel – wifi w/decent food. Located somewhat close to DeliMart. Ask contact for directions. Can’t go a whole day, but can go for an extended lunch (3-4 hours) and use wifi if you pay for meal ($5-7US)Beach – have to pay to get in. Not that good
Other Important Contacts
Other Important Contacts in Carrefour, Haiti Additional ministry opportunities, local pastors, etc. Relationship & follow up suggestions
People’s Opinions
Comment
Tips
People’s Opinions
Mosquito coils – buy cheap. Light for overnight protection. worked decent
Additional Info
Additional Info in Carrefour, Haiti Anything we’ve left out? Any additional suggestions to make travel easier for others?
People’s Opinions
Even if the HRP sheet says host has electricity, do not expect it. It is Haiti, and they shut the power off a large part of the time. No expectations