Left Ensenada at 2 in the morning and my plane took of on time from San Diego and I arrived as per my schedule into a city engulfed in snow with literally hills of it piled up along roads and footpaths, nowhere for it to go and freezing so no thaw. My travelling companion was not so lucky and his plane due to leave 5 minutes after me was 3 hours delayed and while I enjoyed what the Big Apple had to offer he was stuck in Newark for over 50 hours!
My first evening was uneventful and I wined and dined in a nearby Irish hostelry and retired to my hotel and slept the sleep of the innocent and was proud that I woke up at 8.30 until Irealised that I had not adjusted my watch and it was in fact 11.30, peace perfect peace!
My 'goodie bag' of winter clothes was waiting for me at reception (what organisational skills) and so I dawned my pallions and braved the freezing cold and snow. There was no way to get off footpaths without performing olympic leaps or plunge into the slush, unfortunately the slush was masking pools of water underneath and I plunged right in first corner! I then made my way to Maceys and purchased the first pair of suitable boots I could find and off I went to visit the the Big Apple on foot.
First stop was the Concern office to coordinate my Haiti trip and I found them in the middle of moving offices (around the corner) but not too busy to give me a hearty welcome. They approved my choice of the show I chose for that evening, The Lion King. Now any of you who have recommended this to me and did not go overboard in your description shame on you. I am here and now telling you all that you absolutely must see thias showm it is the most wonderful imaginative spectacle I have ever seen and I am already planning my next trip just to see it! Then of course a little Italian restaurant with a blues duo and my night was perfecT. I set of for my hotel slowly taking in Times Square by night and with hills of snow, I have photographed from all angles and a truck of snow which I was informed was being transported to the melting pot at odds with the songs meaning of the great big melting pot.
I felt so safe and comfortable taking in New York by night, I think I prefer it at night, I have felt less safe in places I know better, I won't tell you what time I got to bed or there will be a lecture. Next day thanks to my new boots my poor feet were very tender but onwards and upwards. I wanted to see Central park in the snow so I bravely made my way boots in bag to the nearest entrance, I was very central, and found a very nice technical engineer, soon to finish his PHD, who drove me around in a Rickshaw and gave me a historical tour, mind you I just wanted to be driven through the snow but he was not to be discouraged and I got my money's worth.
My next stop was Connecticut to visit my brother Rory and wife Verina. An enjoyably late evening was had and I awoke to the smell of a fry and enjoyed every morsel. They took me to meet some of their friends which entailed covering some beautiful scenic territory and it was fairytale like with the snow everywhere but also treacherous as lanes on roads were totally covered and driving was hazardous. Now I know I am on my own in this admiration as on both sides of the Atlantic you have had too much but I was coming from a different perspective so excuse the photos when they are put on.
Now my trip to Haiti came in the middle but I think I will continue with the Big Apple and return to Haiti at the end. I walked and talked my way around, found a lovely little coffee shop called the Boulangerie which would hold its own very favoutably with another one that I am quite fond of. It has a restaurant attached called 'Cognac' on Broadway and 56th West and I would highly recommend it, Sophia's in Times Square is another gem.
I finally did the downtown bus tour having already covered many square acres on foot and visited the intended memorial sight for 9/11. I am impressed with their plans and they have a virtual reality video that shows what it will look like and I think it is very nice and if anything can be a tribute to the loss of so many lives I feel that this potentially can be a fitting memorial. I then walked across the Brooklyn bridge and have the photos to prove it, got back on my bus and got of at the wrong stop and ny tootsies marched bravely on. They are creatures of the wild a bit like their mistress like to run free, not enclosed I don't know how I'm going to retrain them?!
I have visited more churches big and small on my travels and lit more candles for many of you and NY was no exception, I visited St Paul's at the World Trade Centre sight which was very moving and St Patrick's and ran in today before my departure to say thanks, thanks for a wonderful journey so far, for keeping me safe and healthy and especially for Aisling who has been accepted on an internship in the Hague commencing on the 20th of this month so I do appreciate how fortunate we are. My departure from NY went smoothly and I arrived here in Lisbon at 6am and with nothing open I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for me to catch up with my Blog before I go on a sightseeing tour of the city and then meet up with my friend Helen and down to the Algarve for the last leg of this incredible journey.
Back to Haiti, well some of you may or may not know that on the Council of Concern Worldwide there is another Mountcharles girl, Teresa McColgan. She flew into NY yo join me on the trip to Haiti. We stayed at the airport hotel the night before as we had a very early start. We arrived in Haiti around midday and it was all go from the begining, except for water nothing more substantial passed our lips until 8 oclock that night! To try and describe the destruction to Port au Prince is difficult, there are areas that are just rubble, other areas that collapsed like stacks of pancakes, streets wiped out with maybe one building stnading erect and other areas where next door to each other you have rubble alongside buildings.
Most of the population of Haiti lives in Port au Prince and reasons for this are historical and the haitians troubles started decades ago but the earthquake just totally rocked the foundations of any developing goals. The camps are dense with thousands living side by side in tents that would make Oxygen seem like 5 star accomodation and yet as I have witnessed so many times before the resilience of people who are down with very little is incredible and if you give a smile they will return it 10 fold. There are different gangs in the camps and there are territorial differences which can affect the wotk of the different agencies working with the people but there are procedures in place to safeguard as much as possible. Over the few days we visited different camp sites and met many of the local workers who are wonderful committed people and there is a good rapport with the people as they understand the subtleties in the different groups. The expatriate Concern staff were all very informative and dedicated to their work which is very challenging as getting around Port au Prince is a nightmare and they spend a lot of time in cars as they are not aloud to walk around except in the camps themselves as it is a very dangerous envitonment. There is a baby boom at the moment, a year after the earthquake and people settle back to living but this brings other problems and many of them are malnourished for a variery of reasons but Concern and other agencies are doing trojan work in their special feeding units.
Now a light at the end of the tunnel is a housing development which Concern has designed and trained locals in skills which is enabling them to construct themselves and will also give them skills to make furniture for schools later on, video will follow. The school programme they are involved in is also innovative and if emulated will give hope and opportunity to future generations but they need help so even if Haiti is out of the limelight it will be in need of support for decades to come.
I am going to sign off now and will end my piece on Haiti later on as I have a story to round it off!!
My first evening was uneventful and I wined and dined in a nearby Irish hostelry and retired to my hotel and slept the sleep of the innocent and was proud that I woke up at 8.30 until Irealised that I had not adjusted my watch and it was in fact 11.30, peace perfect peace!
My 'goodie bag' of winter clothes was waiting for me at reception (what organisational skills) and so I dawned my pallions and braved the freezing cold and snow. There was no way to get off footpaths without performing olympic leaps or plunge into the slush, unfortunately the slush was masking pools of water underneath and I plunged right in first corner! I then made my way to Maceys and purchased the first pair of suitable boots I could find and off I went to visit the the Big Apple on foot.
First stop was the Concern office to coordinate my Haiti trip and I found them in the middle of moving offices (around the corner) but not too busy to give me a hearty welcome. They approved my choice of the show I chose for that evening, The Lion King. Now any of you who have recommended this to me and did not go overboard in your description shame on you. I am here and now telling you all that you absolutely must see thias showm it is the most wonderful imaginative spectacle I have ever seen and I am already planning my next trip just to see it! Then of course a little Italian restaurant with a blues duo and my night was perfecT. I set of for my hotel slowly taking in Times Square by night and with hills of snow, I have photographed from all angles and a truck of snow which I was informed was being transported to the melting pot at odds with the songs meaning of the great big melting pot.
I felt so safe and comfortable taking in New York by night, I think I prefer it at night, I have felt less safe in places I know better, I won't tell you what time I got to bed or there will be a lecture. Next day thanks to my new boots my poor feet were very tender but onwards and upwards. I wanted to see Central park in the snow so I bravely made my way boots in bag to the nearest entrance, I was very central, and found a very nice technical engineer, soon to finish his PHD, who drove me around in a Rickshaw and gave me a historical tour, mind you I just wanted to be driven through the snow but he was not to be discouraged and I got my money's worth.
My next stop was Connecticut to visit my brother Rory and wife Verina. An enjoyably late evening was had and I awoke to the smell of a fry and enjoyed every morsel. They took me to meet some of their friends which entailed covering some beautiful scenic territory and it was fairytale like with the snow everywhere but also treacherous as lanes on roads were totally covered and driving was hazardous. Now I know I am on my own in this admiration as on both sides of the Atlantic you have had too much but I was coming from a different perspective so excuse the photos when they are put on.
Now my trip to Haiti came in the middle but I think I will continue with the Big Apple and return to Haiti at the end. I walked and talked my way around, found a lovely little coffee shop called the Boulangerie which would hold its own very favoutably with another one that I am quite fond of. It has a restaurant attached called 'Cognac' on Broadway and 56th West and I would highly recommend it, Sophia's in Times Square is another gem.
I finally did the downtown bus tour having already covered many square acres on foot and visited the intended memorial sight for 9/11. I am impressed with their plans and they have a virtual reality video that shows what it will look like and I think it is very nice and if anything can be a tribute to the loss of so many lives I feel that this potentially can be a fitting memorial. I then walked across the Brooklyn bridge and have the photos to prove it, got back on my bus and got of at the wrong stop and ny tootsies marched bravely on. They are creatures of the wild a bit like their mistress like to run free, not enclosed I don't know how I'm going to retrain them?!
I have visited more churches big and small on my travels and lit more candles for many of you and NY was no exception, I visited St Paul's at the World Trade Centre sight which was very moving and St Patrick's and ran in today before my departure to say thanks, thanks for a wonderful journey so far, for keeping me safe and healthy and especially for Aisling who has been accepted on an internship in the Hague commencing on the 20th of this month so I do appreciate how fortunate we are. My departure from NY went smoothly and I arrived here in Lisbon at 6am and with nothing open I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for me to catch up with my Blog before I go on a sightseeing tour of the city and then meet up with my friend Helen and down to the Algarve for the last leg of this incredible journey.
Back to Haiti, well some of you may or may not know that on the Council of Concern Worldwide there is another Mountcharles girl, Teresa McColgan. She flew into NY yo join me on the trip to Haiti. We stayed at the airport hotel the night before as we had a very early start. We arrived in Haiti around midday and it was all go from the begining, except for water nothing more substantial passed our lips until 8 oclock that night! To try and describe the destruction to Port au Prince is difficult, there are areas that are just rubble, other areas that collapsed like stacks of pancakes, streets wiped out with maybe one building stnading erect and other areas where next door to each other you have rubble alongside buildings.
Most of the population of Haiti lives in Port au Prince and reasons for this are historical and the haitians troubles started decades ago but the earthquake just totally rocked the foundations of any developing goals. The camps are dense with thousands living side by side in tents that would make Oxygen seem like 5 star accomodation and yet as I have witnessed so many times before the resilience of people who are down with very little is incredible and if you give a smile they will return it 10 fold. There are different gangs in the camps and there are territorial differences which can affect the wotk of the different agencies working with the people but there are procedures in place to safeguard as much as possible. Over the few days we visited different camp sites and met many of the local workers who are wonderful committed people and there is a good rapport with the people as they understand the subtleties in the different groups. The expatriate Concern staff were all very informative and dedicated to their work which is very challenging as getting around Port au Prince is a nightmare and they spend a lot of time in cars as they are not aloud to walk around except in the camps themselves as it is a very dangerous envitonment. There is a baby boom at the moment, a year after the earthquake and people settle back to living but this brings other problems and many of them are malnourished for a variery of reasons but Concern and other agencies are doing trojan work in their special feeding units.
Now a light at the end of the tunnel is a housing development which Concern has designed and trained locals in skills which is enabling them to construct themselves and will also give them skills to make furniture for schools later on, video will follow. The school programme they are involved in is also innovative and if emulated will give hope and opportunity to future generations but they need help so even if Haiti is out of the limelight it will be in need of support for decades to come.
I am going to sign off now and will end my piece on Haiti later on as I have a story to round it off!!
Wow! I love the description of New York. and Haiti. Can't wait for the book when its published ;)
ReplyDeletex
Evanna a fascinating account of your trip - you certainly packed a lot in before you got to Haiti, lovely that you got to see the sights in the US as well as what sounded like a pretty harrowing time in Haiti, well done to Concern for their good input there.
ReplyDeleteCatherine