[Dantes]

I just returned from Cap Haitian, Haiti.

Getting there:

There are basically two ways in: plane and bus. Hugo Chavez International Airport is a few minutes from downtown.

I took the Caribe tours bus from Santiago, DR. Caribe tours handles all of the boarder entry fees which is 25 dollars going into Haiti and 20 dollars on the return to DR. You have to pay in US dollars....cash no credit card accepted. In total it was about 95 dollars for the roundtrip which included all the fees.

Buses depart 11:30 am from Santiago and return at 8 am. There is one hour time zone difference between Haiti and DR. Caribe tours will take your passport at the boarder. This is the process so be prepared for it.

The buses are air-conditioned and clean. The ride to and from Santiago was about 6 hours. However, the travel time will depend on how busy the boarder crossing is. Upon my return the boarder was absolute chaos. Apparently there is a huge market and UN drop off at the boarder on Tuesdays and Fridays. You will see hoards of people carrying anything they could get their hands on from dead chickens to plastic chairs to basic supplies.

Unless you have been to sub-Sahara Africa, nothing will prepare you for the level poverty. The poverty and sheer garbage in the streets and water is mind blowing. Despite the poverty and my friend and I being the only white people, the Haitians seem to be utterly indifferent to us. I never felt threatened or in danger at any point.

We only stayed one night in Cap Haitien. We split a room at the Hostellerie du Roi Christophe,which is a converted colonial mansion. It is within walking distance of the Caribe Tour bus station. The hotel was empty except for a small wedding. Breakfast is included in the price. No taxi is needed to get there. This is one of the best hotels with rates at about 140 per night.

We walked around a bit at night looking for places to eat and drink. Again, we never felt unsafe at any point and the Haitians seemed to largely ignore us.

We ate at Lakay one of the best restaurants with a mix of Haitian and American food. We befriended a local Haitian player who was hanging out at our hotel. He was great guide and cool guy who offered to introduce us to girls. Apparently, Lakay turns into a nightclub after dinner hours, but we were exhausted from our travels and turned in without a real taste of the nightlife (though I suspect there isn't much of any).

Repped members feel free to message me for my Haitian friend's contact information as he was a great guide. We paid about 25 dollars for the three of us at dinner, treating our new friend to a meal.

I was all too happy to return back to Haiti in the morning. It was a once in a lifetime experience that I will never do again. DR felt like Nirvana upon our return. No reading or pictures online will prepare you for how desperate and hopeless Haiti is. The level of poverty, lack of infrastructure and uncleanliness is off the charts. Despite our comfortable travel accommodations and transportation, this is not a trip for the novice traveler. The surroundings and poverty will take a toll on you emotionally.

[Schlep]

Great datasheet Dantes +1 from me. Like to read these kinds of datasheets from little known locations. Don't think I could deal with seeing that kind of poverty. Lapu- Lapu city on Cebu island was to much for me to handle.

How was the food?

[Dantes]

(12-31-2016 08:00 PM)Schlep Wrote:  

Great datasheet Dantes +1 from me. Like to read these kinds of datasheets from little known locations. Don't think I could deal with seeing that kind of poverty. Lapu- Lapu city on Cebu island was to much for me to handle.

How was the food?

Thanks Schelp

The food at the Hotel and Lakay was very good. The local beer was light and refreshing. I wouldn't mess around with accommodations or any kind of street food.

[Lermontov]

''The surroundings and poverty will take a toll on you emotionally.''

I'm of haitian background but was born and raised in Canada. I remember the first time I was in Haiti when I was young. I cried a lot.

Thanks for sharing that post.

[Designate]

Interesting read and experience. Reminded me a lot of my own sentiments after first visiting Haiti.

I've not been up north toward Cap Haitian and some of the other cities in that ballpark, but have traveled extensively around the southern parts of Haiti (i.e Jacmel, Les Cayes & Jeremie).

The others are smaller, but compared to Port-au-Prince, Jacmel is a pretty nice sizable city. The level of poverty is not as bad and it's considerably safer. There has also been a build-up tourist infrastructure as well. PM me if you want a recommendations/ideas. The surrounding coastal beach areas are beautiful for Haitian standards (not too much trash) and there are some great hikes/treks you can do in the Chaîne de la Selle mountain range to see the remaining forests and pristine biomes of the Haitian side of Hispaniola. While all these things are great, there is absolutely nothing different about this region that you couldn't see over in the D.R and have a much better overall experience.

The food in that region is okay for being in the 3rd world. Lots of fresh fruits and dishes with plantains like over in the D.R. The chicken is problematic as most reputable places will sensitize it with bleach concoction, leaving it with a chemical taste. I stayed away from other meats as much as possible to avoid any hazard. Fresh seafood can be your saving grace along the coastal cities. You can eat similarly like you are in the first world though if you are holed up in Petion-Ville within Port-au-prince. They've got western-styled everything as that's where the top 1-5% of Haiti live.

Your quote here definitely sums my feelings as well. The scenes of driving through some of the Port-au-Prince slums will truly shake you to your core. Children naked and shitting in the street, acres of open and enflamed garbage pits and shantytowns for miles. It's real poverty, real suffering and real misery.

Quote:

It was a once in a lifetime experience that I will never do again. DR felt like Nirvana upon our return. No reading or pictures online will prepare you for how desperate and hopeless Haiti is. The level of poverty, lack of infrastructure and uncleanliness is off the charts. Despite our comfortable travel accommodations and transportation, this is not a trip for the novice traveler. The surroundings and poverty will take a toll on you emotionally.

I look back on the experience and remain grateful for having been born into a infinitely better circumstance in the western world. We can play the free market capitalism game of "just work harder to improve your situation", but the truth is most of these people are fucked into this situation permanently with no hope of getting out.

Along with the poverty and all the other baggage, there are other aspects of the country that just aren't that appealing when faced with better alternatives. I like black chicks, but damn most Haitian girls are very rough around the edges. Creole is also tough and the language barrier is atrocious as well. I don't know French, but French speakers have some success communicating, though not 100% or even 75% I believe.

In sum, there's almost no reason to visit Haiti over the D.R or really any other country in Latin America that I can think of. It's not even that good of a place to bang cute black chicks or catch some Caribbean sun, which are it's only positive attributes it has anyways. If you want to bang cute Haitians and catch some sand and sun just go to Miami or Santo Domingo as there are a lot there.

I'd only recommend Haiti for the most dedicated travelers, guys who have a 100% grasp of French or for those who sit on the internet and bitch all day about how bad their lives are and who really need a damn reality check.

[Moma]

I would love to check out Haiti! Great datasheet and I like that you are trying different things. From my experiences in life and travel, I doubt Haiti will have me reeling. I need no further reality checks hahahahaa!

[Friar]

Nice post, Dantes. I think I had a much more positive experience in Cap, though. Stayed at a hotel up in the hills for a week with a beautiful view and quickly befriended all the staff who hooked me up with drinks, smoke, and introduced to many cute girls. I initially planned to just hike the Citadelle and soak in the history (an engineer wonder and must do in the Caribbean) but it turned out to be more than that. Met great characters, drank fine Barbancourt, played basketball in front of a UN base, and was treated well by both rich and poor. In general, I think I clicked better with Haitians than Dominicans, just much more open people interested in learning about you.

Did I say I hung out at Lakay every night? Haha, it's pretty much the only place Westernerns can eat without worrying of stomach ailments. Also a great place to dance on the busier nights. On the weekends you can check out pretty much the only 'club' - Versailles. The local guys took me in and passed me along to giddy girls who probably never danced with a white guy before. I don't know if I'd go solo without local language skills though, it can all be a bit overwhelming.

But there are major downsides, like you said. That first day of seeing poverty and trash everywhere will have you asking 'what the hell am I doing here?'. After a few days I got used to it, and started enjoying myself more. Even donated money to a local school. The other thing is that it's pricey for 1st world amenities, hotels, food, tourist transport, etc. I mean you could take the local school bus-bus for a few cents I guess to get around. And lastly, the 10% of the bangable girls do the best they can given their resources. Think cute outfit that highlights curves, but lacking deodorant

With a connection from Miami, it's pretty easy to get to. It is definitely an eye-opening place that makes you appreciate things more. For a seasoned traveler, I'd definitely recommend going to Sans Souci Palace ruins and hiking up Citadelle Laferierre for a unique adventure. If looking for resort type quality with better lay opportunities, I'd skip.

[Dantes]

(01-03-2017 07:14 PM)Friar Wrote:  

Nice post, Dantes. I think I had a much more positive experience in Cap, though. Stayed at a hotel up in the hills for a week with a beautiful view and quickly befriended all the staff who hooked me up with drinks, smoke, and introduced to many cute girls. I initially planned to just hike the Citadelle and soak in the history (an engineer wonder and must do in the Caribbean) but it turned out to be more than that. Met great characters, drank fine Barbancourt, played basketball in front of a UN base, and was treated well by both rich and poor. In general, I think I clicked better with Haitians than Dominicans, just much more open people interested in learning about you.

Did I say I hung out at Lakay every night? Haha, it's pretty much the only place Westernerns can eat without worrying of stomach ailments. Also a great place to dance on the busier nights. On the weekends you can check out pretty much the only 'club' - Versailles. The local guys took me in and passed me along to giddy girls who probably never danced with a white guy before. I don't know if I'd go solo without local language skills though, it can all be a bit overwhelming.

But there are major downsides, like you said. That first day of seeing poverty and trash everywhere will have you asking 'what the hell am I doing here?'. After a few days I got used to it, and started enjoying myself more. Even donated money to a local school. The other thing is that it's pricey for 1st world amenities, hotels, food, tourist transport, etc. I mean you could take the local school bus-bus for a few cents I guess to get around. And lastly, the 10% of the bangable girls do the best they can given their resources. Think cute outfit that highlights curves, but lacking deodorant

With a connection from Miami, it's pretty easy to get to. It is definitely an eye-opening place that makes you appreciate things more. For a seasoned traveler, I'd definitely recommend going to Sans Souci Palace ruins and hiking up Citadelle Laferierre for a unique adventure. If looking for resort type quality with better lay opportunities, I'd skip.

How did you find the talent at Lakay? The one night I was there, it wasn't great. However, I probably left too early.