Haiti’s Solo Chronicles: How I Risked it all

Ayiti Bang Bang (Haitian phrase/song)

Technically, this trip to Haiti was my first solo travel experience. I don’t count it as such because I was meeting up with family.

Nevertheless, I was alone on the flight portion. Once I arrived, I had to wait for theirs to come in.

My dad, his wife, and my siblings were flying from New York and me from Miami.

There will be times when your journey is partially solo and most times its the transportation (to and fro) phase. On my Contact Me page, I make reference to the trip that I do consider my ‘official’ solo.

Once I announced I was going to Haiti, the tips and advice poured in. Most of them came from my dad who was my ‘sponsor’.

*Don’t wear flashy clothing

I can be a little “extra” when it comes to attire and it was worse back then. My idea of non-flashy/touristy was to wear an aqua 2 piece GUESS jeans set.

The top was a sleeveless see-through net with an attached camisole underneath. I felt justified that the only logo was on my jean’s back pocket.

Can you imagine the contrast of all that aqua against my melanin infested hue? I’m trying to be better.

*Its dangerous to leave Haiti’s airport alone (for any reason)!

This one I followed to the ‘T’. I did not want to be kidnapped. At least that’s what I was told.

Once we left the airport, I was saddened by how many young children were begging for money. Some offered to carry luggage.

I heeded my dad’s warning to look straight ahead and not to stop or speak.

*Make sure to make a care package for your grandma

I’m so sentimental. This was the best advice of them all.

It was an honor picking out ‘mou-mous’ (thin cotton button-down dresses), undergarments and toiletries for my maternal grandmother.

She has since passed away.

Flight Risk

No one warned me of TSA’s policies though. (Now they’re readily available on tsa.gov).

I had one large carry on to check-in and in the meantime found a quiet spot to sit. I had a lot of time before my flight began boarding.

There was so much anticipation about going to my parent’s country. I would finally see family members that had only heard about me through stories.

Gran

I was blessed to be the first of my mom’s children to see them The meeting I was most looking forward to was seeing my maternal grandmother.

There was a longing to feel some type of connection to my mom since she died when I was nine years old.

My oldest brother was the only one of us born and raised in Haiti.

Back in the day

As I passed the time, different security alerts would play through MIA (Miami International Aiport). This was pre 9/11, so it was the same basic security cautions about airport policies.

I also did not have to remove my black kitty heeled ankle boots. One warning that stood out to me was not accepting anyone’s luggage as your own.

That made sense! You had no way of knowing what they carried in there and it wasn’t wise taking that chance with your freedom.

Scoping out the Scenery

Enter in a Haitian lady with a  few huge suitcases large enough to be carrying bodies inside. I assumed she approached me because she saw that I was a solo traveler with limited baggage.

Many older Haitians automatically make the assumption that all Black people are Haitians or that they can distinguish Haitian features. They will randomly start speaking Creole to you.

You could tell most of the passengers were going to Haiti due to luggage size and quantity. The Creole sound bites were a second clue.

They can spend months in Haiti whether it’s for business or pleasure.

So in the middle of all of it all was the skinny girl in a GUESS outfit.

Cry me a river…

I’ve always been a sucker for a sad story. I can sometimes have a hard crabby exterior but I’m truly a softie.

I never fail to live up to the meaning of my name: helper and defender of mankind. This lady proceeds to ask me to check-in with one of her large suitcases.

She offered to pay me a hundred bucks. If I remember correctly, she was close to tears about bag restrictions.

I recalled those security announcements and started shaking my head no. The offer of money did not entice me one bit since this was a paid trip.

Cracking the Shell

I told her I couldn’t. She was persistent.

Her plea detailed carrying much-needed supplies to a rural area. I know the struggles in Haiti and how family members depend on the diaspora (Haitians living abroad).

At that moment,  ladies and gentlemen…Queen Bee risked it all! I was terrified!

That terror was superseded by another word, kinship. As a fellow Haitian and woman, I felt as if I could trust her and that she would not betray her own.

As a final measure of some precaution, I asked her if I could look in the luggage. It was jam-packed with mostly clothing and toiletries.

This made it impossible to see everything without emptying the entire contents.

I did it y’all…and I lived to tell this story. Looking back, I didn’t want to break the law, but I also felt good knowing I helped one of my own.

Please don’t try this at home or anywhere else for that matter…

                             ~Poof…Bee gone

© 2019, Poof Bee Gone, All Rights Reserved

Please free to like/follow my social media platforms, leave me a comment, share blog posts and subscribe to get timely updates.