Jan 27, 2017
Flight: Cap-Haitien, Haiti (CAP) to Port-au-Prince, Haiti (PAP);
Sunrise Airways
Hotel: Hotel Oloffson; Port-au-Prince, Haiti; $95
I woke up early this morning to a good breakfast. Today was going to be a long day, with going up to the Citadelle and back to the airport to catch a 1PM flight, then an afternoon tour of Port-au-Prince.

I hadn't seen an ATM in Cap Haitien so I was able to change some dollars to gourdes. The car and driver showed up and we headed up the hill to the Citadelle. The road was rough and took 20 minutes or so to drive up to the 'second parking area'. From there the only way up to the Citadelle was on foot or horseback, about a mile.

As soon as we got out of the car we were swarmed by vendors selling souvenirs, wood carvings, hats, etc. I had forgotten to bring a hat and it was a bright sunny day so ended up buying a good-quality straw hat for $10.

Then the horse guys started in saying you should get a horse to the top. For $10 it really wasn't that expensive but I decideed to walk at least the first bit. They followed us up the hill to see if we'd eventually cave in. I made it over halfway but it was quite steep and I didn't want to end up all sweaty before the day even started. I then said since I'm halfway, it should be half price! So for $5 I was able to ride a horse up the last (steepest) bit. I'm not a lightweight so the poor horse was really breathing heavy by the time we got to the top.

It was an amazingly clear day with gorgeous blue skies. Lucky as the Citadelle can sometimes be shrouded in fog. The Citadelle was built by Henri Christophe, the self-declared king of Northern Haiti after Haitian independence. It is one of the largest forts in the Americas, with an amazing view out over the sea and surrounding hills. One of the most impressive forts I've ever seen, and despite it being one of the most popular tourist sites in Haiti, I was the only tourist there! Though it was still early, barely 8AM.





Citadelle

We had to wait a few minutes until the caretaker could get the lock to open! Outside the fortress were piles of cannonballs that never were used. We spent about 90 minutes wandering around. There were dozens of cannon scavenged from Spanish, French and Engish ships. Some of the fortress is off limits, due tue damage from the 1840s earthquake. Henri's brother in law had been killed when a powder magazine exploded. Henri himself is supposedly buried somewhere in the citadelle, he committed suicide after suffering a stroke in 1820 and was secretly buried by his family.

We walked back down the path to the parking area. I bought a couple of carved wooden bowls along the way. Then drove down to the Sans Souci palace, which was the residence of Henri Christophe. The palace was looted after his death, and destroyed in the earthquake so only the ruins remain.


Sans Souci Palace

I'd been worried about making it to the airport by noon, but it was barely 10:30 so had some time to go back to the guesthouse for lunch. Delicious! The food I'd had so far in Haiti had been very good. The driver said he wanted $70 though instead of the original $35 as the plans were to take a moto up the hill instead of a car. We eventually agreed on $50, still a bit expensive.


The drive to the airport was a quick 30 minutes and Maurice came along to do shopping in Cap Haitien. There was a long line for checkin and immigration for the American flight, but the Sunrise Airways checkin was quick and got to skip direct to security. The flight to Port-au-Prince was uneventful and I ended up sleeping most of it.

I noticed the international terminal had added jetbridges since our stop in 2007. I hadn't realized there was a separate domestic terminal, but luckily the driver from the hotel was waiting for me. They charged $30 for the transfer. Traffic in Port-au-Prince is notoriously bad and he said it had taken him an hour to get to the airport. Luckily going the other way it wasn't so bad and we were at the hotel 30 minutes later. The tap-taps in Port-au-Prince are rolling works of art. They are decorated to the max with mirrors, pinwheels and pop-culture icons.


Rolling works of art

The Hotel Oloffson is an old school gingerbread hotel that was host to Jackie O, Mick Jagger, etc in the 1970s and 1980s. The hotel only suffered minor damage during the earthquake. Anthony Bourdain stayed here on his No Reservations Haiti episode. The wooden building is gorgeous and the grounds are filled with bizarre and creepy vodou art. I ended up in an annex room vs the main building.




Hotel Oloffson

My guide showed up on a moto taxi about 2:45 and we set off, first heading to the cemetery. After the earthquake, the cemetery became residence to thousands of people. They have mostly moved on now as new housing has been built. We had to pay for a guide to enter. It was amazing to wander among the vodou monuments and mausoleums.





After the cemetery we went to the Marche de Fer (Iron Market). This was a gorgeous Moorish-style market building. One side was filled with artists with paintings, wood carvings and metal work. The back corner held voudou altars and dolls. The quality of the work was simply amazing, but with prices to match.


Marche de Fer

Next we went to Atis Rezistans. These artists have taken trash and junk and made incredible statues and sculptures. A bit creepy and macabre, dolls with nails for mouths, a skull with lit-up eyes, etc. As we were leaving a girl said I should say hello to the owner of the gallery, who was on video chat on her phone.



Atis Rezistans

After the amazing stop at the artists, we next went to the Cathedral. The Cathedral was destroyed in the earthquake. They have since built a smaller, more utilitarian church beside it, and the Cathedral was all bricked up. There were still some shanty villages here.


It was starting to get dark so we headed back to the hotel where I had a relaxing dinner on the patio while drinking a Prestige beer. It felt like old-school New Orleans.