February 20

Well good morning! It's 6:30am here in Haiti and the rooster crows as I write this. I am safe. I am doing well. We arrived last night and I was pleasantly stunned to find that the place where we are staying is a very nice house! It looks almost colonial, and has tile floor throughout. There are two rooms of bunks and each room has an ensuite bathroom. one room is for men and one is for women. Some of the men are also sleeping on bunks on the deck. In the evening we went onto the roof to check out the lay of the land. You can see much destruction from this vantage point, but surprisingly there are many many homes that seem unaffected. When Tim wrote 'that tropical wretched place' he was right. There's beautiful blooming trees and palms and mango trees right next to piles of ruble. We of course are staying at a place that is not near the real destructive area. On the way to the home we passed a huge hotel that took up a whole city block. It was completely flattened. We are picking up our luggage this morning. The UN flight that we were on wouldn't allow us to bring all our stuff. They said we wouldn't clear the mountain if we kept all the weight on board. Mel and 3 others also had to take a later flight and arrived 2hrs after us. Mel says that that was a great adventure. Speaking of adventure. You've never, ever met crasier drivers. Lanes mean nothing, lights mean nothing... Monika, Mel wanted to thank you for your cards. They are a highlight for him, he says they're great. He wished you were here. Tim, I really miss you. You are never far from my mind. I wish we could share this adventure together. Thank you for letting me go.Kids, I can just imagine what you would be thinking if you saw all this. I love you. Lori, using your travel mug everyday as I drink my little piece of heaven! Miss you too. Today we are going to Chambrun (north-east of PAP) to do our first day of clinic. I am looking forward to it. Ready to get busy!!