Port Au Prince - Post Report Question and Answers

Morale among expats:

So so - you either love it or hate it, usually (I love some things, hate some things). I am not extending my time here, but I do not hate it here and love Haiti's proximity to the US and the rest of the Caribbean. My reasons for not liking it here are more related to the job than Haiti itself. - Sep 2013


Low. Extremely low. It's interesting to watch. Haiti sucks the life out of you.(And I've watched this happen quite a lot with the extremely high volume of TDYers I've seen come and go.) People come with a glow. Then they dim, and by the time their short TDYs are over (2-4 months) the glow is long gone and they're just walking around with a shell-shocked survivalist mentality. (We're not talking earthquake shell-shock, I'm speaking about a time period 16 months after the earthquake.) Sometimes I feel bi-polar towards Haiti (many others feel the same, the prior Real Post Report speaks to this issue). Some days I love it here, I think I want to come back again and again and try to make a difference. But then I wake up, become a realist, and want out. Cynicism, sarcasm, and rage will eventually trump altruism, optimism, and hope. - Sep 2011


Varies widely depending on the person and the situation. Some people have a great time in Haiti, others find it difficult. Most people have very different opinions from one day to the next as the result of the constantly-changing environment (safety, security, political situation, etc.). Life can be great one day and everything can go south the next. - Jan 2011


People I know and befriend here LIKE Haiti, as I do, and feel quite happy...or at least 'productive'..living here. - May 2009


Ok to bad, I'd say no one's really happy here. - Feb 2009


Depends. You go through highs and lows here. - Dec 2008


Really bad to good, it depends on the section you work in. - Feb 2008


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