Where Will I Live

Where Will I Live?

The Summer Program in Haiti will be housed at the Jacmelienne Hotel in the provincial town of Jacmel. Located on Haiti’s southern coast, Jacmel is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Haiti. Colonial architecture, wood-framed houses with latticed terraces underscore the charm of this quaint Caribbean town. Jacmel is a small community of less than 120,000 inhabitants. It can be crossed, on foot, from seaside to mountain base, in less than two hours. But like Haiti itself, Jacmel’s small size belies its cosmopolitan culture and ambiance.

The crafts boutiques and art galleries in Jacmel are unmatched anywhere in Haiti and many notable painters and writers have made their home there for the seaside respite that Jacmel offers. The Jacmelienne Hotel is the cultural hub of the city – a site of numerous international conferences, art expositions and musical venues. Nestled on the bay of Jacmel, the Jacmelienne provides savory Creole dishes and is within walking distance of the town cinema and the local dance hall. Each student will share a double-occupancy apartment with a private bath and will have access to the hotel’s pool and beachfront. Breakfast and lunch will be provided at the hotel. Other meals and supplies can be obtained at local restaurants and stores within walking distance of the hotel. Ten minutes outside of Jacmel is Raymond des Bains, one of Haiti’s most scenic beaches and a few minutes in the opposite direction, up in the hills surrounding Jacmel, is the pastoral village of La Vallé.

From Footprint Handbooks 1999: The port of Jacmel is Haiti’s prettiest, but run down, city. Its name derives from an Indian word meaning ‘rich land’. Quiet, with 15,000 inhabitants, Jacmel has changed little since the late 19th century when it was a booming coffee port and its wealthy merchants built New Orleans-style mansions using cast-iron pillars and balconies imported from France or the United States. The charm of its Victorian architecture is matched by a setting at the head of a 3 km wide horseshoe bay, with streets winding down three small hills to a palm-fringed, black-sand beach.

Begin a visit with refreshments on the S-facing upper veranda of the Manoir Alexandre, a turn-of-the-century patrician home that is now a guest house. It has Jacmel’s best view plus fine antiques. Two blocks to the E is an iron market built in 1895. (Sat is market day.) The street below the Manoir Alexandre, rue Seymour Pradel, has another old residence, now an American-owned art gallery called Salubria. Closer to the beach, on rue Commerce, more 19th-century homes have been turned into galleries or handicraft stores. The Boucard family residence at the corner of Grand’ Rue and Commerce, is especially fine. At the other end of Commerce, near the wharf, note the Vital family warehouse dating from 1865. The nearby prison was built in the 18th century. Members of a small expatriate community frequent La Choubouloute, a basic beach bar with simple meals 100m W of the wharf. Jacmel’s handicraft speciality is boxes, trays, place mats and other objects covered with parrots or flowers, hand-painted in bright colours.

A hurricane swallowed up most of Jacmel’s beach and what is left is dirty with pigs rooting around in the debris. A good dirt road leads E to fine white-sand beaches. The first is Cyvadier, a tiny cove down a side-road at Km 7. A quiet hotel and restaurant, A1-A2 Cyvadier Plage, offers rooms with ceiling fans, includes meals, T 88-3060 at College Suisse, ask for Hans Geffoy, who puts some of the hotel’s profits into local schools. At Km 15, just before Cayes Jacmel, is Raymond-les-Bains, a beach alongside the road. No facilities except showers. Beware, it has a slight undertow, like most beaches on the S coast. Just after Cayes Jacmel, at Ti Mouillage, the road runs beside two beaches. The first has a basic restaurant. Small beach homes can be rented at the second. From Marigot, a pretty coastal village 10 km further on, a 4WD can climb a rough trail to the village of Seguin (see under Excursions from Port-au-Prince).

A 12 km track into the hills SW of Jacmel leads to Bassin Bleu, a series of natural pools and waterfalls descending a limestone gorge in tiers. The big, deep, blue-green pools are framed by smooth rocks and draped with creeper and maidenhair fern. It takes 2-3 hrs each way on foot or horse-back (horses for hire in Jacmel). Take a guide, fixing a price in advance. There are excellent views over Jacmel bay on the way. If it has not rained, a good driver can nurse a 2WD or 4WD three quarters of the way. The Jacmel guide hands over to a local guide for the last km which is steep and, at one point, requires the aid of a rope. This means an additional small fee.