Turning back home

We get home from Jet Set at around 3.30am. At 6.15am I'm up to catch the bus back to the Dominican Republic. Natasha tells me there are two buses: the comfortable express bus and the crazy bus, which is the one I took to get here. The choice is easy, but unfortunately the bus is not as crazy this time. People are a bit more mellow, presumably because last time they were on their way home to celebrate the new year and now they're on their way back to the reality of their hard lives.

I sit next to Alexis, a 25 year old Haitian whose job is to move steering wheels of imported cars from the right side to the left. During the 11 hour trip we become friends and he invites me to stay at his place for the night. He lives with a friend, another Haitian, on around 12 square meters in a suburb 30 minutes outside Santo Domingo. The living conditions are VERY basic. He prays to God every day to show him an exit, a path to a better life. It's a very moving experience.

Haitian.

Sugar cane salesman in Haiti.

Head for sale in Haiti.

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic