Tuesday, March 30, 2010

The 8th Wonder of the World?

This is the Citadel. I'm told the Haitians refer to as yes - the "8th wonder of the world." Rightly:



From Wikipedia:

"The massive stone structure was built by up to 20,000 workers between 1805 and 1820 as part of a system of fortifications designed to keep the newly-independent nation of Haiti safe from French incursions. The Citadel was built several miles inland, and atop the 3,000 ft (910 m) Bonnet a L’Eveque mountain, to deter attacks and to provide a lookout into the nearby valleys. Cap-Haïtien and the adjoining Atlantic Ocean are visible from the roof of the fortress. Anecdotally, it is possible to sight the eastern coast of Cuba, some 90 miles (140 km) to the west, on clear days."

I was privileged to see it from a perspective most do not, from above in a Cessna 172. You look at that one road that is the only access - you contemplate what it took to build something of that magnitude there - and it's easy indeed to make comparisons with say, the Pyramids.

It is a tragedy to me that something this magnificent ~ is basically hidden from the world.

Looking at my pictures from the flight that day - which ranged from the photograph above to a view of the destruction after take-off:





To this beautiful shot of Port au Prince I shared in a previous post as we came in to land:




I realize these could serve as a testimony to what the quake represents in the lives of the Haitian people and in the history of the country itself. The Citadel is a testimony to their strength and determination; the damaged landscape a testimony to their courage and resilience; the end-of-day sunlight shining down a testimony to their faith.

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