Caribbean With Simon Reeve (2015) s01e01 Episode Script
Dominican Republic, Haiti, Puerto Rico
I'm on a journey around the Caribbean Sea, with its thousands of beautiful islands and an incredible mainland coast, home to millions of extraordinary people.
This is a vast area with a rich and brutal history.
And some of the most dangerous places on the planet! (GUNFIRE) It's one of the most vibrant and exciting regions on Earth.
It's the Caribbean.
On this first leg of my journey around the Caribbean Sea, I travel east from the island of Hispaniola to the American territory of Puerto Rico.
In the Dominican Republic, I'm picked up by the officers battling drug pushers and cartels.
That is a block of cocaine.
And beneath the sea, I come face-to-face with the reality of living in America's back yard.
It's quite peaceful and still down there, apart from this massive bomb! And I head further off the tourist trail to see another side of a country with a tragic reputation.
And this this is the real treasure of Haiti.
I'm starting my journey around the Caribbean Sea, here on the exotic island of Hispaniola.
It's an island divided between two countries, the Dominican Republic, where I am now, and poor, long suffering Haiti, where I'll be heading to later on in my journey.
I headed to Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic.
It's one of the largest cities in the Caribbean, and it's where European settlement of the Americas first began.
This was the first Spanish city in the Americas.
It was home to the first European cathedral, university and monastery in the New World.
Christopher Columbus landed on Hispaniola in 1492.
His brother founded the Caribbean's first European city here.
Hola.
For centuries, this was a Spanish colony.
It was from here that Europeans set off to conquer the rest of the Americas and, of course, annihilate many of the indigenous people already living there.
The fate of the New World was set here.
Today, the Dominican Republic boasts some of the fastest economic growth in the region.
With hundreds of miles of beaches, the country's a bit of a Caribbean holiday cliche.
You probably know somebody who's been here on their holidays, because this is the most popular tourist destination in the Caribbean.
Ten million people live here.
They're joined by about five million tourists each year.
There's sun, sea, sand and plenty of adventure sports, without too many boring worries about health and safety.
Oh, my God.
This is one of those things that sounded like a really good idea.
I was told this was a flying boat.
It looks more like a flying dinghy to me.
Where do you sit? OK.
(HE SCREAMS) What am I going to hold on to? It wasn't the ideal experience for a traveller with vertigo.
(HE YELLS) But eventually I calmed down and started to enjoy the incredible view.
More than 25 million tourists visit the Caribbean islands each year, half coming from the United States.
Many Caribbean islands have become completely dependent on their income from the travel industry.
Bloody hell! You crazy Frenchmen! That was incredible.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
I tell you what, it takes budget airline to a whole new level.
I know this entire gig looks like a bit of a cushy number, but the Caribbean isn't all paradise.
Away from the tourist resorts and lush beaches, there's another side to this country and the region.
This island's always been a key hub for trade in the Caribbean.
Now it's being targeted by the international drug cartel, smuggling cocaine from the production areas in South America to users in North America and Europe.
The trade is fuelling poverty in the Dominican Republic and an increasing drug and crime problem.
We're just arriving at the headquarters of the Police Anti-Narcotics Division.
Colonel David Rodriguez was briefing his special operations unit.
The unit is tasked with tackling violent drug gangs.
This is the other side of paradise, I guess.
I was joining them on a drugs raid.
What we're doing is dividing the teams.
There's a couple of guys who are going to enter the premises on a motorcycle.
They're like what we call the point.
- OK.
- They're going to radio us and tell us, "OK, fine, go in.
" I never really know whether to feel safer wearing this or to feel more of a target.
OK, we're off.
We were heading to one of the city's poorest districts.
Millions of Dominicans are still stuck in poverty, and around a third of the people here live on less than £3 a day.
We were soon in the gang area, ready for the raid.
Then, suddenly, two undercover police officers ahead of us spotted a wanted gang member, and we all set off in pursuit.
It's a right warren, isn't it? How can you operate in an area like this? (HE LAUGHS) We've basically run in to a complete warren.
And obviously the people we were looking for have legged it.
(DOG BARKS) Come and take a look where a guy just jumped.
Jumped? He came down this, those stairs, and jumped through here.
This goes through a tunnel that goes under the road where we parked.
Wow.
Apparently, he threw part of what he had in this room.
You could hide kilos of drugs in here.
Look at this place.
We've got something.
You've got something? What have we got there? Marijuana and cocaine.
How much is there approximately? Over 180 grams, maybe.
So there's a couple of thousand dollars' worth of cocaine there? - Yeah.
- So are you happy with this as a result? - Super happy.
Super happy.
- Let's go.
But there are now tonnes of cocaine being trafficked into the Dominican Republic.
The police here know that a small bust like this is just scratching the surface.
It's always the same.
They've got about eight sellers, and each seller or distributor has the same amount each and every day.
So that means this, just this gang, is shifting a couple of kilos of cocaine here, just this area, every day? - Yeah, yeah.
- Thanks for bringing us along.
In recent years, anti-narcotics operations in South and Central America have made the overland drug smuggling routes to North America more difficult.
The international trade is increasingly shifting to the Caribbean islands.
The international drug cartels are now paying local drug smugglers here in countries like the Dominican Republic.
They're paying them in kind with their own products, so with cocaine and guns, basically.
And that, of course, leads to a massive increase in both drug usage and, of course, crime as well.
And all the attendant poverty and suffering that goes with that.
Local drug gangs are getting wealthier and more dangerous as they get access to more powerful weapons.
The murder rate in the Dominican Republic is several times higher than in the United States.
To help deal with violent crime, Colonel Rodriguez's unit trains at a commando base in mountains to the north of the country.
(HE SHOUTS) (THEY SHOUT IN REPLY) David, can you give us a sense of the scale of the threat your men and your women are facing? We have boats coming in full of cocaine shipments.
We're talking about 1,000 kilos, 1,200 kilos.
Now we have more drug related murders.
And you see that more and more here now? Every day.
It's my 24 hours.
Officers here are being trained in close-quarter armed combat, and to meet violence with an overwhelming response.
(GUNFIRE) (DAVID LAUGHS) They're definitely dead.
The Colonel was keen to show me why anyone with a gun can be a threat to his officers.
- On the left.
- I'm on the left.
- The other way.
The other way.
- Yes, OK.
There you go.
(GUNFIRE) - There you go.
To the throat.
- Now that's terrifying.
I'm a complete Yeah, I'm not a former soldier or anything, and you've just This is the first time we've done it.
It's horrific, frankly, that a weapon that is as powerful, as deadly as this is so fundamentally easy to use.
To use.
A 14-year-old kid can use it.
- That's the horrifying point, isn't it? - Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
But your officers will confront weapons like this? Let's put it this way, it's called organised crime.
What we've got to do is organise ourselves.
The Dominican Republic is now caught up in the international war on drugs.
It's some sort of training exercise now, in which we're the suspects.
It's a struggle that is devastating countries across the Caribbean region.
Oh, bloody hell! Local Caribbean police forces are often out-gunned and under-resourced.
The challenge is huge.
In recent years, the quantity of cocaine smuggled through here and on to the US and Europe has increased by around 800%.
So all these we have here, was received, you know, last week from different towns of the Dominican Republic.
And how much is just in How much in there? Nine kilos.
Astonishing.
So that's 9kg of cocaine.
So that's worth in the region of £400,000 to £500,000 if a smuggler can get that to Europe.
Half a million quid, just there! We helped to create this problem.
Drugs sold and bought on the streets of Britain are being smuggled through here.
The UK consumes a quarter of all the cocaine in the EU.
Look at that.
That is a block of cocaine.
Now where would that have been going? To the United States? To the streets of Britain? Who knows? But more likely than not, it was heading on overseas, because that's where the big money is.
Drugs with a street value of around half a billion pounds are now being burnt each year at this secure facility inside an army base.
Astonishing.
The heat is really intense.
I think what you see there is the Caribbean, of course, not just as paradise, which it may well be, but the Caribbean as victim.
It's in the middle, between the supply, which is coming out of Central and South America, and the major markets for demand, which are in Europe and North America.
It was time for me to leave the cops and continue my journey across the island.
My local guide, Carlos, suggested a pit-stop at a quirky local watering-hole.
I didn't know quite what to expect.
It's a drive-thru bar.
Isn't it amazing? It's lovely.
Incredible.
So what can they do? Look, it's a full pub! I wanted to have a nice drink to impress my friend, - like a very colourful cocktail.
- I want a really big umbrella in it.
(HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE) He didn't think to say, "Maybe it's not a good idea for you to have a drink, sir, as you seem to be behind the wheel of a vehicle?" No? Nothing like that? I'm astonished.
I don't think I've seen this anywhere in the world.
What's your view, Carlos? Do you think this is a good idea? People here say that the most they drink, the safer they drive.
Well, that's just stupid.
Carlos, I'm very sorry to say, but that is just stupid.
I think if you drive in the Dominican Republic, you can drive anywhere in the world.
Well if you survive.
Yeah, you're right.
Oh, look, the gentleman's got some drinks for us.
- Thank you very much.
- Fantastic.
Thank you very much.
That's a passion fruit cocktail.
- Let's give it a try.
We should say cheers.
- Cheers, sir.
- Cheers.
- Cheers.
Salud.
Flipping heck, that's quite strong.
This is delicious, but this is not a good idea.
I agree with you.
But, still, a lot of people drink and drive here.
Gracias, señor.
Mad.
- Let me take that off you, Carlos.
- Yes.
- Don't you have any more.
- Ooh, look at that! - I was about to have an accident.
- Yeah, there you go, and that's not going to look good, is it? Thousands of people die on the roads here every year.
According to the World Health Organization, the Dominican Republic is actually the world's most dangerous place to drive.
Do you know anybody who's been injured, or worse, in road accidents? The son of a good friend of mine had a car accident just right here, in this corner, - 8a couple of years ago.
- Good Lord.
And I'm still suffering.
Everybody in the office is suffering that.
- Died? - Yeah.
And was alcohol involved? Yes, yes, yes, yes.
He was drinking or somebody else was drinking? Somebody else was drinking, yes.
It was not him.
Somebody else.
It's a sad but common story.
There are laws here about drink-driving and dangerous driving, but nobody seems to enforce them.
With that firmly in mind, and with our seat-belts applied, we set off across the country.
Carlos was driving me to the border between the Dominican Republic and its neighbour on the island-- Haiti.
Nearly 200 miles north-west, we arrived in the town of Dajabon.
It looked like it was the monthly market, but apparently it's this busy every day, with thousands of people crossing the border.
I'd been catapulted into chaos and colour.
You stand here for a minute and you start to realise how the human traffic is flowing.
This way, you've got people going back into Haiti, who are taking back stuff they have bought in the Dominican Republic to sell, because Haiti doesn't produce a lot.
Haiti's by far the poorest country in the Western hemisphere.
Many Haitians have fled abroad.
Up to a million have moved to the neighbouring, richer Dominican Republic.
Relations between the two countries are not great at the moment.
The Dominican Republic's in the process of kicking out thousands of Haitians, many who've lived here for generations.
And, historically, relations between the two states have not been good.
This is part of the reason why.
This is the River Massacre, and it commemorates a period in the 1930s when, perhaps, 25,000 or more Haitians were killed by Dominican soldiers.
These were Haitians who were living in the country.
Many of them had been here for many years, but the Dominicans identified who was Haitian or not by getting them to say the Spanish word for "parsley", which Creole-speaking Haitians had trouble saying properly.
And, on that one word, often people lived or died.
Many of them were hacked to death.
It's appalling.
Haiti's become a by-word for poverty and suffering.
It's endured colonial rule, terrible leaders, bad luck and a catastrophic earthquake in 2010.
It has a pretty grim reputation, but I was hoping to see a different side to the place.
Simon, how are you? Jean Daniel? It's a pleasure to meet you.
(HE CHUCKLES) Very nice to meet you.
So this is Jean Daniel.
He spotted us.
We have a camera with us.
The first time we've met.
Thank you for coming over.
Thank you for being here.
And Jean Daniel is going to be our guide across Haiti.
(CAR HORN BLARES) (JEAN DANIEL SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE) Merci, monsieur.
We are now in Haiti.
It's quite busy here, mate, isn't it? It's quite beautiful, too.
This is normal, is it? Yeah, it's really normal.
Things are not as bad as people have portrayed it.
- Oh, right.
- You know? Well, I'm really excited to visit and I'm really looking forward to our travels around the country.
Yes, I'm looking forward to it as well.
Haiti wasn't always poor.
In the 1700s, it was a French colony and fortunes were made here from growing sugar, coffee, cocoa, tobacco and cotton in the fertile climate.
It was said to be the richest slave colony in the world, but not for long.
The story of Haiti isn't all about suffering.
It's also an extraordinary tale of struggle and victory against the greatest powers in the world.
OK, you want me to get on this one? Look at my masterful control of this beastie.
Whoa! Whoo! I was off to see one of the wonders of the Caribbean.
Look at that! Like a castle in the clouds.
Perched on top of a mountain, the whopping Citadelle Laferriere is the largest fortress in all of the Americas.
It's an astonishing place, this.
This is not what people think of when they think of Haiti.
But I have, I think, an unfortunately negative view of the country.
This is absolutely stunning.
It took 20,000 workers 50 years to build the colossal structure.
Look at the scale of this! Its walls, up to four metres thick, seem as sturdy as the mountain itself.
Its ramparts stand almost 1,000 metres above sea-level.
It's an epic structure, built to last forever.
Oh, wow.
(HE EXHALES IN AMAZEMENT) It's breathtaking.
Goodness me, look how it dominates the area.
This Citadelle represents something truly extraordinary.
Haiti is the only country to have been formed as the result of a successful slave rebellion.
In the late 1700s, Haiti's slaves rose up against their brutal French masters.
In wars that followed, they managed to do the unthinkable-- they defeated the forces of the French, the British, even the army of the Emperor Napoleon.
In 1804, Haiti was declared independent, the first free black nation in the modern world.
Their plan to protect the new nation from the former slave masters, particularly the French, was that if they saw French ships coming in to retake the country, they would see them arriving In the far distance, we can just see the sea.
they would retreat from the coast, burning everything as they went, to this fort and others.
And they would then be able to ambush and attack the French soldiers on mountain passes and at choke points.
The Citadelle had hundreds of cannons and water and food stores that could supply thousands of soldiers for a year.
But an attack never came.
Instead, the French used a different tactic.
The French effectively blockaded the island and that was only lifted when a Haitian ruler, rather foolishly, agreed to pay massive reparations to France, basically paying them for the loss of their slave plantations.
Those payments went on for decades and completely crippled Haiti.
By the end of the 1800s, Haiti was still sending almost 80% of its national revenue to France as reparations.
Foreign powers continued to meddle in Haiti into the 20th century.
America invaded and occupied for two decades from 1915, imposing forced labour on the people and taking huge tracts of land for plantations.
Since then, the country has suffered from years of coups and political violence.
But through it all, Haiti has kept its unique faith, one rooted in both Africa and rebellious slave culture.
It's a faith that has often inspired mistrust and fear among outsiders.
- Bonsoir.
- How are you, monsieur? This place is a bit off the beaten track, eh? Jean Daniel was taking me to a voodoo ceremony.
It's important to see voodoo, because voodoo is an essential part of our culture, of Haiti's culture.
It has a pretty bad reputation, it's seen as something scary.
This is the soul of Haiti and this is why people don't understand Haiti.
But there is nothing scary about it for Haitians.
Its origins are said to be as old as Christianity, but let's be honest-- Voodoo is seen by many as sinister mumbo-jumbo.
(THEY SING) The ceremony takes place here, right next to the centre pole.
What do the white markings on the ground signify? They are signs that we've inherited from the Amerindians.
Amerindians who were living here before - Who were living before.
- Europeans first came here Way before Christopher Columbus came in.
Way before.
Slaves transported from West Africa could bring nothing but their faith.
And here, the French forced them to convert to Catholicism.
Am I right in thinking, voodoo is a very complicated belief system, but it's centred around one god? One god, multiple spirits.
Voodoo became the name given to the secret religion of the slaves.
It combined the faith of their ancestors, the religious symbols of the original indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, and the Christianity of their masters.
(THEY SING AND CHANT) They are inviting you to go.
Goodness.
OK.
Critics of voodoo say it's simple superstition, that it holds Haiti back because it makes people believe the spirits control their destiny, rather than telling them they have the ability to change their life by their own actions.
But perhaps you could say the same of many religions.
I have to say, I'm not sure if a Haitian TV crew turned up at a British village church whether they'd receive such a hospitable welcome.
(THEY SING) Does voodoo feature in your life? I live voodoo.
And I have ceremonies.
Doesn't that make you a voodoo priest? Yes.
You are a voodoo priest? - Indeed.
- Do you have a parish? Do you have an area that you're responsible for? I would love to have a parish, but I'm not a Catholic priest! (HE LAUGHS) Has white European culture demonised the faith? You fear what you don't know.
A four-year-old kid who heard that darkness was bad is afraid of the dark.
It's the same.
It's a matter of relaxing, understanding and opening your mind to something that you don't know.
(MUSIC AND SINGING CONTINUE) I'm used to having my mind opened on my journeys, but I've never seen anything quite like this before.
(SHE SCREAMS AND CHANTS) In front of our eyes, a woman was apparently being possessed by a spirit.
It's said to be a great honour among followers of the faith.
So really, our Western perception of voodoo is really created as a response to the fact that it's a faith that inspired a slave uprising on this island, and Europeans just couldn't accept that.
And so, for Europeans, they've turned it in to something scary.
Voodoo's a recognised religion here.
People say Haiti's 70% Catholic, 30% Protestant, but 100% voodoo.
The next morning, Jean Daniel drove me along the coast.
Haiti only has a few hundred miles of paved roads-- it's one of the reasons behind the terrible state of the economy.
It's tricky and expensive to move anything around.
But we stopped off at a place where a bit of money is trickling into the country.
(HE CHUCKLES) This is an amazing sight.
That is one of the largest cruise ships in the world.
More than 6,000 passengers on board, almost 2,500 crew.
It's a floating town.
Hundreds of thousands of tourists cruise into this Paradise Bay every year.
The cruise company pays the Haitian government less than £10 per visitor for exclusive access.
They generally don't leave this little tiny corner.
Apparently, most of them don't really know they're in Haiti.
- Oh, here come a couple of people.
- What you got me? What you got me? Pardon? Pardon? We're just looking at the resort here.
Have you ever met any of the tourists who come here? Do they ever come out of this area? Do they ever go into Cap-Haitien? 10 or 15 off a ship that holds 6,500 passengers? Do you think they're benefiting Haiti by being here? Very true, sir.
Very true.
Travel safe out there.
(HE SPEAKS FRENCH) - Au revoir.
- Au revoir, madame.
Bye.
We continued south to Jean Daniel's hometown, the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince.
(CAR HORNS BLARE) Built on a natural harbour, Port-au-Prince was once one of the major trading ports of the Caribbean.
Now it's scarred by one of the worst natural disasters in recent history.
So, here you have the back view of the cathedral, of what used to be the cathedral.
Can you see? Oh, my God.
On the 12th January 2010, a massive earthquake rocked Port-au-Prince.
What is this here? This isn't left over from the earthquake, surely? Every inch of the entire block was destroyed during the quake.
And it's still a pile of rubble years later? This is nothing compared to what it used to be.
It used to be a mountain of rubble.
The earthquake destroyed much of the city.
More than 200,000 people were killed.
Even more were injured.
One and a half million people were left homeless.
It was catastrophe on a biblical scale.
Jean Daniel, where where were you when the earthquake hit? I was a bank executive at the time.
- A bank exec? - Executive, yes.
Right.
But from the window of my office, I saw the Citibank building, right across the street from my bank, crumbling down.
And then I realised that it was an earthquake.
And the tremors lasted a very short period of time, didn't they? Yeah, it lasted less than 60 seconds.
But it felt like an hour, guys.
You think about everything, you know? Your family, what's happening.
You know, that few seconds was It was extremely moving, extremely moving, and it's something that, as of now, I still cannot explain very well.
But it changed my life completely.
What was it like in the street outside? In the streets, it was absolutely horrifying.
The entire country was covered with a white cloud.
My God.
All the landmarks, all the reference that I had as a kid, had disappeared.
All the landmarks! There are no more landmarks that I knew of as a kid that were there.
So part of my Really, part of my Part of my childhood has totally vanished.
I'm sorry, mate.
Foreign governments and aid agencies pledged billions of pounds in aid to Haiti in the weeks after the earthquake, but much of the money has never appeared and many people here are still struggling to survive.
Oh, my God.
There are dozens of places like this still around the city, aren't there? Yes, there are, particularly around the shanty towns.
Almost half a decade after the earthquake, and in America's backyard, more than 150,000 people were still living in tented camps.
More than 10,000 foreign organisations and charities have worked in Haiti since the quake.
But fundamental problems like sewers and sanitation haven't been adequately addressed.
Many local people say money that was donated to help them hasn't always been spent wisely.
Many feel abandoned.
I do sense that too many aid agencies think in the short-term because they need quick results to please their donors and, in reality, what this country needs is a long-term plan.
Jean Daniel agreed, but also explained that Haitians need to take matters into their own hands.
I think that we rely too much on outside promises and influence.
But I think that once we get together, that we will move forward, that we will move into, really, the development of Haiti.
Haiti's problems go back well beyond the earthquake.
Haitians need education, employment and the entire structure of a functioning state.
They can get help from outsiders, but ultimately, the answers will have to come from within.
The next morning, we went to see how Haitians are trying to tackle some of their deep-rooted problems.
Adeline Bien-Aime is working with some of the city's most vulnerable children.
Adeline, tell us about this place.
What's going on here? Restaveks are children given away by parents who can't afford to look after them.
Often they're sent to live with a relative, but sometimes they're given to strangers.
And what sort of life does a Restavek have? Are they expected to work for their new family? Is it servitude or is it Is it, as some people have said, a form of slavery? There are thought to be at least 300,000 Restaveks in Haiti.
They're a symptom of desperate poverty.
Many parents think they're doing the best for their children by sending them away, but often Restavek children endure long hours of work, are vulnerable to horrific abuse and are seldom sent to school.
Bonsoir.
ALL: Bonsoir.
(HE CHUCKLES) Adeline works for the Restavek Freedom Foundation.
They find Restaveks, then teach and train them, giving them life-skills, a chance at a job, and a future.
What age range do we have here? I set up the group.
I work with them, and I have from 12 to, like, 20.
So can we ask then, who is the youngest here? Soufonie? Soufonie.
I would say Soufonie is the youngest.
Soufonie, she's tiny.
- Yeah, she is.
- And Soufonie, can you tell us Can you tell us a little bit about your story? (THEY GIGGLE) And does she hit you with her hand or does she hit you with something? Soufonie, do you have any hopes for the future? Do you have a dream of what you would like to be? (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) I'm very honoured to hear stories from you and learn more about the lives that you live.
The Restavek Freedom Movement in Haiti is gaining momentum.
Adeline's Foundation has helped hundreds of children, like Soufonie, to go through school.
But part of the key to ending the whole Restavek system is raising public awareness.
And while I was in Haiti, the Restavek Freedom Foundation were putting on a little concert in the capital, to help remind Haitians that the life of a Restavek is no life for a child.
Oh, my goodness! It's an incredible number.
I thought it was going to be a small, almost private little affair.
But there are Well, there are thousands of people here.
It was the finals of a national competition.
Singers from around the country were performing songs they'd written about the Restavek issue.
(APPLAUSE) Adeline! Hello, dearest, how are you? Can we have a kiss? Two, please.
Adeline, what is the point of this concert? What is the aim of it? - Good luck, OK? - OK.
And good luck to you, Amanda.
Bonne chance.
- Bye-bye! - Bye-bye! She wants to get rid of us, she wants to enjoy the concert.
Go on, go and dance.
Many of the girls from the school were also enjoying the concert.
They seem a little excited.
(SHRIEKING) It's really quite uplifting.
It feels like we might be here at a turning point in Haiti's history on this subject.
For them to hold this concert in the National Stadium and for there to be that many people there shows that this is no longer Haiti's dirty little secret.
There's a degree of openness about it.
And that, hopefully, will lead to change.
But real change will only come to Haiti if the economy improves and people are lifted out of poverty.
Across much of the Caribbean, tourism has helped to lift national economies.
Tourists spend billions of pounds a year to experience the beauty of these islands.
Back in the 1970s, Haiti was a tourist hot spot.
Even wary American tourists came here.
But the country's desperate troubles since then have left hundreds of miles of beautiful beaches empty and totally undeveloped.
Flipping heck! Look at this place! - This is stunning! - It is stunning.
No, not just stunning.
This looks like a bit of paradise.
And that place here, this really tells a story, doesn't it? Look at its position right on the beach here.
This gorgeous beach! I don't know about you, but if that was a hotel, I'd stay here.
Merci, monsieur.
We'd arranged to meet an American teacher from Florida who's fallen in love with this bit of Haiti's coast.
Hello! Jamie? - Hello, Jamie.
- Hi! - Can we come aboard? - Absolutely.
Come on.
- Jamie, hello.
Simon.
- Hi.
Nice to meet you.
Lovely to meet you, too.
- It's a pleasure to meet you.
Hi.
- Pleasure! He doesn't He doesn't really like the sea.
That's OK.
We'll make him a fan of the sea soon.
Jamie Aquino set up and runs the Haiti Ocean Project.
When she first visited here eight years ago, Jamie soon released that this undiscovered part of the Caribbean was exceptional.
There is an underwater topography in Haiti that's unique.
There's two giant underwater canyons.
Starting at one mile off the coast, they drop to about 2,000 or 3,000 feet.
In the middle, about ten miles out, they're down to 15,000 feet.
It's incredible! So just off the coast, you basically The ground drops away underneath the sea and there is a vastness.
The vast, deep ocean is right there, it's just off the coast of Haiti.
And what lives there? Lots of marine mammals.
Pilot whales, bottle-nosed dolphins.
There's quite a population of sperm whales.
I've also run into about a thousand spotted dolphins around the boat, as well.
- Well, that would be spectacular.
- Yeah.
I'm not going to be able to take my eyes off the sea now.
Jamie is encouraging local youngsters to get involved with conservation in the hope they can establish a marine tourism industry in the area and help to protect this unique environment.
- Let it go? - Yeah, just don't want to get it tangled.
By popping the microphone into the water, she can detect noisy dolphins or whales within a two-mile radius.
I've never heard the ocean like that.
That's not the waves at the surface.
Right, right.
That is the sea.
- There you go, listen.
- (JAMIE CHUCKLES) (GENTLE SWOOSHING) Isn't that special? Rather than just being a body of water, this shows it much more as a living thing, I think.
(CLICKING) Hold on.
I think I hear dolphins.
I'm hearing, like, a "Eeer".
Listen.
(CLICKING) - Can you hear? Yeah.
- I can hear dolphins! - They really are.
- Yeah, they're really close.
"Eeer-eeer!" - Wow, they're having a right old gossip.
- Yeah.
With dolphins nearby, we were all on high alert.
Where? Straight down.
The same line as the boat.
- Oh, yeah! - Just here, coming right across! Look, dolphins! Oh, my goodness! Look at them! There was a pod of at least 30 pantropical spotted dolphins.
There have been few scientific studies about life in this unique corner of the Caribbean Sea, but Jamie's convinced that deep below us is a breeding and feeding ground for a population of endangered sperm whales.
What is clear is that this is a home for some of the most magnificent creatures in our seas.
And this this is the real treasure of Haiti.
Judging by the excited reaction of the youngsters on the boat, Jamie's project has a real chance of success.
It's her hope that spectacles like this will encourage more tourists to visit this beautiful country, which could help it economically but could also change the image of Haiti as just a place of trouble and suffering.
It was time for me to leave the island of Hispaniola and head east on my journey around the Caribbean Sea.
Look at the size of it! We're off to America sort of.
Caribbean Fantasy! The whole Caribbean exists in the shadow of the United States, but now I was off to a place that's basically the 51st state.
Oh, blimey! A bit of razzamatazz.
Hello, ladies.
Right, I think I'd better find my cabin.
Phew! Oh! Oh, I'm glad to get that off.
Let's have a look, quick! View! What a glorious view.
It'll change soon.
We're off across the Caribbean.
We sailed through the night across the Mona Passage to the island of Puerto Rico.
Well, that's how to arrive! This island is the spoils of war.
Puerto Rico is actually a territory of the USA.
The United States took control of the island in 1898 following the Spanish-American War.
Look at this! We've just come into the capital of Puerto Rico, and, honestly, we've arrived in the States.
It couldn't be more different to Haiti.
At first glance, it looked like people here are living the American dream.
Are you from here, Jose? Born and raised down here, yeah.
Life looks pretty good here.
Well It's It's It looks like that.
But you're a territory of the richest country in the world.
Surely everything is just going absolutely swimmingly here.
It doesn't work like that.
We're not on equal terms.
Driving around the capital, San Juan, I could see there were areas hit hard by bankruptcy and an economic downturn.
See how buildings are closed over here? Oh, yes, look at this.
Closed.
Closed.
Closed.
Sale or rent signs up over here.
Closed.
- Not good.
- No, not at all.
Energy, food and other costs are much higher in Puerto Rico than on the US mainland.
And the local government here has got itself into financial troubles, spending more than it can afford and getting deep into debt.
So, how is all this impacting on people here? People are scared.
Job opportunities are reduced.
Most of the professionals that are graduating from our university, they jump into a plane and they go to the United States and find a job over there.
From 2000 to 2013, over 200,000 people left Puerto Rico.
My wife is one of them.
She just moved to Florida.
- Your wife - Yeah.
- has moved to Florida?! - Yeah.
She landed a job with the same company she was working for here.
She's going to be making over three times what she was making here.
- Three times more? - Three times.
Same company.
How on earth does that work for you as a couple? Well, it's a sacrifice, but I'll be moving shortly.
There are now more Puerto Ricans living in mainland America than in Puerto Rico.
The problem's often called the brain drain and it's a huge issue across the region.
In some Caribbean countries, 70% of the educated workforce have emigrated.
Cheers, Jose! I headed to a small island off the coast called Vieques.
Wild horses.
It's quite a special place, eh? It's also a place where the impact of America has left deep scars.
Great view.
It looks, um peaceful and magnificent now, doesn't it? But for decades, this was actually one of the United States' military's principal firing ranges.
It was a bomb-testing area, basically.
For more than 60 years, the United States Navy used Vieques to test weapons it would use in conflicts around the world.
Huge quantities of munitions were kept at that end of the island, then flown up to that end and dropped.
It's still restricted and we're not allowed to go there, but that end of the island is said to be as cratered as the surface of the moon.
The US military bombarded the island with hundreds of thousands of tons of bombs.
They even used the chemical Agent Orange.
I met up with local fisherman, Cacimar Zenon, who lived through the bombing, to find out what it was like.
The constant explosions shook houses and made life here intolerable.
Islanders began a campaign of protest and direct action.
People from the island are coming in on a protest boat to try and disrupt the firing and shooting.
Goodness me.
I mean, this is such a graphic illustration of the heavy hand of the United States.
After a local man was killed by a stray bomb, protests reached fever pitch.
And in 2002, the US was finally forced to end the bombing.
The US military claims it's now carrying out an enormous clean-up operation on the island, but they denied us access to film it.
Many islanders who make their living from the Caribbean say there's also an enormous threat in the sea.
Cacimar took me out for a dive.
Out of the depths, I could see a dark shape looming.
At least 12-feet long, with its nose buried in the ocean floor.
Fishermen here say there are thousands of unexploded bombs and munitions littering the seabed.
They fear a disaster if any get drawn into their nets.
It sure is quite peaceful and still down there apart from this massive bomb! Unbelievable.
That was the most terrifying thing by a long way I've seen underwater.
I I can't quite get my head around it, I really can't.
There's, um And I don't know what's madder, diving down onto it, or sitting on a boat on top of it.
Look how close we are to the coast.
People fish in these waters.
Completely surreal.
Fishermen here are pleading with the US military to clean up the seabed.
Until they do, we can't be sure whether the device I saw is likely to explode.
Aside from the risk of detonations, Cacimar and experts believe the bombs pose other dangers.
They fear the munitions are leaching dangerous chemicals into the food chain, affecting the fish that the local population then eat.
A report by a Puerto Rican scientist showed that there were 30% more deaths from cancer on Vieques than on the Puerto Rican mainland.
The US government refuses to accept there's a link between the bombing and cancer rates.
But Cacimar and many islanders are not ready to give up the fight.
They want compensation and a faster clean-up.
I'd reached the end of the first stage of my journey around the Caribbean Sea.
(HE EXHALES) It's completely breathtaking.
It's been a fascinating adventure so far.
A bit frightening at times, but through an absolutely stunning region of our world.
And I can't wait to continue my journey around the Caribbean Sea.
On the next leg of my journey, I visit one of the Caribbean's most gorgeous islands and get an unusual taste of paradise.
Yes, baby! I travel through Venezuela's lawless border country.
And in the coastal mountains of Colombia, I meet one of the oldest surviving civilisations in the Americas.
(THEY LAUGH) March 22nd, 2015
This is a vast area with a rich and brutal history.
And some of the most dangerous places on the planet! (GUNFIRE) It's one of the most vibrant and exciting regions on Earth.
It's the Caribbean.
On this first leg of my journey around the Caribbean Sea, I travel east from the island of Hispaniola to the American territory of Puerto Rico.
In the Dominican Republic, I'm picked up by the officers battling drug pushers and cartels.
That is a block of cocaine.
And beneath the sea, I come face-to-face with the reality of living in America's back yard.
It's quite peaceful and still down there, apart from this massive bomb! And I head further off the tourist trail to see another side of a country with a tragic reputation.
And this this is the real treasure of Haiti.
I'm starting my journey around the Caribbean Sea, here on the exotic island of Hispaniola.
It's an island divided between two countries, the Dominican Republic, where I am now, and poor, long suffering Haiti, where I'll be heading to later on in my journey.
I headed to Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic.
It's one of the largest cities in the Caribbean, and it's where European settlement of the Americas first began.
This was the first Spanish city in the Americas.
It was home to the first European cathedral, university and monastery in the New World.
Christopher Columbus landed on Hispaniola in 1492.
His brother founded the Caribbean's first European city here.
Hola.
For centuries, this was a Spanish colony.
It was from here that Europeans set off to conquer the rest of the Americas and, of course, annihilate many of the indigenous people already living there.
The fate of the New World was set here.
Today, the Dominican Republic boasts some of the fastest economic growth in the region.
With hundreds of miles of beaches, the country's a bit of a Caribbean holiday cliche.
You probably know somebody who's been here on their holidays, because this is the most popular tourist destination in the Caribbean.
Ten million people live here.
They're joined by about five million tourists each year.
There's sun, sea, sand and plenty of adventure sports, without too many boring worries about health and safety.
Oh, my God.
This is one of those things that sounded like a really good idea.
I was told this was a flying boat.
It looks more like a flying dinghy to me.
Where do you sit? OK.
(HE SCREAMS) What am I going to hold on to? It wasn't the ideal experience for a traveller with vertigo.
(HE YELLS) But eventually I calmed down and started to enjoy the incredible view.
More than 25 million tourists visit the Caribbean islands each year, half coming from the United States.
Many Caribbean islands have become completely dependent on their income from the travel industry.
Bloody hell! You crazy Frenchmen! That was incredible.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
I tell you what, it takes budget airline to a whole new level.
I know this entire gig looks like a bit of a cushy number, but the Caribbean isn't all paradise.
Away from the tourist resorts and lush beaches, there's another side to this country and the region.
This island's always been a key hub for trade in the Caribbean.
Now it's being targeted by the international drug cartel, smuggling cocaine from the production areas in South America to users in North America and Europe.
The trade is fuelling poverty in the Dominican Republic and an increasing drug and crime problem.
We're just arriving at the headquarters of the Police Anti-Narcotics Division.
Colonel David Rodriguez was briefing his special operations unit.
The unit is tasked with tackling violent drug gangs.
This is the other side of paradise, I guess.
I was joining them on a drugs raid.
What we're doing is dividing the teams.
There's a couple of guys who are going to enter the premises on a motorcycle.
They're like what we call the point.
- OK.
- They're going to radio us and tell us, "OK, fine, go in.
" I never really know whether to feel safer wearing this or to feel more of a target.
OK, we're off.
We were heading to one of the city's poorest districts.
Millions of Dominicans are still stuck in poverty, and around a third of the people here live on less than £3 a day.
We were soon in the gang area, ready for the raid.
Then, suddenly, two undercover police officers ahead of us spotted a wanted gang member, and we all set off in pursuit.
It's a right warren, isn't it? How can you operate in an area like this? (HE LAUGHS) We've basically run in to a complete warren.
And obviously the people we were looking for have legged it.
(DOG BARKS) Come and take a look where a guy just jumped.
Jumped? He came down this, those stairs, and jumped through here.
This goes through a tunnel that goes under the road where we parked.
Wow.
Apparently, he threw part of what he had in this room.
You could hide kilos of drugs in here.
Look at this place.
We've got something.
You've got something? What have we got there? Marijuana and cocaine.
How much is there approximately? Over 180 grams, maybe.
So there's a couple of thousand dollars' worth of cocaine there? - Yeah.
- So are you happy with this as a result? - Super happy.
Super happy.
- Let's go.
But there are now tonnes of cocaine being trafficked into the Dominican Republic.
The police here know that a small bust like this is just scratching the surface.
It's always the same.
They've got about eight sellers, and each seller or distributor has the same amount each and every day.
So that means this, just this gang, is shifting a couple of kilos of cocaine here, just this area, every day? - Yeah, yeah.
- Thanks for bringing us along.
In recent years, anti-narcotics operations in South and Central America have made the overland drug smuggling routes to North America more difficult.
The international trade is increasingly shifting to the Caribbean islands.
The international drug cartels are now paying local drug smugglers here in countries like the Dominican Republic.
They're paying them in kind with their own products, so with cocaine and guns, basically.
And that, of course, leads to a massive increase in both drug usage and, of course, crime as well.
And all the attendant poverty and suffering that goes with that.
Local drug gangs are getting wealthier and more dangerous as they get access to more powerful weapons.
The murder rate in the Dominican Republic is several times higher than in the United States.
To help deal with violent crime, Colonel Rodriguez's unit trains at a commando base in mountains to the north of the country.
(HE SHOUTS) (THEY SHOUT IN REPLY) David, can you give us a sense of the scale of the threat your men and your women are facing? We have boats coming in full of cocaine shipments.
We're talking about 1,000 kilos, 1,200 kilos.
Now we have more drug related murders.
And you see that more and more here now? Every day.
It's my 24 hours.
Officers here are being trained in close-quarter armed combat, and to meet violence with an overwhelming response.
(GUNFIRE) (DAVID LAUGHS) They're definitely dead.
The Colonel was keen to show me why anyone with a gun can be a threat to his officers.
- On the left.
- I'm on the left.
- The other way.
The other way.
- Yes, OK.
There you go.
(GUNFIRE) - There you go.
To the throat.
- Now that's terrifying.
I'm a complete Yeah, I'm not a former soldier or anything, and you've just This is the first time we've done it.
It's horrific, frankly, that a weapon that is as powerful, as deadly as this is so fundamentally easy to use.
To use.
A 14-year-old kid can use it.
- That's the horrifying point, isn't it? - Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
But your officers will confront weapons like this? Let's put it this way, it's called organised crime.
What we've got to do is organise ourselves.
The Dominican Republic is now caught up in the international war on drugs.
It's some sort of training exercise now, in which we're the suspects.
It's a struggle that is devastating countries across the Caribbean region.
Oh, bloody hell! Local Caribbean police forces are often out-gunned and under-resourced.
The challenge is huge.
In recent years, the quantity of cocaine smuggled through here and on to the US and Europe has increased by around 800%.
So all these we have here, was received, you know, last week from different towns of the Dominican Republic.
And how much is just in How much in there? Nine kilos.
Astonishing.
So that's 9kg of cocaine.
So that's worth in the region of £400,000 to £500,000 if a smuggler can get that to Europe.
Half a million quid, just there! We helped to create this problem.
Drugs sold and bought on the streets of Britain are being smuggled through here.
The UK consumes a quarter of all the cocaine in the EU.
Look at that.
That is a block of cocaine.
Now where would that have been going? To the United States? To the streets of Britain? Who knows? But more likely than not, it was heading on overseas, because that's where the big money is.
Drugs with a street value of around half a billion pounds are now being burnt each year at this secure facility inside an army base.
Astonishing.
The heat is really intense.
I think what you see there is the Caribbean, of course, not just as paradise, which it may well be, but the Caribbean as victim.
It's in the middle, between the supply, which is coming out of Central and South America, and the major markets for demand, which are in Europe and North America.
It was time for me to leave the cops and continue my journey across the island.
My local guide, Carlos, suggested a pit-stop at a quirky local watering-hole.
I didn't know quite what to expect.
It's a drive-thru bar.
Isn't it amazing? It's lovely.
Incredible.
So what can they do? Look, it's a full pub! I wanted to have a nice drink to impress my friend, - like a very colourful cocktail.
- I want a really big umbrella in it.
(HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE) He didn't think to say, "Maybe it's not a good idea for you to have a drink, sir, as you seem to be behind the wheel of a vehicle?" No? Nothing like that? I'm astonished.
I don't think I've seen this anywhere in the world.
What's your view, Carlos? Do you think this is a good idea? People here say that the most they drink, the safer they drive.
Well, that's just stupid.
Carlos, I'm very sorry to say, but that is just stupid.
I think if you drive in the Dominican Republic, you can drive anywhere in the world.
Well if you survive.
Yeah, you're right.
Oh, look, the gentleman's got some drinks for us.
- Thank you very much.
- Fantastic.
Thank you very much.
That's a passion fruit cocktail.
- Let's give it a try.
We should say cheers.
- Cheers, sir.
- Cheers.
- Cheers.
Salud.
Flipping heck, that's quite strong.
This is delicious, but this is not a good idea.
I agree with you.
But, still, a lot of people drink and drive here.
Gracias, señor.
Mad.
- Let me take that off you, Carlos.
- Yes.
- Don't you have any more.
- Ooh, look at that! - I was about to have an accident.
- Yeah, there you go, and that's not going to look good, is it? Thousands of people die on the roads here every year.
According to the World Health Organization, the Dominican Republic is actually the world's most dangerous place to drive.
Do you know anybody who's been injured, or worse, in road accidents? The son of a good friend of mine had a car accident just right here, in this corner, - 8a couple of years ago.
- Good Lord.
And I'm still suffering.
Everybody in the office is suffering that.
- Died? - Yeah.
And was alcohol involved? Yes, yes, yes, yes.
He was drinking or somebody else was drinking? Somebody else was drinking, yes.
It was not him.
Somebody else.
It's a sad but common story.
There are laws here about drink-driving and dangerous driving, but nobody seems to enforce them.
With that firmly in mind, and with our seat-belts applied, we set off across the country.
Carlos was driving me to the border between the Dominican Republic and its neighbour on the island-- Haiti.
Nearly 200 miles north-west, we arrived in the town of Dajabon.
It looked like it was the monthly market, but apparently it's this busy every day, with thousands of people crossing the border.
I'd been catapulted into chaos and colour.
You stand here for a minute and you start to realise how the human traffic is flowing.
This way, you've got people going back into Haiti, who are taking back stuff they have bought in the Dominican Republic to sell, because Haiti doesn't produce a lot.
Haiti's by far the poorest country in the Western hemisphere.
Many Haitians have fled abroad.
Up to a million have moved to the neighbouring, richer Dominican Republic.
Relations between the two countries are not great at the moment.
The Dominican Republic's in the process of kicking out thousands of Haitians, many who've lived here for generations.
And, historically, relations between the two states have not been good.
This is part of the reason why.
This is the River Massacre, and it commemorates a period in the 1930s when, perhaps, 25,000 or more Haitians were killed by Dominican soldiers.
These were Haitians who were living in the country.
Many of them had been here for many years, but the Dominicans identified who was Haitian or not by getting them to say the Spanish word for "parsley", which Creole-speaking Haitians had trouble saying properly.
And, on that one word, often people lived or died.
Many of them were hacked to death.
It's appalling.
Haiti's become a by-word for poverty and suffering.
It's endured colonial rule, terrible leaders, bad luck and a catastrophic earthquake in 2010.
It has a pretty grim reputation, but I was hoping to see a different side to the place.
Simon, how are you? Jean Daniel? It's a pleasure to meet you.
(HE CHUCKLES) Very nice to meet you.
So this is Jean Daniel.
He spotted us.
We have a camera with us.
The first time we've met.
Thank you for coming over.
Thank you for being here.
And Jean Daniel is going to be our guide across Haiti.
(CAR HORN BLARES) (JEAN DANIEL SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE) Merci, monsieur.
We are now in Haiti.
It's quite busy here, mate, isn't it? It's quite beautiful, too.
This is normal, is it? Yeah, it's really normal.
Things are not as bad as people have portrayed it.
- Oh, right.
- You know? Well, I'm really excited to visit and I'm really looking forward to our travels around the country.
Yes, I'm looking forward to it as well.
Haiti wasn't always poor.
In the 1700s, it was a French colony and fortunes were made here from growing sugar, coffee, cocoa, tobacco and cotton in the fertile climate.
It was said to be the richest slave colony in the world, but not for long.
The story of Haiti isn't all about suffering.
It's also an extraordinary tale of struggle and victory against the greatest powers in the world.
OK, you want me to get on this one? Look at my masterful control of this beastie.
Whoa! Whoo! I was off to see one of the wonders of the Caribbean.
Look at that! Like a castle in the clouds.
Perched on top of a mountain, the whopping Citadelle Laferriere is the largest fortress in all of the Americas.
It's an astonishing place, this.
This is not what people think of when they think of Haiti.
But I have, I think, an unfortunately negative view of the country.
This is absolutely stunning.
It took 20,000 workers 50 years to build the colossal structure.
Look at the scale of this! Its walls, up to four metres thick, seem as sturdy as the mountain itself.
Its ramparts stand almost 1,000 metres above sea-level.
It's an epic structure, built to last forever.
Oh, wow.
(HE EXHALES IN AMAZEMENT) It's breathtaking.
Goodness me, look how it dominates the area.
This Citadelle represents something truly extraordinary.
Haiti is the only country to have been formed as the result of a successful slave rebellion.
In the late 1700s, Haiti's slaves rose up against their brutal French masters.
In wars that followed, they managed to do the unthinkable-- they defeated the forces of the French, the British, even the army of the Emperor Napoleon.
In 1804, Haiti was declared independent, the first free black nation in the modern world.
Their plan to protect the new nation from the former slave masters, particularly the French, was that if they saw French ships coming in to retake the country, they would see them arriving In the far distance, we can just see the sea.
they would retreat from the coast, burning everything as they went, to this fort and others.
And they would then be able to ambush and attack the French soldiers on mountain passes and at choke points.
The Citadelle had hundreds of cannons and water and food stores that could supply thousands of soldiers for a year.
But an attack never came.
Instead, the French used a different tactic.
The French effectively blockaded the island and that was only lifted when a Haitian ruler, rather foolishly, agreed to pay massive reparations to France, basically paying them for the loss of their slave plantations.
Those payments went on for decades and completely crippled Haiti.
By the end of the 1800s, Haiti was still sending almost 80% of its national revenue to France as reparations.
Foreign powers continued to meddle in Haiti into the 20th century.
America invaded and occupied for two decades from 1915, imposing forced labour on the people and taking huge tracts of land for plantations.
Since then, the country has suffered from years of coups and political violence.
But through it all, Haiti has kept its unique faith, one rooted in both Africa and rebellious slave culture.
It's a faith that has often inspired mistrust and fear among outsiders.
- Bonsoir.
- How are you, monsieur? This place is a bit off the beaten track, eh? Jean Daniel was taking me to a voodoo ceremony.
It's important to see voodoo, because voodoo is an essential part of our culture, of Haiti's culture.
It has a pretty bad reputation, it's seen as something scary.
This is the soul of Haiti and this is why people don't understand Haiti.
But there is nothing scary about it for Haitians.
Its origins are said to be as old as Christianity, but let's be honest-- Voodoo is seen by many as sinister mumbo-jumbo.
(THEY SING) The ceremony takes place here, right next to the centre pole.
What do the white markings on the ground signify? They are signs that we've inherited from the Amerindians.
Amerindians who were living here before - Who were living before.
- Europeans first came here Way before Christopher Columbus came in.
Way before.
Slaves transported from West Africa could bring nothing but their faith.
And here, the French forced them to convert to Catholicism.
Am I right in thinking, voodoo is a very complicated belief system, but it's centred around one god? One god, multiple spirits.
Voodoo became the name given to the secret religion of the slaves.
It combined the faith of their ancestors, the religious symbols of the original indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, and the Christianity of their masters.
(THEY SING AND CHANT) They are inviting you to go.
Goodness.
OK.
Critics of voodoo say it's simple superstition, that it holds Haiti back because it makes people believe the spirits control their destiny, rather than telling them they have the ability to change their life by their own actions.
But perhaps you could say the same of many religions.
I have to say, I'm not sure if a Haitian TV crew turned up at a British village church whether they'd receive such a hospitable welcome.
(THEY SING) Does voodoo feature in your life? I live voodoo.
And I have ceremonies.
Doesn't that make you a voodoo priest? Yes.
You are a voodoo priest? - Indeed.
- Do you have a parish? Do you have an area that you're responsible for? I would love to have a parish, but I'm not a Catholic priest! (HE LAUGHS) Has white European culture demonised the faith? You fear what you don't know.
A four-year-old kid who heard that darkness was bad is afraid of the dark.
It's the same.
It's a matter of relaxing, understanding and opening your mind to something that you don't know.
(MUSIC AND SINGING CONTINUE) I'm used to having my mind opened on my journeys, but I've never seen anything quite like this before.
(SHE SCREAMS AND CHANTS) In front of our eyes, a woman was apparently being possessed by a spirit.
It's said to be a great honour among followers of the faith.
So really, our Western perception of voodoo is really created as a response to the fact that it's a faith that inspired a slave uprising on this island, and Europeans just couldn't accept that.
And so, for Europeans, they've turned it in to something scary.
Voodoo's a recognised religion here.
People say Haiti's 70% Catholic, 30% Protestant, but 100% voodoo.
The next morning, Jean Daniel drove me along the coast.
Haiti only has a few hundred miles of paved roads-- it's one of the reasons behind the terrible state of the economy.
It's tricky and expensive to move anything around.
But we stopped off at a place where a bit of money is trickling into the country.
(HE CHUCKLES) This is an amazing sight.
That is one of the largest cruise ships in the world.
More than 6,000 passengers on board, almost 2,500 crew.
It's a floating town.
Hundreds of thousands of tourists cruise into this Paradise Bay every year.
The cruise company pays the Haitian government less than £10 per visitor for exclusive access.
They generally don't leave this little tiny corner.
Apparently, most of them don't really know they're in Haiti.
- Oh, here come a couple of people.
- What you got me? What you got me? Pardon? Pardon? We're just looking at the resort here.
Have you ever met any of the tourists who come here? Do they ever come out of this area? Do they ever go into Cap-Haitien? 10 or 15 off a ship that holds 6,500 passengers? Do you think they're benefiting Haiti by being here? Very true, sir.
Very true.
Travel safe out there.
(HE SPEAKS FRENCH) - Au revoir.
- Au revoir, madame.
Bye.
We continued south to Jean Daniel's hometown, the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince.
(CAR HORNS BLARE) Built on a natural harbour, Port-au-Prince was once one of the major trading ports of the Caribbean.
Now it's scarred by one of the worst natural disasters in recent history.
So, here you have the back view of the cathedral, of what used to be the cathedral.
Can you see? Oh, my God.
On the 12th January 2010, a massive earthquake rocked Port-au-Prince.
What is this here? This isn't left over from the earthquake, surely? Every inch of the entire block was destroyed during the quake.
And it's still a pile of rubble years later? This is nothing compared to what it used to be.
It used to be a mountain of rubble.
The earthquake destroyed much of the city.
More than 200,000 people were killed.
Even more were injured.
One and a half million people were left homeless.
It was catastrophe on a biblical scale.
Jean Daniel, where where were you when the earthquake hit? I was a bank executive at the time.
- A bank exec? - Executive, yes.
Right.
But from the window of my office, I saw the Citibank building, right across the street from my bank, crumbling down.
And then I realised that it was an earthquake.
And the tremors lasted a very short period of time, didn't they? Yeah, it lasted less than 60 seconds.
But it felt like an hour, guys.
You think about everything, you know? Your family, what's happening.
You know, that few seconds was It was extremely moving, extremely moving, and it's something that, as of now, I still cannot explain very well.
But it changed my life completely.
What was it like in the street outside? In the streets, it was absolutely horrifying.
The entire country was covered with a white cloud.
My God.
All the landmarks, all the reference that I had as a kid, had disappeared.
All the landmarks! There are no more landmarks that I knew of as a kid that were there.
So part of my Really, part of my Part of my childhood has totally vanished.
I'm sorry, mate.
Foreign governments and aid agencies pledged billions of pounds in aid to Haiti in the weeks after the earthquake, but much of the money has never appeared and many people here are still struggling to survive.
Oh, my God.
There are dozens of places like this still around the city, aren't there? Yes, there are, particularly around the shanty towns.
Almost half a decade after the earthquake, and in America's backyard, more than 150,000 people were still living in tented camps.
More than 10,000 foreign organisations and charities have worked in Haiti since the quake.
But fundamental problems like sewers and sanitation haven't been adequately addressed.
Many local people say money that was donated to help them hasn't always been spent wisely.
Many feel abandoned.
I do sense that too many aid agencies think in the short-term because they need quick results to please their donors and, in reality, what this country needs is a long-term plan.
Jean Daniel agreed, but also explained that Haitians need to take matters into their own hands.
I think that we rely too much on outside promises and influence.
But I think that once we get together, that we will move forward, that we will move into, really, the development of Haiti.
Haiti's problems go back well beyond the earthquake.
Haitians need education, employment and the entire structure of a functioning state.
They can get help from outsiders, but ultimately, the answers will have to come from within.
The next morning, we went to see how Haitians are trying to tackle some of their deep-rooted problems.
Adeline Bien-Aime is working with some of the city's most vulnerable children.
Adeline, tell us about this place.
What's going on here? Restaveks are children given away by parents who can't afford to look after them.
Often they're sent to live with a relative, but sometimes they're given to strangers.
And what sort of life does a Restavek have? Are they expected to work for their new family? Is it servitude or is it Is it, as some people have said, a form of slavery? There are thought to be at least 300,000 Restaveks in Haiti.
They're a symptom of desperate poverty.
Many parents think they're doing the best for their children by sending them away, but often Restavek children endure long hours of work, are vulnerable to horrific abuse and are seldom sent to school.
Bonsoir.
ALL: Bonsoir.
(HE CHUCKLES) Adeline works for the Restavek Freedom Foundation.
They find Restaveks, then teach and train them, giving them life-skills, a chance at a job, and a future.
What age range do we have here? I set up the group.
I work with them, and I have from 12 to, like, 20.
So can we ask then, who is the youngest here? Soufonie? Soufonie.
I would say Soufonie is the youngest.
Soufonie, she's tiny.
- Yeah, she is.
- And Soufonie, can you tell us Can you tell us a little bit about your story? (THEY GIGGLE) And does she hit you with her hand or does she hit you with something? Soufonie, do you have any hopes for the future? Do you have a dream of what you would like to be? (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) I'm very honoured to hear stories from you and learn more about the lives that you live.
The Restavek Freedom Movement in Haiti is gaining momentum.
Adeline's Foundation has helped hundreds of children, like Soufonie, to go through school.
But part of the key to ending the whole Restavek system is raising public awareness.
And while I was in Haiti, the Restavek Freedom Foundation were putting on a little concert in the capital, to help remind Haitians that the life of a Restavek is no life for a child.
Oh, my goodness! It's an incredible number.
I thought it was going to be a small, almost private little affair.
But there are Well, there are thousands of people here.
It was the finals of a national competition.
Singers from around the country were performing songs they'd written about the Restavek issue.
(APPLAUSE) Adeline! Hello, dearest, how are you? Can we have a kiss? Two, please.
Adeline, what is the point of this concert? What is the aim of it? - Good luck, OK? - OK.
And good luck to you, Amanda.
Bonne chance.
- Bye-bye! - Bye-bye! She wants to get rid of us, she wants to enjoy the concert.
Go on, go and dance.
Many of the girls from the school were also enjoying the concert.
They seem a little excited.
(SHRIEKING) It's really quite uplifting.
It feels like we might be here at a turning point in Haiti's history on this subject.
For them to hold this concert in the National Stadium and for there to be that many people there shows that this is no longer Haiti's dirty little secret.
There's a degree of openness about it.
And that, hopefully, will lead to change.
But real change will only come to Haiti if the economy improves and people are lifted out of poverty.
Across much of the Caribbean, tourism has helped to lift national economies.
Tourists spend billions of pounds a year to experience the beauty of these islands.
Back in the 1970s, Haiti was a tourist hot spot.
Even wary American tourists came here.
But the country's desperate troubles since then have left hundreds of miles of beautiful beaches empty and totally undeveloped.
Flipping heck! Look at this place! - This is stunning! - It is stunning.
No, not just stunning.
This looks like a bit of paradise.
And that place here, this really tells a story, doesn't it? Look at its position right on the beach here.
This gorgeous beach! I don't know about you, but if that was a hotel, I'd stay here.
Merci, monsieur.
We'd arranged to meet an American teacher from Florida who's fallen in love with this bit of Haiti's coast.
Hello! Jamie? - Hello, Jamie.
- Hi! - Can we come aboard? - Absolutely.
Come on.
- Jamie, hello.
Simon.
- Hi.
Nice to meet you.
Lovely to meet you, too.
- It's a pleasure to meet you.
Hi.
- Pleasure! He doesn't He doesn't really like the sea.
That's OK.
We'll make him a fan of the sea soon.
Jamie Aquino set up and runs the Haiti Ocean Project.
When she first visited here eight years ago, Jamie soon released that this undiscovered part of the Caribbean was exceptional.
There is an underwater topography in Haiti that's unique.
There's two giant underwater canyons.
Starting at one mile off the coast, they drop to about 2,000 or 3,000 feet.
In the middle, about ten miles out, they're down to 15,000 feet.
It's incredible! So just off the coast, you basically The ground drops away underneath the sea and there is a vastness.
The vast, deep ocean is right there, it's just off the coast of Haiti.
And what lives there? Lots of marine mammals.
Pilot whales, bottle-nosed dolphins.
There's quite a population of sperm whales.
I've also run into about a thousand spotted dolphins around the boat, as well.
- Well, that would be spectacular.
- Yeah.
I'm not going to be able to take my eyes off the sea now.
Jamie is encouraging local youngsters to get involved with conservation in the hope they can establish a marine tourism industry in the area and help to protect this unique environment.
- Let it go? - Yeah, just don't want to get it tangled.
By popping the microphone into the water, she can detect noisy dolphins or whales within a two-mile radius.
I've never heard the ocean like that.
That's not the waves at the surface.
Right, right.
That is the sea.
- There you go, listen.
- (JAMIE CHUCKLES) (GENTLE SWOOSHING) Isn't that special? Rather than just being a body of water, this shows it much more as a living thing, I think.
(CLICKING) Hold on.
I think I hear dolphins.
I'm hearing, like, a "Eeer".
Listen.
(CLICKING) - Can you hear? Yeah.
- I can hear dolphins! - They really are.
- Yeah, they're really close.
"Eeer-eeer!" - Wow, they're having a right old gossip.
- Yeah.
With dolphins nearby, we were all on high alert.
Where? Straight down.
The same line as the boat.
- Oh, yeah! - Just here, coming right across! Look, dolphins! Oh, my goodness! Look at them! There was a pod of at least 30 pantropical spotted dolphins.
There have been few scientific studies about life in this unique corner of the Caribbean Sea, but Jamie's convinced that deep below us is a breeding and feeding ground for a population of endangered sperm whales.
What is clear is that this is a home for some of the most magnificent creatures in our seas.
And this this is the real treasure of Haiti.
Judging by the excited reaction of the youngsters on the boat, Jamie's project has a real chance of success.
It's her hope that spectacles like this will encourage more tourists to visit this beautiful country, which could help it economically but could also change the image of Haiti as just a place of trouble and suffering.
It was time for me to leave the island of Hispaniola and head east on my journey around the Caribbean Sea.
Look at the size of it! We're off to America sort of.
Caribbean Fantasy! The whole Caribbean exists in the shadow of the United States, but now I was off to a place that's basically the 51st state.
Oh, blimey! A bit of razzamatazz.
Hello, ladies.
Right, I think I'd better find my cabin.
Phew! Oh! Oh, I'm glad to get that off.
Let's have a look, quick! View! What a glorious view.
It'll change soon.
We're off across the Caribbean.
We sailed through the night across the Mona Passage to the island of Puerto Rico.
Well, that's how to arrive! This island is the spoils of war.
Puerto Rico is actually a territory of the USA.
The United States took control of the island in 1898 following the Spanish-American War.
Look at this! We've just come into the capital of Puerto Rico, and, honestly, we've arrived in the States.
It couldn't be more different to Haiti.
At first glance, it looked like people here are living the American dream.
Are you from here, Jose? Born and raised down here, yeah.
Life looks pretty good here.
Well It's It's It looks like that.
But you're a territory of the richest country in the world.
Surely everything is just going absolutely swimmingly here.
It doesn't work like that.
We're not on equal terms.
Driving around the capital, San Juan, I could see there were areas hit hard by bankruptcy and an economic downturn.
See how buildings are closed over here? Oh, yes, look at this.
Closed.
Closed.
Closed.
Sale or rent signs up over here.
Closed.
- Not good.
- No, not at all.
Energy, food and other costs are much higher in Puerto Rico than on the US mainland.
And the local government here has got itself into financial troubles, spending more than it can afford and getting deep into debt.
So, how is all this impacting on people here? People are scared.
Job opportunities are reduced.
Most of the professionals that are graduating from our university, they jump into a plane and they go to the United States and find a job over there.
From 2000 to 2013, over 200,000 people left Puerto Rico.
My wife is one of them.
She just moved to Florida.
- Your wife - Yeah.
- has moved to Florida?! - Yeah.
She landed a job with the same company she was working for here.
She's going to be making over three times what she was making here.
- Three times more? - Three times.
Same company.
How on earth does that work for you as a couple? Well, it's a sacrifice, but I'll be moving shortly.
There are now more Puerto Ricans living in mainland America than in Puerto Rico.
The problem's often called the brain drain and it's a huge issue across the region.
In some Caribbean countries, 70% of the educated workforce have emigrated.
Cheers, Jose! I headed to a small island off the coast called Vieques.
Wild horses.
It's quite a special place, eh? It's also a place where the impact of America has left deep scars.
Great view.
It looks, um peaceful and magnificent now, doesn't it? But for decades, this was actually one of the United States' military's principal firing ranges.
It was a bomb-testing area, basically.
For more than 60 years, the United States Navy used Vieques to test weapons it would use in conflicts around the world.
Huge quantities of munitions were kept at that end of the island, then flown up to that end and dropped.
It's still restricted and we're not allowed to go there, but that end of the island is said to be as cratered as the surface of the moon.
The US military bombarded the island with hundreds of thousands of tons of bombs.
They even used the chemical Agent Orange.
I met up with local fisherman, Cacimar Zenon, who lived through the bombing, to find out what it was like.
The constant explosions shook houses and made life here intolerable.
Islanders began a campaign of protest and direct action.
People from the island are coming in on a protest boat to try and disrupt the firing and shooting.
Goodness me.
I mean, this is such a graphic illustration of the heavy hand of the United States.
After a local man was killed by a stray bomb, protests reached fever pitch.
And in 2002, the US was finally forced to end the bombing.
The US military claims it's now carrying out an enormous clean-up operation on the island, but they denied us access to film it.
Many islanders who make their living from the Caribbean say there's also an enormous threat in the sea.
Cacimar took me out for a dive.
Out of the depths, I could see a dark shape looming.
At least 12-feet long, with its nose buried in the ocean floor.
Fishermen here say there are thousands of unexploded bombs and munitions littering the seabed.
They fear a disaster if any get drawn into their nets.
It sure is quite peaceful and still down there apart from this massive bomb! Unbelievable.
That was the most terrifying thing by a long way I've seen underwater.
I I can't quite get my head around it, I really can't.
There's, um And I don't know what's madder, diving down onto it, or sitting on a boat on top of it.
Look how close we are to the coast.
People fish in these waters.
Completely surreal.
Fishermen here are pleading with the US military to clean up the seabed.
Until they do, we can't be sure whether the device I saw is likely to explode.
Aside from the risk of detonations, Cacimar and experts believe the bombs pose other dangers.
They fear the munitions are leaching dangerous chemicals into the food chain, affecting the fish that the local population then eat.
A report by a Puerto Rican scientist showed that there were 30% more deaths from cancer on Vieques than on the Puerto Rican mainland.
The US government refuses to accept there's a link between the bombing and cancer rates.
But Cacimar and many islanders are not ready to give up the fight.
They want compensation and a faster clean-up.
I'd reached the end of the first stage of my journey around the Caribbean Sea.
(HE EXHALES) It's completely breathtaking.
It's been a fascinating adventure so far.
A bit frightening at times, but through an absolutely stunning region of our world.
And I can't wait to continue my journey around the Caribbean Sea.
On the next leg of my journey, I visit one of the Caribbean's most gorgeous islands and get an unusual taste of paradise.
Yes, baby! I travel through Venezuela's lawless border country.
And in the coastal mountains of Colombia, I meet one of the oldest surviving civilisations in the Americas.
(THEY LAUGH) March 22nd, 2015