MY Favorite Place
Fort Jacques is one of the most interesting historic and touristic places that I have visited. It is located at Kenscoff, in west of Haiti at the top of mountain, and it was built by the Emperor Jean Jacques Dessalines in between 1804–1806 for protecting the country against a possible escape of the French. the ancient and magnificent building revealed people’s sense by the structure and the overpower view. Since I was a child, I had heard people talk about Fort Jacques. The first day I went to visit it in 2005, it attracted my attention and became my second house. Fort Jacques was not only a historic and touristic place, but also a place in the country where diverse (rich, middle class and poor), boyfriends, girlfriends, and couples meet to enjoy the moment together.
Fort Jacques is a place of fun, Every June 8th there is big celebration there. In 2005, I was 16 years old, when my two best friends and I decided to visit there for the first time without our parents’ authorizations because we had heard so much about it. It was a Friday, during a period of public holiday, so we pretended to go to school and made a half turn and went to Fort Jacques. Upon arrival, we were amazed by the building’s decoration. The walls were stone and, on their surfaces drew historical painting and in the center of the building there was a deep hole in the ground. At the entrance of the building a long hallway subdivided it in two and this hallway led to the basement. By it position geographic at the top of the central, it was a little cold, also it allowed to have a wonderful sight to dominate all the west. We were intrigued by the structure and hugeness of the place our descendants left us in heritage. The place had so many parts, one part was for music, DJs were performing, and a lot of people were dancing, but majority of them were youngest of the population. In another area, the smell coming made us hungry as wolves. We stopped and bought some “griot” and fried plantain I didn’t think anyone couldn’t pass by without stopping to buy and eat. We could touch all the things like: the cannons and the silver statue. The place was surrounded with trees and flowers.
All over the place flowers are related to love. Furthermore, Fort Jacque is a romance place. At that time, my friends and I were very young and so curious about life also excited to become adults. One day, we decided to go there, this time with three young boys, almost our ages. I invited the young boy who lived not too far from my house. Since he had just moved in the area and had seen me, there were four years when, every time, he crossed me, he always told me “You are going to be my wife.” At first, I used to hate him, but one day when he saw me lifting a heavy thing, he ran over to help me. Since that day, I had decided to talk to him. We took a bus and climbed the rest of the rest of the mountain while talking, drinking soda, running, playing. When we arrived at our destination, we formed three different groups. We spent a good afternoon talking, playing and learning to climb the big tree. At the end of our daytime, he kissed me, so when I ran to tell me my friends about that kiss; I realized they were also kissing.
In addition, Fort Jacques is a place of reflection. In that year, we had to take an official exam, because it was a quiet and calm place when it was not a specific occasion. We made a habit of going to study, also to work on the courses we did not understand yet. Sometimes we studied separately and joined after for discussion. Some days, when we were not doing anything at home or felt bored, we met in a specific place and went to Fort Jacques together. I went by myself sometimes to think when I needed to be alone. At Fort -Jacques, there was any noise, not even noise coming from the car’s horn. The only noise we could hear was the noise from the trees, and the birdsong. After that there was a calm and peaceful harmony reigned all over the place.
Fort Jacques was a place our ancestors built to protect against a return of the France. It not only served for refugee, but it was also a fun place. People go there every year to enjoy, it is also a romantic place for some so I got my first kiss there. It was also a pleasant place for meditation because there are no houses close near, anything to distract you. Our ancestor left a good patrimony to us. We have always had great times and so much fun there.
