Belated post: Bethlehem on Christmas Eve

It has been a substantial amount of time since my last update, mostly because I spent a couple hours on the Christmas Eve/ Bethlehem trip, complete with pictures, links and some deep social and political commentary... only to have the spotty and overpriced internet service fail just as I was publishing the blog, and it was wiped clean.

Thant being said, here is a much less robust version of it:

We started the trip early and stopped at Rachel's Tomb. The photo to the left is the Separation Wall (also referred to as the Security Fence, the Apartheid Wall, and simply the Wall, depending on your political stripe) and the entrance to Rachel's Tomb. This area is a little difficult to get in and out of, as you cannot walk on foot, and must take a bus (that comes every hour) or hitch a ride back to the main road. We were offered a ride by a very nice woman who spoke no English...but we made it work!

Soon after Rachel's Tomb, we crossed the checkpoint into Bethlehem. Below is a photo of my friends walking through the corridor. There are always a gaggle of taxi drivers waiting to whisk you into town, but we wanted to stop at the Banksy store so we walked.

While Banksy does not have an official store, locals have attempted to make money off of visiting tourists by photographing and replicating his famous works on various portions of The Wall. There are also many political art pieces from local artists.

There are testimonies from Palestinians on the white signs, talking about how they have been cut off from their lands, or longing to return to places they are now forbidden to visit without permits.

One of my favorites

This one represents the three wise men attempting to enter Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus and being stopped by the Wall.

There are several works that highlight the difficulties and collective trauma Palestinians have gone through in losing access to their agricultural lands and difficulty in traveling due to the wall and the checkpoints. On a tour with the architect of the Wall, I was moved almost to tears when he started wistfully at its great height and said softly "but I made it so that when peace finally comes, we can take it down as fast as we put it up. Most people don't know that. But I made it like that." He then smiled and said that there would be no sledgehammers fir his wall, that the cranes would come and move each piece away by hooking into the holes at the tip and simply lifting them out.  His smile at the thought of his great work being dismantled because it was no longer needed was broad and full of hope.

On the far left, we are buying Palestinian craft beer and drinking homemade wine that the owner, Adam had made for Christmas. The reports of numbers vary but in 1995 before the PA took control of Bethlehem there were about 20,000 Christians living in the city, and that number has now been reduced to roughly 7,000.
The man running the Banksy store asked us to place a pin where we were from. I was the first for St Pete, FL.

The center photo is the huge Christmas tree in Manger Square, right next to the Church of the Holy Nativity. Behind it, wreathed in green light, is the mosque. While sitting at a cafe, the Christmas carols blasting across the square paused for the beautiful call to prayer. We were able to visit the Manger in the basement of the church, and while there a choral group visiting as part of the over 2,000 pilgrims that come every year broke into Silent Night.  

A panorama from the Peace Hostel's balcony

THE BEST FOOD... Afteem. I can't not eat there when in Bethlehem.

The parade route was packed with people, as was the square. That is the Church of the Nativity behind the tree. 

The Resistance tree was an uprooted olive tree that had come from an area the IDF was clearing to build more of the wall. It was decorated with tear gas canisters, a nativity scene, a bit of cardboard designed to look like the Wall...and pictures of the martyrs for the Palestinian cause. This is where it gets tricky. These martyrs are individuals that are stabbing innocent Israeli civilians in the streets. The young boy pictured is a 13 year old that tried to kill another 13 year old. People say "Israeli settlers should not be on Palestinian lands" and I can agree with that.

What I cannot agree with is stabbing innocent people to get your political point across. I can not understand the PA paying the families of these Martyrs. I cannot understand glorifying murderers. When I talk to people about nonviolent resistance, and in the same breath they refer to the martyrs for their cause, they lose legitimacy in my eyes. I disagree with Israeli policy, but murder is not the way to bring attention to your caurse. If anything, it delegitimizes the struggle, and allows people to say "see? this is why we built the wall."

Settlements are a huge problem, but this is not an acceptable way to stop them, in fact it just makes hardliners want to build more.

So I know this is a bit of a heavy post. Granted it's much less robust than the original, but at least I got it up! (In February...)

It was an amazing experience to be in this city on Christmas Eve, and such a wonderful experience to meet new friends. People often ask me if any of my opinions have changed since living here, and I must admit that the only things that have changed are my understanding of the layers of complications standing in the way of peace. That in itself is a whole other blog, so stand by.

On the edge of the first semester.

After the 7 week ulpan course ended I was able to move into my own apartment in downtown Tel Aviv, in the heart of the city. Just like any other town, there are various neighborhoods with their own unique personalities and quirks. I live on the most popular shopping street, Dizengoff. It's named after Meier Dizengoff, who was the first Mayor of Tel Aviv and an ardent follower of Hertzl. I live very close to my small but tight group of friends, which can come in handy when there are last minute lunch dates or you have a Doctor make a house call and he speaks only Russian and Hebrew (thanks, V...I still really appreciate you being there to translate)! Then I returned to the states for the vacation S and I has planned long before I was even accepted into the University...which was AMAZING!! Now I am back in Tel Aviv and looking forward to my semester starting in just a few days!

It's always an interesting time to be in Israel, the country is rich in history, culture...and conflict. I received my syllabi for the classes the other day and have already started on the suggested readings to prepare for classes. I am highly impressed thus far with Righteous Victims, and while it is dense, I highly recommend it to anyone curious about the roots and development of today's Arab-Israeli conflict. Be warned, there is a LOT of military discussion, which has the unique ability to put me to sleep in about 5 minutes... but bully through, it's well worth it.

Many friends in the states, suddenly more conscious about what is happening here because I am studying here, have recently contacted me in fear of the violence and random attacks that have been happening. There is little one can do to calm the fears of those who love and worry about you, but I try to explain that I take all the precautions I can, but none of us can afford to live in fear. You could be hit by a bus on your safe street in the US, right? Right. So we refuse to be afraid, and live every day like it could be our last. The reasons I had for wanting to study here are all revealing themselves to be more legitimate than I ever could have imagined, and that refusal to live in fear is just one of them. After these two month of living in Israeli society I feel I have already toughened up, mellowed out, and in some ways learned how to relax....to eat a little slower, walk a little longer, and argue a little better. I can only imagine how I will feel at the end of this year.

(Im)patience is a virtue.

Most of my days are flying by. Between the heat, intensive class (and homework, uuuugh) and running around town to look at potential apartments, it is time for bed before I know it. I still haven't actually gone to the beach, which the other students find appalling. I have promised to go this weekend. (If I have time. Shhhhhh.)

Finding an apartment in Tel Aviv is very difficult. No one really uses Craigslist but there are apartment brokers that basically handle the process for you at a rate of about a month's worth of rent for their troubles. Other than that, apartment hunting consists of joining several apartment groups on Facebook and scouring the posts for the location, price and amenities you want. Waaaaay harder than it sounds when everything is in Hebrew. In this town, my deal breaker is AC. At LEAST in the bedroom so I can sleep at night. Luckily at the BBQ in Jerusalem the other day I met an incredibly friendly girl who has lived here seven years. She emailed me more resources not only for finding good apartments (including important questions to ask and things to check before agreeing to take the apartment) but also for learning Hebrew.

New friends, having fun at the BBQ

 

The learning of Hebrew is taking too long. I know it sounds insane to say that, but after making leaps and bounds of progress by leaning how to read the cryptic letters (both print and script, like English has both print and cursive) in one week, the rest seems as though it is dragging by. I now feel awkward being able to read things but not know what they mean. It is frustrating, and although the teacher insists that we have come a long way, the pace of my learning seems glacial.

I had a definite culture clash today in which mastery of the language would have absolutely come in handy.

I leave class exactly when it ends, and usually am the first one to the cafeteria and grab a table where others will join as they order and receive their lunches. Today I decided to grab something too, and when I turned to go back to the table i had claimed by leaving my backpack on it, I saw someone was sitting at it. No big deal, they had no idea that I was saving it for five people. I am not selfish--- Wait what are they doing?..
As I watched in disbelief, four other grown men flocked to the table with their items, and one picked up my backpack and dropped it on the floor. They didn't skip a beat, just came, saw, and took what they wanted without regard to anyone else. Knowing myself when I am angry, I asked a classmate to retrieve my bag while I sorted out my feelings. I was confused at my own anger, but in retrospect I feel that the pushy and aggressive nature of the country maybe finally got to me for a moment. The inherent disrespect in many little scenarios over the past few weeks finally struck a nerve. Either way I chose not to address it, but another student did. They dismissed her, telling her there was no bag there now, so it did not matter. She explained that perhaps next time they could not take someone else's table, that perhaps they could leave earlier as I did to claim their own, or even look for another as we were forced to. They waved their hand at her. "We are eating, it doesn't matter... go away."

This of course into a conversation that touched on cultural differences, social norms, the conflict, gender relations and pretty much anything in between. Needless to say, it promises to be a very interesting semester with some of the students I have already met.

A few exciting things to look forward to during my time here are already starting to develop... I just met a girl who is starting work on a documentary of a Sudanese refugee here in Tel Aviv. The graduate students of the University are also already signing up to help starting a preschool/daycare for refugee children here because the current system of childcare for the children of refugees seeking asylum here is so bad that a few babies have died recently IN the childcare facilities.graduate students all have decided to do something about it and want to start a student run childcare facility. Both of these projects promise to put me in touch with more people in the community involved with refugee and migration issues, which could lead to an internship later on this year!

A tent city holdout from the housing protests a couple years ago. 

Soooooo....

Other than my inability to immediately pick up the language (come on, everyone knows I am not a patient person with myself), the struggle of finding a good apartment being all too real (Tel Avivians have actually had a LOT of protests over the lack of good affordable housing) and the occasional culture...zap (because it's not really a shock)...things are going swimmingly. Oh, it is still confusing to remember that Thursday is friday and Sunday is Monday, but I think that will just take some serious time.We have a group trip to Cesarea this Friday (actual Friday, which is my Saturday. Get it?) and I plan to spend the rest of the weekend getting better at this language.

...And maybe... just maybe I can find some time to visit the beach.

Maybe.

First week in Tel Aviv August 2015

Shalom!

They say great journeys start with a single step. What they don't say is that the following 6 million steps are a little harder than you think they will be. After an amazing sendoff from my community, with funds collected from everything imaginable (ranging from beers, gift baskets, wine and jewelry, chess games and water balloons... to beautiful paintings, glitter tattoos and handmade items...you really should have been there) I was on my way.

  

My flight was scheduled to leave around midnight on Friday. Just as I had settled back into my seat for the 11 hour journey and placed the complimentary sleeping mask on my eyes, the announcement came that the pilot was dangerously ill and heading from the airport to the hospital. Due to FAA regulations a flight that long needed three pilots, and here were were with the remaining two. As the passengers stared in aghast at each other, letting it sink in, I thanked our lucky stars this illness had not waited until we were airborne to manifest. My fellow passengers were not nearly as thankful. If you have never seen 125+ angry Israelis at one time, please believe me when I say you do not want to. .

125+ angry Israelis line up for vouchers and answers

Passport control, when we finally arrive. This is
near the front of the line, the crowd stretches
 much further back

The subsequent two hours involved an insane amount of people trying to use cab vouchers for a company that had two overworked men on cellphones desperately trying to rally as many drivers as they could... with 4 cabs an hour being the result. I finally got to sleep at the house of a dear friend, who comforted me with silver tequila and the best hero sammy that side of town. Sleep was sweet but brief as I had to be back at the airport by 11am. Things continued to go wrong for the rescheduled flight, and we didn't take off until 4:30... but it did take off, so that is all I cared about.  The babies on the flight set the mood with their excellent renditions of misery, vocalized... luckily I met an amazing girl sitting right behind me who was in Israeli studying at the other school I had seriously considered, the School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University. We immediately bonded over shared career goals, study tracks and humanitarian focuses...  I hope to collaborate with her in the future, and definitely look forward to comparing notes on the different programs.

After arrival, luggage collection and passport control there was the train. then the bus. Then the walk. Then the five flights of stairs to an inferno of a dorm room. As I stood alone in my new home, exhausted from travel, queasy from the heat and silence ringing in my ears...I realized that this new reality was mine. For once I stopped living in the future, and existed for a few moments in the now. In the fact that everyone I knew and loved, or loved me was 5,000 miles away. That all my cultural norms, understanding, and patience that had been challenged in the past 48 hours was just the tip of the iceberg. Did someone say ice? I looked around for an air conditioner, and did not see one. This final disappointment led me to a bit of a cry, which I blame entirely on the strange morning croissant the airline fed me coupled with some serious sleep deprivation. After a quick pep talk from Sean I headed out to run errands, made a new friend, and all was again right with the world. (and yes, there is an a/c unit above the door to the bedroom, so the room stays comfortable from the afternoon through the evening and night, but if we leave it running all day and use "too much energy" then we will be fined according to the campus. They, in true Israeli fashion, do not have concrete parameters for "too much." So we unplug it during classes, from 8am to about 2:30pm.)

The small but sufficient dorm room A/C unit

So here we are. I had a few rough days with my bank that had assured me my cards would work just fine overseas, and they did not. But, new friend lent me money. My Israeli phone was lost in the mail, but they found it and now I have it. 1994 called and they want it back. But it serves its purpose. I also met the head of my program and the program's academic coordinator, and they are amazing. 

Now, here is it the end of the first week. Israeli weeks run Sunday to Thursday, in observance of Shabbat. I have my first test tomorrow and I am expected to be able to read and write in Hebrew, which is not impossible but promises to be very difficult... there are so many characters that look similar. 

But I am here. After so many years of reaching for a dream, to finally hold it in your hands, live and breathe it every day...and to know that I am here because of the love and support of family, friends, and even perfect strangers gives me a fire every morning, and I am determined to squeeze every last drop of opportunity out of that day. Now,  I have to go study for an insanely difficult test... so wish me luck!!! 

Petra, Eilat, and the Old City of Jerusalem.

   In the South, EVERYTHING is hot. The road there is monochrome sand stretching out as far as the eye can see, broken occasionally by a palm farm or a quick nod off into dreamland. Hazy mountains in the distance can be made out as you sweat and sway on the long ride. There is a lot of time to think. I think about the duality of the country, at least what I have seen. In many ways it is modern, but still ancient and in many parts decrepit..filthy and loud yet reposed and dignified. Hip, but staunchly traditional. Young bearded and cargo-shorted men carry machine guns casually slung across shoulders like messenger bags or laptop straps.Everywhere are the IDF with in drab olive uniforms, or in civillain clothes, but always with their guns.


As startling as it is at first, there is something secure in knowing that should anything actually happen, most of the people around me have military training and weapons to utilize in an emergency. Again, there is another side to this thought...where security is stronger, the loss of liberty is greater because it is compulsory service...making me wonder if the loss of liberty is outweighed by the security people have? Part of me thinks that if the US were surrounded by hostile countries, we would adopt a similar policy, and that if such a policy existed there would be far less of an incentive to put every young person at risk by going to war. Heavy thoughts for a bus trip across the desert.

 
When we arrive in Eilat, the breeze rushes to greet us, but it is as hot and dry as the blast from a preheated oven or a car standing out in the summer sun when you go to enter it. The next morning the temperature is expected to climb to 115 degrees...it does not disappoint. While the journey across the Israeli-Jordanian border and the drive to the city are for the most part uneventful (yet informative due to our incredible tour guide), we stop once at a Bedouin tent for some tea and a chance to taste fresh camel milk.





Once in Petra, the walk through the cool naturally formed gorge is beautiful. We emerge into direct sunlight, dazzled by the "Treasury," perhaps the most famous facade of the lost kingdom due to its appearance in an Indiana Jones movie.

The  city is carved out of the surrounding rock that over millenia was geologically formed into different layers of stone, so every place you look the at any given time of day, the natural stone shines rosy pink or blazes with the blue and yellow minerals within. After a long day of walking in the heat, climbing hundreds of ancient stairs and marveling in the beauty of such enormous and intricate creations, we headed back to Eilat for a great dinner and much needed sleep.

   The next morning we head back to Tel Aviv where we visit the Carmel Market. It is a foodie's dream and a haggler's paradise. After securing a few treasures for loved ones back home and the best meal we have had so far in country (La Cafe, on the main drag) we head to Jerusalem, where I will be staying for the rest of my time and where the camp is held. The Old City of Jerusalem proved to be as incredible as I had imagined, and the energy within the city is almost tangible. The history is inescapable, and nearly overwhelming. The city is built on layers of the past, constructed and reconstructed. At every turn there's a vendor trying to sell you wares, an ancient landmark surrounded by picture-snapping tourists, prices to haggle over, children offering "directions" (for a tip of course) tourists and locals milling, bright colors and fascinating artifacts (some forged and some real), hawkers shouting and competing smells of varying fresh fruit juices and cooked meats or heavy incense...It's a constant assault on all the senses. The narrow, steep streets are filled, and the city heaves with life and competition.



  I have settled into the apartment here in Jerusalem, and quite like my new roommates. There are four of us total, in a two bedroom top floor apartment located in a very nice neighborhood called Talbiya in the Eastern part of the city. We are all very excited to begin work at the camp, which starts in just a couple of days! After being here for a week, I have heard mixed emotions about the work we will be doing... It is true that the conflict is very much alive and well in the hearts and minds of both "sides." Some people think it is a fruitless effort, that "thinkgs will never change" while others slowly smile and their eyes warm as they simply say "thank you."

Tel Aviv, Day 1

We touched down in Tel Aviv around 3:30am, and worried about Shabbat we stuck around eating a goat milk version of our familiar parfaits and face timing those who we knew with iPhones. around 7 am our hunger and aversion to airport prices forced us out and into a cab... 150 NIS later, we found ourselves (with my 2 month supply of luggage) in front of the earliest-opening breakfast places in town. And it was not open. As I mourned the distance between myself and a proper breakfast that was a 20 minute cab ride away in a city that seemed to be completely asleep, we began to walk the twelve blocks to our hostel, where check in would not begin until 11. Needless to say, the start of our journey was a little rocky. It has since improved, and we have met some great people from Brazil, Russia, Canada and France...and that's just in our hostel. Today we worked on staying awake to get on proper Israel time, and it is taking its toll at 9:04 pm local time, where all I can think of is how nice it will be to sleep. Tomorrow we head to Eilat en route to Petra, which should give me plenty of time to work on my lesson plans for the first week of camp. It's true what they say about the region. You can't begin to understand "it" until you are here, and I have barely scratched the surface.

Here is the first of the informative pre-departure posts...  For those who have expressed interest in learning more about the conflict, the Middle East Research and Information Project has a lovely "primer" that you can read here, and  an interactive timeline starting with the 1948 war can be accessed via conflicthistory.com here.

Here is my crowdrise fundraising progress as well... Between my personal fundraising and crowdrise fundraising for the camp itself, I have raised $70 total... I can only hope that more donations will come from local businesses!!