First Impressions...
Well, the past few days have certainly been interesting. Palestine is
nothing like I expected. It is a world full of dichotomy. Here I am in
a land that I've only read about and hadn't been able to imagine and
yet the weather feels like Florida and George Lucas definitely stole
sets for Star Wars from the Palestinian landscape. Despite these
familiarities it is quite apparent that I am not in New Jersey.
I arrived in the airport and passed through Israeli security, no
sweat, despite my hours of hand-wringing on the airplane as I tried to
prepare a convincing cover story. I was only asked where I was going
and if I was alone. However, several of the other participants
received more questioning than I did, but everyone made it to
Bethlehem, safe and sound.
My host family is amazing and I have never been met with more
generosity. It's a good thing I like to eat, because Palestinian
people love to feed you. Even after a meal of more delicious food than
I could previously imagine, my host mother sets out a tantalizing
plate of fresh fruits and pressures me to take whatever I want. I feel
as at home in Palestine as I do in my home back in New Jersey. Even on
my first day at my volunteer placement I was served tons of great
food. The women I work with wouldn't let me leave the kitchen without
eating at least some bread, oil, and yogurt, despite my protests that
I had only just finished breakfast at my house. It's this warming,
loving atmosphere that has characterized my initial relations with the
Palestinians.
On Sunday, we traveled as a group to Jerusalem and toured around the
Old City, seeing the sights and learning about the history of each
location. Despite all of this fascinating history, my favorite part of
the day came after lunch, when we participated in an ICAHD (Israeli
Committee Against House Demolitions) tour. I would highly recommend
this tour to anyone traveling to Jerusalem. The discussions on the
tour were both enlightening and enraging. We learned about the many
Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the never ending conflict
over land. One of the most important things I took away from the tour
was that this not a war against terrorism; the Israelis are far more
advanced than the Palestinians. This is battle for land. When drawing
guidelines for the wall, Israel purposely excludes cities with large
Palestinian populations because it wants to maintain the majority in
the country. This is why the wall looks like it's been planned out by
a two year old who's been given his first crayon.
From where I stand, there does not seem to be a solution to the
conflict. However, I believe the next two months will be an
enlightening experience and hopefully when I board the airplane home I
will have a clearer understanding of the conflict and the terms
necessary to achieve peace.
Submitted by: RB
