The time is passing so incredibly fast as they are keeping us so busy. So I'll try to give you the rundown with some sidenotes. I'm in my favorite internet cafe run by my new friend Tariq. He's very nice and gives me discounts since the computer is so slow. He loves American rap music and plays music with the videos on his computer and asks me to translate the words for him. The current hit is Usher. Tonight there are demonstrations in the town center with fireworks and guns going off. They are having their local elections on Thursday, so it's in reaction to that.
Anyways, yesterday we had a day off of work (!) and got to sleep in until 9:30. We met with a VIP for the morning, Saed Erekat. He is THE chief negotiator for the Palestinians with the Israelis. Jericho is the center of the Palestinian movement. Actually, just 10 minutes ago I passed by the Palestinian Authority headquarters. The IDF bulldozed the buildings and so now the small Palestinian military is living in tents. In any case, Erekat was very interesting. He continuosuly stressed being pro-PEACE rather than pro-Israeli or pro-Palestinian and choosing sides. I thought that was great of him to say. We also got an awesome book that explains the situation with the wall. Really quick for those who don't know, the wall is just that--it is meant to
enclose the Palestinians completely and restrict all movemen. It is controversial for the obvious reasons, but more so b/c it seeks to expand the current territory of the Israelis. Also, as an aside--you will notice that my emails tend to be more pro-Palestinian. This is b/c we get enough of the Israeli side in American media and the main reason I came here was to get 'the other side' of things that we don't see or hear about in the U.S.
Alright, so after the speaker we walked out through Old Jericho and to the ruins of Hisham's Palace. Basically, it was a palace built around 720 CE for the fourth caliph Hisham. But it was destroyed after four years in an earthquake. The ruins are quite nice, more than you would expect to see in an area that has witnessed such chaos. Then we bummed around town, my very favorite thing to do!! But not before running into some children in the street and playing a pick-up game of soccer with them. I would take pix of them and then show them on the digital camera--they just loved that. I tried to call home to no avail (Mom--where are you??). In the evening we went to the Spanish gardens...a beautiful complex designed and donated by the Spanish government. It had a lovely cafe with a huge water display with brilliant lights shining through. It reminded me of Vegas!! We had coffee there and smoked some sheesha. You have to understand this is special for us b/c the women do not partake in this, especially in public (they may at home sometimes).
THEN (it never ends) we were invited for coffee at a neighbor's house. I am NOT kidding you--we must drink tea and coffee at least 10 times/day! I dislike both, but drink them to not be rude. So for an hour we had sweets and coffee. Then we headed back to the flat for dinner. They had planned a surprise for us and we entered to a room full of fruit displays and sparklers, X-Mas decorations and fun music. We all danced for a few hours, it was loads of fun--oh, and had falafels for dinner.
Today we did work. And I must say, I worked my ass off!! I was pulling up squash plants from the ground as the squash had already been picked. These are no small plants, we're talking Little Shop of Horrors big!! It was tough work but it was so nice to work alongside this farmer and his wife and cousin. The wife and I chatted the whole time (her in Arabic and me in English)...it's funny how you manage to communicate in different languages. It was a bit unnerving, though, as the IDF were flying overhead in
helicopters all afternoon. The farmer told us that the land in front of his was taken by some farmers who fled to Jordan and no one is allowed to farm it...so it just sits barren for no reason at all. He said they often patrol to make sure no one is farming it. We could see IDF watchtowers off in the distance as well. We had a lunch of falafel and pita and really good yogurt! It tasted like a mix of yogurt and sour cream...it was really good. We worked until 12:30 and then of course had to go to their home for you guessed it---tea, coffee and oranges!
This is one thing about the people here...they are THE most friendly and welcoming I have ever met in my life. They are truly resiliant people and still manage to love life and laugh and sing and dance in spite of the horrible conditions that they live under. It is truly amazing and I have so much respect for them.
This afternoon we went to the military training area to see some traditional Palestinian music and dane. Again, these people NEVER stop dancing and singing...I am not exaggerating this whatsoever. That brings us to now, in the internet cafe-with Usher blaring in the background! I know I had some other 'observations' to give...but my brain is on overload. I've had to ask another volunteer a million times to remind me what we've done in the last day b/c we do so much that I can't keep it straight.
Oh, the other lesson I got was about passports and movement. I'll keep it to the most basic. Everyone you meet has different abilities...some can go to anywhere in Israel, others are confined to their town in the West Bank, etc. Those who lived in Israel between 1948 and 1967 for the most part, were given Israeli passports and can thus go anywhere. Those who fled and became refugees were given Jordanian passports. So most people living here in the West Bank have no true nationality...just a Jordan passport. So they can go to Jordan but can't leave their town in the West Bank. They can apply for permission to leave, but only get it if it's for an activity that benefits the Israelis. I just couldn't imagine not being able to leave the small town in which I live...it is just so wrong.
Okay, that's enough for now b/c I know most of you can't read my emails all the way through b/c they are so long...but I am not even telling you the half of it!!! Overall, I am having an amazing time and just love it here so much-especially the people. Sometime this week are set to visit one of the two refugee camps here in Jericho. Also, FYI, there are no Israeli settlements here in Jericho, but they do exist on the outskirts of the town.
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