Bethlehem Hotels
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O Holy Nights?
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Okay, so early on Friday morning the entire group boarded a bus to Bethlehem...the birthplace of Jesus. It was cold and rainy and dreary :( We had about 5 checkpoints to get through. But on the way, I saw my first expanse of the separation wall. The site of it brought tears to my eyes, words cannot describe the pure disgust of this creation. We stopped off at a bit of the wall that boasted revolutionary artwork, complete with a Che portrait! The Palestinian volunteers tearily sang their intifada song. I also witnessed one volunteer brought to tears when we passed the outskirts of Jerusalem and you could see the Dome of the Rock. He said that it was so difficult to pass by and see this important Muslim site, yet he could not go to pray there because of the Israeli security measures.
A few hours later we arrived in Bethlehem. It was not what I was expecting! I was picturing this cute little historic town...it's just like any other city and is full of graffitied walls and garbage and cheesy souvenir shops! Our first stop was the Deisha refugee camp. This one is about 11,000 inhabitants and looks like a mini city. We stopped for quite some time in a demolised home of suspected terrorists and met with the mother of the boys. It was so eerie being inside of this home where the people had been woken in the middle of the night to the sound of bulldozers. They were given 10 minutes to leave before the soldiers moved in to destroy the home. Today, the shell of the home is there and the inside filled with rubble, baby blankets, schoolbooks and toys of the children.
After that visit, we made it to our lovely hostel to rest up a bit. Then we made it to Manger square to join the crazy bustle of the holiday revelers and religious pilgrims. We had secured just a few tickets to go into the church of the nativity and see where Jesus was born. It was absolute mayhem with people shoving and pushing and screaming at each other...kinda ruined the spiritualness of the moment I have to say. By time we got in, I just didn't care to be there...it was a madhouse. But I did go down into the area marked by a star on the floor where Jesus is believed to have been born. Then we waited hours to get into the international mass that was going on at midnight. More people shoving and pushing and yelling. But I did get to see the current Palestinian president walk right next to me!!! His name is Abu Mezan and is widely liked in the US as he is backed by the Bush regime (surpise), but not widely liked by the Palestinian people
themselves. So I guess that was cool. So all in all--Bethlehem was a huge letdown. The only fun part was when we stopped in a shop where we were offered wine and tea and coffee by the shop owners. We stayed for a good hour before heading over to a bar for singing and dancing. The Palestinianas as I've said many times, are constantly singing and dancing. They do a kind of 'battle' game with songs--two people square off and sing little anecdotal stories off the top of their heads. It's so much fun, even though I don't understand a word they say. But they are usually about love and romance. Saturday was a great day in Ramallah. As most of you should know, this was the site of Arafat's compund and his current resting place. Enclosed in a glass building is his grave, covered in wreaths and guarded by soldiers. His compound is still standing and half of it is in ruins...I am sure most of you saw on TV the bulldozers that destroyed parts of the compound. It was just amazing to see in person all of this that had gone on on television. After a few hours there, we all had a traditional Palestinian dinner (which usually is chicken or lamb and rice) and then went to Sangria's, a bar. Ramallah is amazing...such a modern university town where people go to discos and drink alcohol. It was cute b/c the bartender was trying to show off all of his American sayings that he knew in order to impress us. It was fun to just kick back with some sangira and relax in a place a bit more similar to what I am used to at home.
We made the loooooooong journey back to Jericho. We had to go a different route b/c the Palestinian volunteers with us could not get past certain checkpoints. I, of course, had to use the toilet in the middle of the desert...I just couldn't wait. We pulled over and asked to use the bathroom at a complete stranger's home. They of course insisted on tea around the fire and the kids began pulling out there english books to speak with me. We couldn't stay, but as always, the Palestinian hospitality continues to amaze me! Tell me, where in the US could you just stop and use a bathroom without getting killed? Also, it was great b/c it was my first ever experience with a hole in the ground type of toilet...yeah!
Back at the flat about 15 of us had a great dance party until all hours of the morning. More thumbnails ...
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