Going to Ramallah and Haifa two weekends ago was fun and interesting. Ramallah was bizarre because it was empty (it's Ramadan, so people are inside away from the heat). We spoke with three people involved in politics to varying degrees and it was very interesting. We are not allowed to write or blog about what they said but a big take away message was that no one has more to lose or more to gain in peace negotiations than the Palestinians. We also visted Rawabi (see photo), the first planned Palestinian city in the West Bank. It's going to be huge and very modern - it reminded me of any planned development center in the states. A bit Disney-esque. They showed us this campy 3D video tour and we went into the huge gorgeous showroom (there were quite a few families there checking out properties actually). All very interesting. After going to the Gaza Border and then into Ramallah, it seems to me that not only Israel-Palestinian relations will need decades of work and dedication to fix, but Gazan-West Bank relations will also prove to be a huge challenge.
Haifa was fun. The evangelical Scandanavian guest house was a TRIP! All these christians who think Jews are the chosen people and the reason there are problems between muslims and jews is because the muslims are muslim and not christian. So it was challenging but interesting. It was really funny to have these conversations over dinner with a jewish guy leading shabbat without any idea of how to do it. And then all the graces. Oh dear lord. Noah was into it. Robert tried really hard to follow along. I tried really hard not to laugh. The next day we went up and down the mountain Haifa is on, had some good soup for lunch, and visited Noah's friends at Uni. of Haifa. All in all, it was a great trip because we had a lot of fun but I don't like Haifa much as a city. It seems like a bunch of small towns/strips of commercials ventures spotted up a mountain. The views are beautiful, the Arab Quarter was great, the Bahai gardens are stunning and the beaches are cleaner though, so to each their own. It is a lovely place.
Yesterday Noah and I took another venture out to Neve Shalom, a peace/co-existance village in between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. It's difficult to get there, took about 2 hours on two buses but it was worth it! Our friend from school Tarik is volunteering there for a few weeks before moving onto other projects. Tarik helped found Shalaam at Macaleter. Amazingly, Neve Shalom is situated on a hill looking over what remains of his grandmothers old village (Tarik's paternal family is Palestinian). We walked up the hill to Neve Shalom, had a few little walking tours around the village, saw the schools and community centers, swam in the swimming pool (praise the LAWD) and had a nice little picnic on the roof of the volunteer compound. Then we hiked down the hill and up another one, where the Latrun monastery is. It is shockingly beautiful out there, only a 20 minute car drive outside the city.
Other than that, I am going to work, going to the beach, sleeping alot, eating on a shoe string budget, walking around, meeting Noah and Elana as much as I can, etc. The other night Maya and I went to see these guys play at a bar near us on Rothschild and then we went out with the drummer and bassist afterwards. They were both very nice and sweet and had studied in America. Tonight I think Elana and I will go hear music at the port. I've been trying to do fellowship work but without internet at the apartment it's a bit difficult.
No comments:
Post a Comment