Tourism and Pilgrimage: That's my story and I'm sticking to it
(Transcribed from an entry in my old-fashioned journal)
So, I get to the airport, prepared to tell some while lies about my travels in Israel. What was I supposed to hide?:
1. I went to Ramallah with some Israelis.
2. I saw "Breaking the Silence" in Hebron.
3. I went to Hebron to see the situation, not just to see the tombs of the Patriarchs.
4. I went to Nablus to see the situation as well as Jacob's Well.
5. I went to Dhesha Refugee Camp with an Israeli.
6. I made friends with Arabs.
7. I stayed with an Arab family.
8. I stayed with an Iranian Baha'i family.
9. I volunteered without a proper visa.
10. I still disagree intensely with the politics of the country.
I was nervous getting tot he airport. I gave excuses for the visits I had made to all of these places (if I mentioned them at all) as them being significant places of pilgrimage. But if they had only looked through my camera, they would have seen photos that betrayed my interest in the social and political situations of the country.
I was asked by 3 different people aout my activities, the last one being the scariest as I gave away some of the info I wasn't supposed to. But I wasn't taken to any interrogation rooms, I assume because they didn't find any incriminating souvenirs in my luggage like a large Palestinian flag or a kafiyeh. I had lots of souvenirs but I was careful to stay as politically neutral as possible in my purchases.
Even though the whole search and questioning process didn't take more than an hour, it was clear they paid more attention to me than the other passengers, checking my luggage and body (done in a curtained corner of the airport) more thoroughly than anyone else in the line - they even jumped me to the head of lines and escorted me around the security areas. I'm positive. I'm terribly happy they didn't ask me more questions because I have a terrible poker face and couldn't lie to save my life. I couldn't have avoided talking about somethings like the conference, since I had evidence in my luggage with my name all over it. In the end, it was a little nerve-racking but I got through it without any difficulty.
They didn't even ask me what I do for a living. I'm sure telling them my area of study would have arisen even more suspicion, considering the interrogator was already suspicious of my length of stay. "Two months? What were you doing for two months? Israel's a small country."
So, I get to the airport, prepared to tell some while lies about my travels in Israel. What was I supposed to hide?:
1. I went to Ramallah with some Israelis.
2. I saw "Breaking the Silence" in Hebron.
3. I went to Hebron to see the situation, not just to see the tombs of the Patriarchs.
4. I went to Nablus to see the situation as well as Jacob's Well.
5. I went to Dhesha Refugee Camp with an Israeli.
6. I made friends with Arabs.
7. I stayed with an Arab family.
8. I stayed with an Iranian Baha'i family.
9. I volunteered without a proper visa.
10. I still disagree intensely with the politics of the country.
I was nervous getting tot he airport. I gave excuses for the visits I had made to all of these places (if I mentioned them at all) as them being significant places of pilgrimage. But if they had only looked through my camera, they would have seen photos that betrayed my interest in the social and political situations of the country.
I was asked by 3 different people aout my activities, the last one being the scariest as I gave away some of the info I wasn't supposed to. But I wasn't taken to any interrogation rooms, I assume because they didn't find any incriminating souvenirs in my luggage like a large Palestinian flag or a kafiyeh. I had lots of souvenirs but I was careful to stay as politically neutral as possible in my purchases.
Even though the whole search and questioning process didn't take more than an hour, it was clear they paid more attention to me than the other passengers, checking my luggage and body (done in a curtained corner of the airport) more thoroughly than anyone else in the line - they even jumped me to the head of lines and escorted me around the security areas. I'm positive. I'm terribly happy they didn't ask me more questions because I have a terrible poker face and couldn't lie to save my life. I couldn't have avoided talking about somethings like the conference, since I had evidence in my luggage with my name all over it. In the end, it was a little nerve-racking but I got through it without any difficulty.
They didn't even ask me what I do for a living. I'm sure telling them my area of study would have arisen even more suspicion, considering the interrogator was already suspicious of my length of stay. "Two months? What were you doing for two months? Israel's a small country."