Life in the West bank...
Another memorable and amazing day as I went to Bethlehem again, Another Palestinian refugee camp, and into the seat of Palestinian Authority Power, the Bustling city of Ramallah....
With a local guide, Me and 6 other people (an Indian-Norwegian Family and a Brit) also Walked around the separation wall, Met with a doctor at a U.N.-run camp, and finally, headed to Yasser Arafat's tomb (yes, he wasn't a perfect leader, but he was an inspiration for his people and he remains so even though he failed to bring about a Palestinian State.)
The day was full of seeing things from the Palestinian perspective and how they live life under occupation and separation from other Palestinian communities close by on the Israeli side of the wall.
I have found the people of Palestine to be very kind and happy to have visitors in come into their cities and camps to hear their story. I feel privileged to be here and to see this place with my own eyes..... The West Bank is not just a place I read about anymore.... it is now a real place to me full of people who have accepted me as a foreigner into their land and, in my view, yet just want to live in peace, normalcy and dignity. I hope that anybody who wants to really understand the conflict comes here to experience it too someday. I am even more emotionally invested in the peoples and fate of this land as a whole... The whole of Israel/Palestine.... The Jews and the Palestinians.
The grafitti on the wall is inspiring...
Near Bethlehem...
The entrance to the refugee camp has a giant symbolizing the fact that some refugees still have the keys to the homes they fled... decades ago..
Living beneath the wall...
scotto
Banksy did this....... I like the Muhommed Ali depiction...
Then, of course,... there are signs of extremist desperation and the violence of the recent past... even though now, things are as calm as things go here...
A young Yasser..
Just like the Brazilian president two weeks ago, I was at Arafat's tomb...
Ramallah is a vibrant, busy city full of music and life.... very exhilarating to visit...
Yes,.. that coffee shop says "Stars and Bucks"... haha..
...and I had to buy some music.... two CD's of Palestinian Dabkhe music....
With a local guide, Me and 6 other people (an Indian-Norwegian Family and a Brit) also Walked around the separation wall, Met with a doctor at a U.N.-run camp, and finally, headed to Yasser Arafat's tomb (yes, he wasn't a perfect leader, but he was an inspiration for his people and he remains so even though he failed to bring about a Palestinian State.)
The day was full of seeing things from the Palestinian perspective and how they live life under occupation and separation from other Palestinian communities close by on the Israeli side of the wall.
I have found the people of Palestine to be very kind and happy to have visitors in come into their cities and camps to hear their story. I feel privileged to be here and to see this place with my own eyes..... The West Bank is not just a place I read about anymore.... it is now a real place to me full of people who have accepted me as a foreigner into their land and, in my view, yet just want to live in peace, normalcy and dignity. I hope that anybody who wants to really understand the conflict comes here to experience it too someday. I am even more emotionally invested in the peoples and fate of this land as a whole... The whole of Israel/Palestine.... The Jews and the Palestinians.
The grafitti on the wall is inspiring...
Near Bethlehem...
The entrance to the refugee camp has a giant symbolizing the fact that some refugees still have the keys to the homes they fled... decades ago..
Living beneath the wall...
scotto
Banksy did this....... I like the Muhommed Ali depiction...
Then, of course,... there are signs of extremist desperation and the violence of the recent past... even though now, things are as calm as things go here...
A young Yasser..
Just like the Brazilian president two weeks ago, I was at Arafat's tomb...
Ramallah is a vibrant, busy city full of music and life.... very exhilarating to visit...
Yes,.. that coffee shop says "Stars and Bucks"... haha..
...and I had to buy some music.... two CD's of Palestinian Dabkhe music....