So I waited to do my last post partially because I had zero time while I was with all the volunteers and partially because I wanted to see what would happen once I got to the airport. The last couple days was a lot of traveling with the group, we went to Nabolis one day and the next to Jericho and the Dead Sea. Jericho and the Dead Sea was the same day I had to leave so after the Dead Sea, I carried all my bags about a kilometer to the nearest bus stop. I then got a ride to Jerusalem where I was picked up by a taxi that drove me directly to Ben Gurion in Tel Aviv. Security was a little rough, it took me about three hours longer getting through security than all the Jewish families and Israelis I saw just kind of skipping by. After I said I "visited" the West Bank, the woman questioning me went and spoke to a higher-up, then returned and said, "I'm sorry, but I need to ask you more questions to make sure there aren't any bombs in your bags." After being questioned for about 10 more minutes, I put my bags through the x-ray, then had to get them inspected. Israeli security opened each of my bags and took out nearly everything in them and wiped them down with a wand-like tool to, what I'm assuming, test for poison or bomb residue. This took about 45 minutes to an hour. Then I was taken to a separate room where I had my own private pat down and metal detector test along with everything in my pockets/my belt, hat, and sandals; this took about half an hour. Then I was taken to finally check in, afterwards, I had to personally take my checked bag to the elevator that led to the loading dock and I put my bag on the baggage cart. After this, another woman led me to a security checkpoint where she swiped her card and had her thumb print scanned which than opened the door allowing me to reach passport control. The woman at passport control matched my face up with the passport, stamped it with an exit stamp, and then I was allowed to go to my gate. Overall, it took me about an hour and a half, hour forty-five to get through security. Some people say they do this randomly but I guarantee, if I said I never visited the West Bank, I could've gotten through security in half an hour.
It's weird being back in the states. It's cold and "civilized." I never went to Palestine for the farm work, I went to experience what no one here truly understands. I went to be surrounded by Israeli settlements, to have people look at me like I don't belong there, to speak with the people and to better understand the government. The farm is not meant to be a profit-making business like in the states, my job was not to farm, it was to maintain a symbol. Not of defiance, not of rebellion, but of humanity. Tent of Nations is a Christian organization and they reminded me of that multiple times but I don't think that has anything to do with it. You don't need to be a Christian, or a Muslim, or a Jew to do the right thing or to be morally or ethically sound. Right and wrong came before religion, came before politics, came before man. The Nassar family is simply doing what they believe is right, what I believe is right, standing up for what is humane and moral. In this day and age, after everything humanity has been through, we still treat each other like shit, as unequals, as animals. People, all over the world, can work as hard as they want but will never achieve what others can. There is no such thing as equal opportunity, as fairness, as justice in today's governments and religions. I mean, yes, these entities talk about justice and morality but when have we ever truly learned from them? I know good people and I know bad people and in the end, there are no correlations between any of them - religion, political beliefs, ethnic or racial background, nationality, gender, etc. Goodness, true goodness is not something that can be taught, it has to be shown, it has to be experienced. People at Tent of Nations are showing their goodness, although I don't agree with everything they say about politics or religion, they are staying strong in the path of segregation and abuse. I have learned a lot while in Palestine, I have gained so much more than I will ever truly comprehend from all of my travels; but in the end, one question always pops up in my mind, what's the point? Why even bother with all of this? The reason is simple, I do not hope or wish for world peace, for the world to be kind and generous to one another, to treat others as they wish to be treated, or to love your neighbor as yourself; I simply wish to postpone the inevitable, to hold back the arm that will eventually deliver the killing blow. This is not depressing or pessimistic, this is reality, this is humanity. People are beautiful in all their knowledge and wisdom and mistakes and my only hope for mankind is that we continue strong until we reach that tipping point, the point of no return. That day will come but until then, embrace those you love, stand up for what you believe in, fight passionately for what is good and right, but above all, think. Think and grow, this is how we postpone the inevitable, this is how we can truly live our lives. Go ahead and pray and hope and dream for something better but it's YOU who has to stand up in the end, to say when enough is enough. It's your choice, will you speak and fight for what is right or when the time comes, shrink back and stay silent?
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Hebron
Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I've been really busy. The counselors for this kids' camp have their schedules packed. I farm a little in the morning, work with the kids from 9-2, then either travel somewhere as a group or have meetings the rest of the day, followed with more farming, then some more meetings. The camp is going well though, the kids can sometimes be tough to work with but I think my group is getting to be a lot closer and working better together now than before. I have 14 kids in my group with two other conselors and a translator, I try to speak mostly in Arabic with the kids but sometimes the translator has to translate my Arabic, to real Arabic. It's fun though, we have a lot of interesting projects that we do and there will be a lot more next week. I'm excited to come home but I'm pretty bummed I'll be missing the second half of camp, I'm starting to like these kids. One of the kids in my group, Mohammed, is actually from the refugee camp Deisha in Bethlehem. It's really interesting to talk to these kids about their lives but it's even harder sometimes to get them to think for themselves but I think we're getting closer. One of the sadder things I've heard though is that not one of the kids in my group wants to live in the West Bank when they grow up, what's even sadder though is that most of them will end up living here the rest of their lives regardless. It's tough working with these kids but I hope we can make some difference in their lives, even with the short time I'm here.
Also, today, we all went to Hebron for a few hours, insane experience. Hebron is split into H1 and H2 - H1 being the original Palestinian Hebron and H2 being the part settlers kind of took over. There are checkpoints all over the city, as well as different roads and walkways that can only be used by Israelis. We walked through a few alley ways that used to be thriving markets - before the Israeli military sealed off the roads going in and out - where overhead was fence and bars loaded with trash and large stones or bricks. The reason this is is because when Palestinians walk through these alleyways, Israeli settlers living on the upper floors would throw stones, trash, and sometimes even things like Molotov cocktails at them in an attempt to scare them away from Hebron. The fences were then put up to catch all the trash but even now, on Sundays especially, some Israeli settlers are now using trash mixed with water or even acid to dump on Palestinians or just visitors trying to observe what's happening. Hebron is littered with military and bases, checkpoints, segregation, and the looming feeling of hatred and although I was not shocked by any of this, it was a truly eye-opening experience. I know I mentioned this before, but this is what I mean when I say THIS IS APARTHEID. I'd like to hear your thoughts on this, I gave a very short explanation of what I've seen since I have to head out soon but if any of you still feel that this is right or justified, please explain. I've never seen humans treated in such an animalistic way as they are in Hebron, Palestine, Israel.
Also, today, we all went to Hebron for a few hours, insane experience. Hebron is split into H1 and H2 - H1 being the original Palestinian Hebron and H2 being the part settlers kind of took over. There are checkpoints all over the city, as well as different roads and walkways that can only be used by Israelis. We walked through a few alley ways that used to be thriving markets - before the Israeli military sealed off the roads going in and out - where overhead was fence and bars loaded with trash and large stones or bricks. The reason this is is because when Palestinians walk through these alleyways, Israeli settlers living on the upper floors would throw stones, trash, and sometimes even things like Molotov cocktails at them in an attempt to scare them away from Hebron. The fences were then put up to catch all the trash but even now, on Sundays especially, some Israeli settlers are now using trash mixed with water or even acid to dump on Palestinians or just visitors trying to observe what's happening. Hebron is littered with military and bases, checkpoints, segregation, and the looming feeling of hatred and although I was not shocked by any of this, it was a truly eye-opening experience. I know I mentioned this before, but this is what I mean when I say THIS IS APARTHEID. I'd like to hear your thoughts on this, I gave a very short explanation of what I've seen since I have to head out soon but if any of you still feel that this is right or justified, please explain. I've never seen humans treated in such an animalistic way as they are in Hebron, Palestine, Israel.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
"You Know, That Whole Holocaust Thing"
So, I had a pretty interesting experience over the weekend. I was with the Germans and all the volunteers went to a bar to watch the Germany-Uruguay game to see who gets the 3rd place spot in the World Cup. It was an epic game ending 3-2 for Germany so they take the bronze, the Germans were pretty happy about that.
Now for the interesting part. We were all sitting in the back two rows and all the Israelis were sitting in the front two rows (it was an outdoor viewing experience). Everytime Germany scored, people in the back two rows cheered and the front two were solemn, and vice versa when Uruguay scored. There was an Israeli woman from Tel Aviv, Tamur, sitting next to me and I asked her, "So are the Israelis for Uruguay or just against Germany?" She said they didn't really care who was playing against Germany, they were always cheering for the other team, in fact, they were a little bummed that Germany made it this far. So I followed up with, "why?" Now I already had some ideas in my head, some I thought were a little far-fetched but then she replied, "Oh, you know, that whole holocaust thing." This threw me off a little bit (this was one of the far-fetched reasons I came up with), I mean, I understand the holocaust was a terrible situation and one of the downfalls of humanity but to cheer against a soccer team, 70 years later no less, because of something that happened far in the past (and a situation that most Germans are simply embaressed about), kind of suprised. Most Israelis even admit that Germany is an amazing team but whenever Germany does anything politcally, or sport-oriented, etc., Israelis usually look down on it and rarely support it. I told this to Thomas and Willy and they were actually kind of embaressed by this, for an entire nation-state to despise another so fervently for something that happened in the dark past made them kind of sad, especially since the majority of those involved in WWII are now past away and every single player on the German team, as well as the coach, were born at least 30 years after the fact.
This kind of makes me embaressed of humanity as well. Everyone always says we must learn from history, learn from our mistakes. When does this ever truly happen? Honestly. This is not learning, this is not taking the terror that occured during the holocaust and gaining wisdom from it, this is dwelling on the past. Frankly, this is kind of childish. I don't mean to negate the horror of the holocaust or any genocide for that matter, but Israelis seem to dwell on it, despise a country for something that the current citizens struggle with, and the Israeli government even uses it as an excuse for some of the political actions taken. From what I saw in Japan, they don't pout about the Hiroshima/Nagasaki bombings, they take what happened, and attempt to make peace out of it (the Hiroshima Museum, speaking to nations with nuclear warheads and communicating about the tragedies that can come from using them, etc.). This is what I imagine when I think of learning from our mistakes, not gaining up against a currently innocent nation-state.
I have hope for humanity, I do. But the more I travel and learn about the human race, the harder it is to hold on to this hope (this does not mean I don't enjoy traveling of course, I love it). I'm not a pessimist and by no means am I an optimist, but I'd like to think of myself as a realist. Realistically, a lot of what I've seen here in Israel and in Palestine dissapoints me, hurts many of the hopes for humanity that I have left. I'm glad I'm going into international relations and I'm glad I'm learning what I am; these experiences, I hope, will give me wisdom that I will one day be able to share. But currently, everywhere I seem to turn, the downfalls of humanity seem to rise up and take hold of the governments, religions, and media in this world. What happened to thinking? What happened to people using the intelligence and logic that we have? This next one is rhetorical but, why do we destroy one another? In the end, I fear they all have the same answer, we are human. Being human is our greatest power and our greatest downfall; humanity balances on a dangerous equilibrium that I fear will someday tip for the worst. What we can do though, what I will continue to strive to do, is help. Keep this equilirium going as long as possible, keep people happy - I mentioned the downfalls of humanity in governments, and religion, and media, and people themselves; but we have to embrace the beauty that comes out of these things as well. We are a fragile species and there's a good chance that we may someday destroy ourselves; but until that day comes, I say enjoy yourself, be a good person, embrace one another, don't get caught up in the little things and, above all, live your life - this is the only way to maintain the beautiful and delicate equilibrium that we call humanity.
P.S. Sorry if this was depressing or a little much for any of you, I clearly had a lot on my mind and this is my way to vent - no one else here speaks English well enough to understand.
Now for the interesting part. We were all sitting in the back two rows and all the Israelis were sitting in the front two rows (it was an outdoor viewing experience). Everytime Germany scored, people in the back two rows cheered and the front two were solemn, and vice versa when Uruguay scored. There was an Israeli woman from Tel Aviv, Tamur, sitting next to me and I asked her, "So are the Israelis for Uruguay or just against Germany?" She said they didn't really care who was playing against Germany, they were always cheering for the other team, in fact, they were a little bummed that Germany made it this far. So I followed up with, "why?" Now I already had some ideas in my head, some I thought were a little far-fetched but then she replied, "Oh, you know, that whole holocaust thing." This threw me off a little bit (this was one of the far-fetched reasons I came up with), I mean, I understand the holocaust was a terrible situation and one of the downfalls of humanity but to cheer against a soccer team, 70 years later no less, because of something that happened far in the past (and a situation that most Germans are simply embaressed about), kind of suprised. Most Israelis even admit that Germany is an amazing team but whenever Germany does anything politcally, or sport-oriented, etc., Israelis usually look down on it and rarely support it. I told this to Thomas and Willy and they were actually kind of embaressed by this, for an entire nation-state to despise another so fervently for something that happened in the dark past made them kind of sad, especially since the majority of those involved in WWII are now past away and every single player on the German team, as well as the coach, were born at least 30 years after the fact.
This kind of makes me embaressed of humanity as well. Everyone always says we must learn from history, learn from our mistakes. When does this ever truly happen? Honestly. This is not learning, this is not taking the terror that occured during the holocaust and gaining wisdom from it, this is dwelling on the past. Frankly, this is kind of childish. I don't mean to negate the horror of the holocaust or any genocide for that matter, but Israelis seem to dwell on it, despise a country for something that the current citizens struggle with, and the Israeli government even uses it as an excuse for some of the political actions taken. From what I saw in Japan, they don't pout about the Hiroshima/Nagasaki bombings, they take what happened, and attempt to make peace out of it (the Hiroshima Museum, speaking to nations with nuclear warheads and communicating about the tragedies that can come from using them, etc.). This is what I imagine when I think of learning from our mistakes, not gaining up against a currently innocent nation-state.
I have hope for humanity, I do. But the more I travel and learn about the human race, the harder it is to hold on to this hope (this does not mean I don't enjoy traveling of course, I love it). I'm not a pessimist and by no means am I an optimist, but I'd like to think of myself as a realist. Realistically, a lot of what I've seen here in Israel and in Palestine dissapoints me, hurts many of the hopes for humanity that I have left. I'm glad I'm going into international relations and I'm glad I'm learning what I am; these experiences, I hope, will give me wisdom that I will one day be able to share. But currently, everywhere I seem to turn, the downfalls of humanity seem to rise up and take hold of the governments, religions, and media in this world. What happened to thinking? What happened to people using the intelligence and logic that we have? This next one is rhetorical but, why do we destroy one another? In the end, I fear they all have the same answer, we are human. Being human is our greatest power and our greatest downfall; humanity balances on a dangerous equilibrium that I fear will someday tip for the worst. What we can do though, what I will continue to strive to do, is help. Keep this equilirium going as long as possible, keep people happy - I mentioned the downfalls of humanity in governments, and religion, and media, and people themselves; but we have to embrace the beauty that comes out of these things as well. We are a fragile species and there's a good chance that we may someday destroy ourselves; but until that day comes, I say enjoy yourself, be a good person, embrace one another, don't get caught up in the little things and, above all, live your life - this is the only way to maintain the beautiful and delicate equilibrium that we call humanity.
P.S. Sorry if this was depressing or a little much for any of you, I clearly had a lot on my mind and this is my way to vent - no one else here speaks English well enough to understand.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Ma Salaama Thomas
A few days ago, I was kicked by Thrat (Thunder), the horse. I was close enough so it was more of a push, wasn't terrible but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. Other than that, I'm doing pretty well.
Today was my last full day of farming, as well as Thomas's. We took a lot of pictures of the family and everything and now we're having a little party for Thomas. This family has way to many little girls in it who enjoy yelling and laughing very loudly into my ears. Tomorrow, Willy, Thomas, and I are heading to Jerusalem for our last weekend together, then Thomas leaves early Monday morning. I still have one more week here which will be the children's camp so I'm pretty excited for that but I'm also excited to be heading home. It's been a lot of hard work here and I'm glad I'll be ending it with the kid's camp, I hear many of the kids will be refugees so that will make for a very interesting experience. Also, the cistern is really close to done, I've done a lot of digging the past couple days and so all it really needs is a few days of cleaning and it will be done, sadly, we're leaving that to Willy. We sealed of the cistern for next week though so that none of the kids decide to fall down or anything. The whole farm is pretty much ready for the camp, tents are up, walls are built, random outdoor areas have been sweeped and trimmed, etc. As I said before, I'll kind of be a counselor for one of the groups of kids but I'll still be watering plants and tending to the animals in the morning and afternoon. Other than that, it'll be a lot of hanging out with the volunteers/traveling around a little bit. All around should be a good week. Sorry nothing too interesting is going on but I'll continue to keep you updated. Ma salaama.
Today was my last full day of farming, as well as Thomas's. We took a lot of pictures of the family and everything and now we're having a little party for Thomas. This family has way to many little girls in it who enjoy yelling and laughing very loudly into my ears. Tomorrow, Willy, Thomas, and I are heading to Jerusalem for our last weekend together, then Thomas leaves early Monday morning. I still have one more week here which will be the children's camp so I'm pretty excited for that but I'm also excited to be heading home. It's been a lot of hard work here and I'm glad I'll be ending it with the kid's camp, I hear many of the kids will be refugees so that will make for a very interesting experience. Also, the cistern is really close to done, I've done a lot of digging the past couple days and so all it really needs is a few days of cleaning and it will be done, sadly, we're leaving that to Willy. We sealed of the cistern for next week though so that none of the kids decide to fall down or anything. The whole farm is pretty much ready for the camp, tents are up, walls are built, random outdoor areas have been sweeped and trimmed, etc. As I said before, I'll kind of be a counselor for one of the groups of kids but I'll still be watering plants and tending to the animals in the morning and afternoon. Other than that, it'll be a lot of hanging out with the volunteers/traveling around a little bit. All around should be a good week. Sorry nothing too interesting is going on but I'll continue to keep you updated. Ma salaama.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Documentary
Today was a normal work day but I think, if we keep going at the rate we are, we'll be nearly finished with the cistern by the time the children's camp starts. Willy will probably be able to finish it after Thomas and I leave. Thomas is leaving in 6 days so tonight we all got together in Jerusalem, ate some bratwurst, etc. as a kind of goodbye party for him. It was a good time and now we're all just hanging out, tomorrow we'll head to the farm early in the morning to work again.
Nearly every day, tour groups or families come to visit either to spend the night or just to learn a little more about the farm and to hear about the Nassar family's story. A group came earlier in June and there was a guy filming and making a documentary about the farm. All the volunteers were hanging out on the roof, I was playing my uke and the Germans were playing backgammon. The director came up and asked if he could film us just doing what we were doing. I found out yesterday that this documentary made it onto PNN (Palestine News Network) and it's now posted both on Youtube and the PNN website. Here's the link to the Youtube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cPS6CznSI4
It's a dece documentary, pretty short, and it has some shots of the Germans and of me which I thought was just hilarious. We all thouroughly enjoyed watching it, the Germans love the scene of them playing backgammon. Hope you guys get as much joy out of it as we did/you can learn a little more about the farm. Ma salaama.
Nearly every day, tour groups or families come to visit either to spend the night or just to learn a little more about the farm and to hear about the Nassar family's story. A group came earlier in June and there was a guy filming and making a documentary about the farm. All the volunteers were hanging out on the roof, I was playing my uke and the Germans were playing backgammon. The director came up and asked if he could film us just doing what we were doing. I found out yesterday that this documentary made it onto PNN (Palestine News Network) and it's now posted both on Youtube and the PNN website. Here's the link to the Youtube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cPS6CznSI4
It's a dece documentary, pretty short, and it has some shots of the Germans and of me which I thought was just hilarious. We all thouroughly enjoyed watching it, the Germans love the scene of them playing backgammon. Hope you guys get as much joy out of it as we did/you can learn a little more about the farm. Ma salaama.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Luke's First Hostel
This weekend, I headed to Jerusalem where I met up with Kristian one last time. We walked around a little bit, then I checked in to the New Palm Hostel to shower and get a bed set up for the night. We hung out in the hostel a while when, after meeting a couple Australian girls and an Argentinian fellow, we decided to go to a cafe to watch the Germany-Argentina game. If any of you missed it, insane game, Germany rocked Argentina 4-0, the Argentinian we were with was devestated.
Afterwards, we just hung out in the hostel some more. I really like hostels in all honesty. I met people from at least 7 different countries including the States, Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Australia, Argentina, etc. A Dutch couple taught me how to play a game called Yanif, they don't know what the name means but they learned it from a random Arab they met in a cafe and taught it to me. Great game, kind of addicting, and can easily break your heart. I spoke to so many of them about random, interesting topics, especially a pair of Americans who were traveling around after studying abroad in France. Today, the three of us headed to Bethlehem and just talked and debated and ate and smoked hookah, all around good time. They headed back to Jerusalem and I headed back here to the farm so now I'm just hanging out, I guess Willy and Thomas got an extra day on their weekend so they aren't back yet today and won't be until tomorrow morning. Just me and Daher tonight.
Hostels are great though: showers, a bed, and a whole mess of random travelers with random stories just like you. I'm definatley planning on hostelizing more often in the future.
Oh, and uh, Happy Fourth of July.
Afterwards, we just hung out in the hostel some more. I really like hostels in all honesty. I met people from at least 7 different countries including the States, Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Australia, Argentina, etc. A Dutch couple taught me how to play a game called Yanif, they don't know what the name means but they learned it from a random Arab they met in a cafe and taught it to me. Great game, kind of addicting, and can easily break your heart. I spoke to so many of them about random, interesting topics, especially a pair of Americans who were traveling around after studying abroad in France. Today, the three of us headed to Bethlehem and just talked and debated and ate and smoked hookah, all around good time. They headed back to Jerusalem and I headed back here to the farm so now I'm just hanging out, I guess Willy and Thomas got an extra day on their weekend so they aren't back yet today and won't be until tomorrow morning. Just me and Daher tonight.
Hostels are great though: showers, a bed, and a whole mess of random travelers with random stories just like you. I'm definatley planning on hostelizing more often in the future.
Oh, and uh, Happy Fourth of July.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
International Relations - Germany and USA
Today was kind of a strange day but was a great day for figuring some important things out. Work was normal, we dug some more of the cistern, worked on building a wall, and planted a small field of grapes which look great. At lunch, the Germans and I got in a little fight, they were very angry at me which I later found out was because of the work I've been doing or sometimes, the lack-there-of. Now, I was a little confused at this at first, they both yelled/insulted and it got a little out of hand. I just kind of sat there and took it for a little while until things calmed down, then decided we needed to talk. I spoke to each of them for ten minutes about how I felt and they explained what they were thinking. I explained how when I first got here, and a little bit now, I feel like their little American slave, the way they order me around, etc. Daher doesn't treat the volunteers very well, usually orders us around and rarely says please or thank you and this frustrates the Germans, I explained to them how this is exactly what they did with me, they projected what Daher was doing to us straight to me so I was getting it from multiple sides. The told me how they get frustrated when I don't do things like water the horses, bring the digging tool to Daher's house, etc. (I've done this many times, but they usually ask me to, the don't want to have to ask, understandable) when I know how to do it. At first, I thought the farm worked as a divided system, each person has jobs to do and they do them. What I found out today is that it's more of a hybrid system, we all have our own jobs but when it comes to certain things, it's anyone's game. I apologized and explained that I never meant to insult, offend them, or piss them off and that now that we've talked, I promise to work at this. I also asked them to treat me as an equal, I am in the same boat as they are, just for less time. They agreed and the anger died down.
I thought this whole thing was great. I learned a lot about both of them as well. Thomas is unbelievably passionate, when he got angry and while we talked, he was almost tearing up, it taught me a lot about him which I never noticed before since he seems so chill most of the time. Willy was strong about it and we had more of a debate but both conversations went smoothly. Thomas thanked me after work today and said they were both surprised at not only the fact that I spoke to them, but how I did it. I'm very glad we've improved not only our social relationship, but our occupational relationship as well. I feel like I really needed this to happen as well, not just toe figure everything out, but so I could actually talk to people, solve a problem, etc.
Thomas and Willy headed out tonight to the Golen Heights, I wish I was going with them but I'm going to have to be the only worker here tomorrow so that'll be interesting but should go well (Kristian stopped by for a couple days but he's leaving tomorrow morning for Egypt). Then I'll head to Jerusalem for my weekend relaxation after a 6-day week. Next week is Thomas's last week so after our conversation, I have a feeling we'll grow a lot closer and get a lot more work done which makes me very glad and kind of excited to get started after my weekend.
I'm glad they listened and I'm even happier they spoke to me, this is what International Relations needs to be about, communication. This is a perfect example of what could be solved if people just talked through their issues instead of yelling and ignoring each other. This may be a little extreme of a metaphor but look at this situation and you can compare it to Israel and Palestine. Communication, that's what's needed. Communication is the only way to achieve understanding, understanding leads to the absence of hatred, and hopefully, the absence of hatred can lead to peace.
I thought this whole thing was great. I learned a lot about both of them as well. Thomas is unbelievably passionate, when he got angry and while we talked, he was almost tearing up, it taught me a lot about him which I never noticed before since he seems so chill most of the time. Willy was strong about it and we had more of a debate but both conversations went smoothly. Thomas thanked me after work today and said they were both surprised at not only the fact that I spoke to them, but how I did it. I'm very glad we've improved not only our social relationship, but our occupational relationship as well. I feel like I really needed this to happen as well, not just toe figure everything out, but so I could actually talk to people, solve a problem, etc.
Thomas and Willy headed out tonight to the Golen Heights, I wish I was going with them but I'm going to have to be the only worker here tomorrow so that'll be interesting but should go well (Kristian stopped by for a couple days but he's leaving tomorrow morning for Egypt). Then I'll head to Jerusalem for my weekend relaxation after a 6-day week. Next week is Thomas's last week so after our conversation, I have a feeling we'll grow a lot closer and get a lot more work done which makes me very glad and kind of excited to get started after my weekend.
I'm glad they listened and I'm even happier they spoke to me, this is what International Relations needs to be about, communication. This is a perfect example of what could be solved if people just talked through their issues instead of yelling and ignoring each other. This may be a little extreme of a metaphor but look at this situation and you can compare it to Israel and Palestine. Communication, that's what's needed. Communication is the only way to achieve understanding, understanding leads to the absence of hatred, and hopefully, the absence of hatred can lead to peace.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Kids' Kamp
So here is a quick update on what's going on. We've been working pretty hard this week and probably will be until July 12th (the start of the children's camp). We've been working in the cistern some more, building walls, chopping around trees, watering plants, etc. getting everything together and looking good for when we have the kids over. I've pretty much given up on wearing the work gloves, I've had to cut the tips off of all the fingers because of the holes that formed so I don't really see the point. My hands are getting used to the work though so that's making stuff a little easier.
The children's camp, as I said, starts July 12th and goes for two weeks. It's a day camp but sadly, only Palestinian children will be attending. Thinking about it and with my experiences with the settlement dwellers, most Israelis probably wouldn't be comfortable with sending their kids to an Arab farm. It doesn't make any practical sense but it's understandable with the views of Arabs by many of the Israelis around this farm. Anyway, I'm teaming up with a Belge woman (from Belgium) and we are Group 1, hell yeah. We'll have our own group of kids which we'll do projects with everyday, since I brought my uke, I'm automatically in charge of the "Music Program," no idea what we're going to do but we'll figure it out. I'm not too sure on the other details but that's what I know so far, I'm pretty excited about that. I'm having a good time on the farm but I don't feel like I'm really accomplishing anything, I work better with people and I feel better if I can work with them so this children's camp will be a great way to end my time here in Palestine.
Another update, I'm running low on cash which was bound to happen. I have enough to get me by the next few weeks as long as I don't spend a lot (like I have been). Good news though is that Daoud will be taking trips with the volunteers to Jericoh, Hebron, etc. once the camp starts so I'll be able to see a little more of Israel before I had out. Pumped for that too. That's my quick update of the situation over here, I'll post something more interesting later.
The children's camp, as I said, starts July 12th and goes for two weeks. It's a day camp but sadly, only Palestinian children will be attending. Thinking about it and with my experiences with the settlement dwellers, most Israelis probably wouldn't be comfortable with sending their kids to an Arab farm. It doesn't make any practical sense but it's understandable with the views of Arabs by many of the Israelis around this farm. Anyway, I'm teaming up with a Belge woman (from Belgium) and we are Group 1, hell yeah. We'll have our own group of kids which we'll do projects with everyday, since I brought my uke, I'm automatically in charge of the "Music Program," no idea what we're going to do but we'll figure it out. I'm not too sure on the other details but that's what I know so far, I'm pretty excited about that. I'm having a good time on the farm but I don't feel like I'm really accomplishing anything, I work better with people and I feel better if I can work with them so this children's camp will be a great way to end my time here in Palestine.
Another update, I'm running low on cash which was bound to happen. I have enough to get me by the next few weeks as long as I don't spend a lot (like I have been). Good news though is that Daoud will be taking trips with the volunteers to Jericoh, Hebron, etc. once the camp starts so I'll be able to see a little more of Israel before I had out. Pumped for that too. That's my quick update of the situation over here, I'll post something more interesting later.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Sea of Settlements
So this weekend, I headed up to the Sea of Galilee. I met a Danish guy named Kristian on the bus who was traveling on his own for a couple months, so we decided to stick together. We walked around for a little while, had a few drinks, then headed to the super market before Shabat started. We got a little picnic for our night by the sea. Then we headed to the beach for a swim in Lake Kinneret (what everyone here calls it since it's not actually a "sea" at all), smoked some argeelah, then found a place to camp out for the night. We slept on some rocks and pebbles, not too comfortable, in a non-camping site about 5 feet away from the water, it was a good time. Interesting fact I learned from Lonely Planet, Jesus may have actually walked on ice on the Sea of Galilee during a freak climate shift which froze the shallower parts of the lake instead of miraculously walking on water. I think that's still impressive though, I mean have you ever tried to hold your composure while casually walking on ice? Not an easy thing to do. The next day, we met up with Trin and hitchhiked to Haifa (what should have been a one hour trip took three, three car rides and one short bus ride). We saw the Baha'i gardens and then headed to the beach. The Baha'i gardens were remarkable by the way, perfectly trimmed, each blade of grass seemed to be the exact same height. We could only view the bottom terrace since we weren't Baha'i which sucks, there's about ten other garden terraces, a temple, and five massive buildings including the Baha'i International Court and a massive library of religious and holy texts. Those would have been great to see so I'll probably just convert and then head over again, maybe. After the beach, Kristian and I caught a late bus (after Shabat ended) back to Jerusalem, I slept there, and then got back to the farm this morning. Long weekend but overall good time. Kris may be coming to work on the farm sometime this week so it will be cool seeing him again.
Now I'd like to talk about the settlements a little bit. I know I already mentioned them but I learned a little more about them as I've lived here. There are five Israeli settlements around this farm and three smaller Palestinian towns. The largest Israeli settlement is 20,000 people and dwarfs the smaller Palestinian town nearby. We can see all of this since the farm is on a hill 950 meters up. According to international and Israeli law, these settlements are illegal (it is illegal to settle on occupied land which is way there are no American settlements in Germany or Japan for example). The Israeli government recognizes this yet requires military personnel to maintain and guard the settlements in the West Bank and Gaza. This confused me, I thought that Israel was just going against international law but they actually contradict themselves when sending military to watch the settlements. Settlements usually start with an ultra-orthodox Israeli pitching a tent somewhere in the West Bank, they then contact the Israeli government and they are sent military personnel as protection until the tents grow into houses into towns into cities. Each settlement around the farm has a large tower (I'm assuming for water) with a giant blue Star of David painted on it which are all facing this hill. I think this use of a religious symbol for political means is ruining the meaning and beauty behind it (just like the Crusaders used the crucifix and Terrorists use the crescent). Another interesting aspect of the settlements are the people, I have not spoken to them personally but other volunteers have and found out that the people are truly scared to come visit this farm. They fear that once they do, they will never be able to go back home (I'm not sure if this means they are scared for their lives or what but it's interesting). My only thoughts on the reason for this way of thinking is to blame the government. I know it sounds like I always turn to blaming the government but people's minds are affected mainly by either government, religion, or the media. In Israel, the religion and media are both heavily impacted or utilized by the government - there isn't really a seperation between the three - therefore, the people are convinced that this farm, this peace project, is filled with deadly individuals. Good news however is that some people from the settlements have visited the farm, I at least know of one, so that's always a step in the right direction.
In the end though, the government uses both religion and media in a negative manner to achieve its political means. This deeply disturbs me and would still do so if it was in any nation; there's an apartheid going on here right now. There are illegal settlements constantly being built and growing, a massive wall dividing Israel proper from the West Bank, finger printing for every Arab who works in Jerusalem and lives in the West Bank, and the list goes on and on. I don't want to write too much more since this is already a long blog but I feel that these are important issues to understand and to address head-on. Right and wrong should not be this hard to distinguish from one another, especially in this day and age.
Now I'd like to talk about the settlements a little bit. I know I already mentioned them but I learned a little more about them as I've lived here. There are five Israeli settlements around this farm and three smaller Palestinian towns. The largest Israeli settlement is 20,000 people and dwarfs the smaller Palestinian town nearby. We can see all of this since the farm is on a hill 950 meters up. According to international and Israeli law, these settlements are illegal (it is illegal to settle on occupied land which is way there are no American settlements in Germany or Japan for example). The Israeli government recognizes this yet requires military personnel to maintain and guard the settlements in the West Bank and Gaza. This confused me, I thought that Israel was just going against international law but they actually contradict themselves when sending military to watch the settlements. Settlements usually start with an ultra-orthodox Israeli pitching a tent somewhere in the West Bank, they then contact the Israeli government and they are sent military personnel as protection until the tents grow into houses into towns into cities. Each settlement around the farm has a large tower (I'm assuming for water) with a giant blue Star of David painted on it which are all facing this hill. I think this use of a religious symbol for political means is ruining the meaning and beauty behind it (just like the Crusaders used the crucifix and Terrorists use the crescent). Another interesting aspect of the settlements are the people, I have not spoken to them personally but other volunteers have and found out that the people are truly scared to come visit this farm. They fear that once they do, they will never be able to go back home (I'm not sure if this means they are scared for their lives or what but it's interesting). My only thoughts on the reason for this way of thinking is to blame the government. I know it sounds like I always turn to blaming the government but people's minds are affected mainly by either government, religion, or the media. In Israel, the religion and media are both heavily impacted or utilized by the government - there isn't really a seperation between the three - therefore, the people are convinced that this farm, this peace project, is filled with deadly individuals. Good news however is that some people from the settlements have visited the farm, I at least know of one, so that's always a step in the right direction.
In the end though, the government uses both religion and media in a negative manner to achieve its political means. This deeply disturbs me and would still do so if it was in any nation; there's an apartheid going on here right now. There are illegal settlements constantly being built and growing, a massive wall dividing Israel proper from the West Bank, finger printing for every Arab who works in Jerusalem and lives in the West Bank, and the list goes on and on. I don't want to write too much more since this is already a long blog but I feel that these are important issues to understand and to address head-on. Right and wrong should not be this hard to distinguish from one another, especially in this day and age.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Oh Boy
I would first like to apologize for never posting any pictures or anything whatsoever other than long texts on this blog. I wish I could show you all the things I'm seeing but there's really no way for me to do it. I will however be making a little Flickr page with all my favorites when I get home and I'll throw the link up in the last post on this blog in case you'd like to see.
Now, I just wanted to let you all know what I'm up to this weekend. I'm planning on heading up to Tiberias and walking around the Sea of Galilee. I'll be leaving Friday morning pretty early and catch a Sheirut to Jerusalem, then I'll take a bus up to Tiberias; it'll probably be about a 2 and a half hour bus trip but it's only 40 Sheqel or so which is pretty cheap (about 12 dollars). I'll meet up with one of the Germans I've met and she'll show me around to good hiking trails and the like. On Saturday, I'd like to go over to Haifa but I may have to hitchhike to do so since no busses are running on Shabat. Spend a day in Haifa or Akko, whichever one I make it to, and then catch a late night bus down to Jerusalem. Now it says on the Egged website (the Israeli bus system) that buses pick up again about 30 minutes after Shebat ends on Saturday until 11 PM so hopefully I'll be able to catch one. I'll then end up in Jerusalem, spend the night there, then wake up early and get a bus to Bethlehem, than one to the farm for work. This all seems pretty rushed and it's kind of obnoxious that nothing works during Shebat but this may be my only chance to see North Israel. I'm kind of bummed out I won't be able to travel around more while I'm here, I really wish I had more time and money; but hey, who doesn't?
Now, I just wanted to let you all know what I'm up to this weekend. I'm planning on heading up to Tiberias and walking around the Sea of Galilee. I'll be leaving Friday morning pretty early and catch a Sheirut to Jerusalem, then I'll take a bus up to Tiberias; it'll probably be about a 2 and a half hour bus trip but it's only 40 Sheqel or so which is pretty cheap (about 12 dollars). I'll meet up with one of the Germans I've met and she'll show me around to good hiking trails and the like. On Saturday, I'd like to go over to Haifa but I may have to hitchhike to do so since no busses are running on Shabat. Spend a day in Haifa or Akko, whichever one I make it to, and then catch a late night bus down to Jerusalem. Now it says on the Egged website (the Israeli bus system) that buses pick up again about 30 minutes after Shebat ends on Saturday until 11 PM so hopefully I'll be able to catch one. I'll then end up in Jerusalem, spend the night there, then wake up early and get a bus to Bethlehem, than one to the farm for work. This all seems pretty rushed and it's kind of obnoxious that nothing works during Shebat but this may be my only chance to see North Israel. I'm kind of bummed out I won't be able to travel around more while I'm here, I really wish I had more time and money; but hey, who doesn't?
Monday, June 21, 2010
Tel Aviv - ianism
So, after I posted last, I bought this cool, hand-woven camel hair rug in the Old City for half the asking price, no big deal, then met up with the Germans. We played a little soccer, well a variation of it, and then Thomas and I went to get some kenafa which could be the sweetest treat ever invented, ever. Afterward, I partyed a little bit with the Germans since a few of them are leaving in the next week or so. I met some cool guys like Raffy (Raphael) and Flo (Florian) and they taught me how to play a drinking game called Flunkey Bahl, it's pretty fun, I may bring it back to the States. We went to a couple clubs in Jerusalem (because that's just what you do the day after Shabat) and then made our way home.
When I woke up yesterday, I found out we were going to the beach in Tel Aviv. I borrowed some shorts and we headed over there. Now, once on the beach, I was blown away at the things I saw. I can safely say that about half the people on the beach were drunk, if this seems normal to you, touche, but of that half, many of them were children who couldn't have been over the age of 12. Not only were kids drinking openly on the beach, but they were also smoking heavily - either cigarettes or argeelah. The adults that were drinking were either fighting or yelling at random people in Arabic or Hebrew; one man that we were watching chugged an entire bottle of vodka, seemed to pray, threw sand in the air, and then pounded the glass bottle into the sand (afterward staring at us and yelling "Israel!" and "F*** Superman!"). I had no idea what was going on. I understand that people enjoy things such as alcohol and cigarettes, I get that, but when it is allowed to be abused so openly in public and by children, I don't understand. This, from the small experience I had in Tel Aviv, is what I have come to call Telavivianism - the allowance of the abuse of alcohol and drugs in public by individuals of all ages. However, in the other parts of Tel Aviv we walked through, some people seemed pretty normal and pretty relaxed.
Other than the fights, the yelling, and the premature abuse of drugs, the beach was fantastic. We swam in the sea a little bit, I stepped on a jellyfish (not poisonous, no worries), and we met some other chill foreigners. Overall, I had a great time in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem this weekend, this next weekend, I am planning on going up to the Sea of Galilee, I hear it's just super. Tonight though, we're all going to pick up some meat and beer and have a little BBQ since Daher isn't coming back from his weekend until tomorrow. I'm pretty pumped. All for now though, thanks for reading.
When I woke up yesterday, I found out we were going to the beach in Tel Aviv. I borrowed some shorts and we headed over there. Now, once on the beach, I was blown away at the things I saw. I can safely say that about half the people on the beach were drunk, if this seems normal to you, touche, but of that half, many of them were children who couldn't have been over the age of 12. Not only were kids drinking openly on the beach, but they were also smoking heavily - either cigarettes or argeelah. The adults that were drinking were either fighting or yelling at random people in Arabic or Hebrew; one man that we were watching chugged an entire bottle of vodka, seemed to pray, threw sand in the air, and then pounded the glass bottle into the sand (afterward staring at us and yelling "Israel!" and "F*** Superman!"). I had no idea what was going on. I understand that people enjoy things such as alcohol and cigarettes, I get that, but when it is allowed to be abused so openly in public and by children, I don't understand. This, from the small experience I had in Tel Aviv, is what I have come to call Telavivianism - the allowance of the abuse of alcohol and drugs in public by individuals of all ages. However, in the other parts of Tel Aviv we walked through, some people seemed pretty normal and pretty relaxed.
Other than the fights, the yelling, and the premature abuse of drugs, the beach was fantastic. We swam in the sea a little bit, I stepped on a jellyfish (not poisonous, no worries), and we met some other chill foreigners. Overall, I had a great time in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem this weekend, this next weekend, I am planning on going up to the Sea of Galilee, I hear it's just super. Tonight though, we're all going to pick up some meat and beer and have a little BBQ since Daher isn't coming back from his weekend until tomorrow. I'm pretty pumped. All for now though, thanks for reading.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Hatha Mish Hashish!
Wow, I loved the comment thread on that last post, you all had amazing things to say. Now I just want to clarify, I am not saying that child cruelty or inhumane actions are solely part of Israel, of course, its part of humanity, it's everywhere and that is the sad truth. Human beings, mainly due to our "intelligence," skew logic and create reasons to use politics and religion against one another. When I spoke about the child prisoners, I did not mean to make it seem like I was excluding the use of children at times in terrorism by Palestinians, or the child sex slaves/pornography/drug runners, etc. by many other countries in this world, including the USA. I heard of a story where a suspected man in Gaza filled his house with children to ward off the Israeli soldiers, the soldiers removed every child from the house before firing a shot, 5 of them died and they caught the suspected terrorist. This treatment of not just children, but people, is everywhere. My experiences are in the West Bank however, honestly, Gaza and the West Bank are not the same place, not even close. From what I've seen, most violence or cruelty or inhumane actions done in Gaza are by the Palestinians - most violence or cruelty or inhumane actions in the West Bank are done by the Israeli government and military. In the end, both sides are guilty, not the people, but the governmental and organization leaders. Thank you everyone for saying what you had to say, just beautiful.
At the moment, I am in Jerusalem again with the Germans. We finished our 5-day cistern work and my body is just wrecked. The sun burn is dying down which is great but my hands are loaded with blisters and skin torn off by the rope, and my lower back has two massive knots in it. Don't you dare say anything like "why don't you wear work gloves or something?" I have work gloves but I had to cut the tips of the fingers off since every one had a hole in it, I actually prefer it now though, little more grip. Overall though, I feel great about the work done and Tylenol works like a charm. Last night (it was Shabat), one of the volunteers, Trin, and I, went into the Old City to the Western Wall where literally thousands of Jewish were praying, it was amazing, we stood there watching and debated religion because, if any of you know me well, you know I love debating religion and politics. Afterward, we got some food, some beer, and some shisha, good times.
This morning, I woke up after the Germans so they're at a zoo right now (I'm in an internet cafe in the Old City). I left, and went to a men-only cafe where everyone was drinking coffee and tea and playing cards. I asked to join some of the men and after learning how to play, I joined them. I rolled a cigarette (tried to roll a cigarette) and started smoking it, everyone there thought it was hashish. Some were offended and others wanted some, I said, half-laughing: ahsaf, lakin hatha mish hashish (I'm sorry, but this isn't marijuana) and I showed them the tobacco. Some were relieved, others disappointed. That's about it, now I'm just walking around the Old City again, maybe stop by a cafe or something, whatever. But later, I'm meeting up with the Germans again and doing whatever they want to do. All for now, again, thank you so much for commenting, that was phenomenal.
At the moment, I am in Jerusalem again with the Germans. We finished our 5-day cistern work and my body is just wrecked. The sun burn is dying down which is great but my hands are loaded with blisters and skin torn off by the rope, and my lower back has two massive knots in it. Don't you dare say anything like "why don't you wear work gloves or something?" I have work gloves but I had to cut the tips of the fingers off since every one had a hole in it, I actually prefer it now though, little more grip. Overall though, I feel great about the work done and Tylenol works like a charm. Last night (it was Shabat), one of the volunteers, Trin, and I, went into the Old City to the Western Wall where literally thousands of Jewish were praying, it was amazing, we stood there watching and debated religion because, if any of you know me well, you know I love debating religion and politics. Afterward, we got some food, some beer, and some shisha, good times.
This morning, I woke up after the Germans so they're at a zoo right now (I'm in an internet cafe in the Old City). I left, and went to a men-only cafe where everyone was drinking coffee and tea and playing cards. I asked to join some of the men and after learning how to play, I joined them. I rolled a cigarette (tried to roll a cigarette) and started smoking it, everyone there thought it was hashish. Some were offended and others wanted some, I said, half-laughing: ahsaf, lakin hatha mish hashish (I'm sorry, but this isn't marijuana) and I showed them the tobacco. Some were relieved, others disappointed. That's about it, now I'm just walking around the Old City again, maybe stop by a cafe or something, whatever. But later, I'm meeting up with the Germans again and doing whatever they want to do. All for now, again, thank you so much for commenting, that was phenomenal.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Child Prisoners
Today was another tough day but I get less and less tired the more work I do. I actually did everything one could do with cistern digging today: pulled up buckets, dumped the rocks in the trailer, filled buckets with rocks, and even drilled a little bit - all around a good time. I don't really get tired or hot persay while I'm in the cistern but I sweat more while I'm down there than I have in my entire life, truly ridiculous. The greatest part though, is that about a minute after you get out of the cistern into the Palestinian sun, you're dry.
An English woman also came to visit today, she's worked here and in other parts of Palestine before so she was just visiting. We spoke a little bit about what she did and she started talking about what she did in Northern Palestine last year. She's becoming a lawyer so it was legal work dealing with Palestinain child prisoners. This kind of threw me off initially and it still does now, but her orginization dealt with children, between the ages of 12 and 17, who are literally sent to Israeli prisons, not juvenile hall or anything, but prison. These kids are arrested for throwing stones which the maximum sentence is 20 years. After a riot occurs or stone-throwing happens, Israeli military enters the town, usually at night, and arrests children from their homes. The kids are put into vans, usually without being told where they're going and are taken to a military holding cell. Much of the time, they are abused or beaten in the van (slapped, kicked, etc.). In the holding cell, they are "interrogated" until they give a confession of what they did. Most of the time, the interrogation is in a language the children don't understand and the confession itself is in Hebrew so the kids don't know what they are confessing to - usually they end up confessing because of threats or subtle forms of torture. These kids are then brought to a military court where, if a confession is presented, evidence proving guilt does not need to be presented - this means the kids can be sent away without any real proof of them even touching a stone. I heard that many of these children are innocent as well, either just watching the other kids throw stones or sometimes at a completely different part of the wall. The Israeli military court system has the ability to make who they want, guilty. If an Israeli child does something against the law or the government, they go to juvey, just like anyone in the States. I am not ashamed or scared to be saying any of this, how is this democratic? How is this right? How is this humane? I'm sorry, but when a child throws a stone at a wall, I simply cannot make the connection between that action and torture, threats, fear, and prison time. I know some of you may support the Israeli government, but what I do not understand is how when something like this is happening every week. I pray, for the sake of these children and all peaceful Palestinians and Israelis, that this changes, soon.
An English woman also came to visit today, she's worked here and in other parts of Palestine before so she was just visiting. We spoke a little bit about what she did and she started talking about what she did in Northern Palestine last year. She's becoming a lawyer so it was legal work dealing with Palestinain child prisoners. This kind of threw me off initially and it still does now, but her orginization dealt with children, between the ages of 12 and 17, who are literally sent to Israeli prisons, not juvenile hall or anything, but prison. These kids are arrested for throwing stones which the maximum sentence is 20 years. After a riot occurs or stone-throwing happens, Israeli military enters the town, usually at night, and arrests children from their homes. The kids are put into vans, usually without being told where they're going and are taken to a military holding cell. Much of the time, they are abused or beaten in the van (slapped, kicked, etc.). In the holding cell, they are "interrogated" until they give a confession of what they did. Most of the time, the interrogation is in a language the children don't understand and the confession itself is in Hebrew so the kids don't know what they are confessing to - usually they end up confessing because of threats or subtle forms of torture. These kids are then brought to a military court where, if a confession is presented, evidence proving guilt does not need to be presented - this means the kids can be sent away without any real proof of them even touching a stone. I heard that many of these children are innocent as well, either just watching the other kids throw stones or sometimes at a completely different part of the wall. The Israeli military court system has the ability to make who they want, guilty. If an Israeli child does something against the law or the government, they go to juvey, just like anyone in the States. I am not ashamed or scared to be saying any of this, how is this democratic? How is this right? How is this humane? I'm sorry, but when a child throws a stone at a wall, I simply cannot make the connection between that action and torture, threats, fear, and prison time. I know some of you may support the Israeli government, but what I do not understand is how when something like this is happening every week. I pray, for the sake of these children and all peaceful Palestinians and Israelis, that this changes, soon.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Tough Day
So today was easily the hardest day I've had since being on this farm. We spent around 7 hours today working on the cistern. I was the guy at the top of the hole pulling the rocks up with a pulley system (doesn't work that great when you're pulling at a 90 degree angle, no weight distribution), then I took the bucket of rocks and dumped them into a trailer. We actually did load the trailer twice though which was great, although every part of me hurts now. You ever have those moments when your muscles just want to give out? Well I had that except I couldn't do anything about it because I didn't want to drop a bucket of rocks on the Germans, understandable. I am very proud of the work we did today though but never again am I being the rock-puller for the whole day.
The job would've been a lot easier with 4 guys though, we only had 3. You may ask yourself, but wasn't there 4 before? And the answer, sadly, is "yes." However, Sammy the Frenchman decided to leave the farm today. He had a pretty big argument with Daher about "not being appreciated" and "not feeling like he's accomplishing anything" on this farm. I don't think he understands either Arab culture or the fact that nothing seems accomplished on a farm until a few months have passed. Either way, he told me he didn't feel at peace here so he had to go, we'll miss him, he was a cool guy and had a lot of great stories. Samuel's 30 years old, never went to college, but for the past decade, has traveled and worked - snow board lessons or volunteering - around the world (to over 40 countries) only visiting Nice, France (his hometown) for a couple weeks or a month at a time every once in a while. I'm bummed I won't see him around but he is planning on opening a home in the Alps for impoverished children and travlers to stay and visit so if I don't see him before he heads back to France, hopefully I'll stop by there when I do a Euro trip or something. Sammy was the first foreigner I met here and we had a lot to talk about and a lot to learn from one another - peace Sammy, hopefully see you soon.
The job would've been a lot easier with 4 guys though, we only had 3. You may ask yourself, but wasn't there 4 before? And the answer, sadly, is "yes." However, Sammy the Frenchman decided to leave the farm today. He had a pretty big argument with Daher about "not being appreciated" and "not feeling like he's accomplishing anything" on this farm. I don't think he understands either Arab culture or the fact that nothing seems accomplished on a farm until a few months have passed. Either way, he told me he didn't feel at peace here so he had to go, we'll miss him, he was a cool guy and had a lot of great stories. Samuel's 30 years old, never went to college, but for the past decade, has traveled and worked - snow board lessons or volunteering - around the world (to over 40 countries) only visiting Nice, France (his hometown) for a couple weeks or a month at a time every once in a while. I'm bummed I won't see him around but he is planning on opening a home in the Alps for impoverished children and travlers to stay and visit so if I don't see him before he heads back to France, hopefully I'll stop by there when I do a Euro trip or something. Sammy was the first foreigner I met here and we had a lot to talk about and a lot to learn from one another - peace Sammy, hopefully see you soon.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
The 20 Essentials
First off, just a quick update. I already worked yesterday and today but I still have five more days of work this week. This week will be spent digging the new cistern as much as possible. Next week will be renovating a few caves of Daoud's family in the valley. After that, some more farm work and junk and then July 12th starts the Children's Camp. I'll be with the kids for about 5 days and then I head out July 18th; while the time goes by, it seems like it slowly shuffles past me, but when I look back on it, it all seems to have flown by.
Now, I'd like to teach you guys some things I've learned while working on a Palestinian farm. Some of them are just jokes but others make a lot of sense. I call them: The 20 Essentials.
1. Farms, and everything on them, are dirty, embrace it.
2. The body can handle not showering for 5-7 days, it's the mind that's bothered by it.
3. Germans have great work ethic, as long as someone is keeping an eye on them.
4. French folks whine a lot, but they realize this and apologize for it, so not a huge problem.
5. With horses, be respectful without being afraid - if this fails, just don't get kicked (almost happened to me, damn horse).
6. Goats literally eat eveything, I mean, shouldn't thorns hurt while eating them?
7. Water is precious.
8. Arabs don't show thankfullness for doing your job (I'm not really bothered by this but the Europeans seem to be).
9. Work gloves are great until they tear, get used to working without them at times.
10. A bandana is probably the greatest, most versatile piece of material ever created, ever.
11. You don't have to like your job to enjoy the fact that you're doing it.
12. There is no such thing as instant gratification on a farm, I probably won't see any real benefit from the work I'm doing during the short time I'm here.
13. Sun screen is great but sometimes the sun just wins in the end.
14. Without television, one truly begins to find the beauty and wonder in reading.
15. Fecal matter, both human and non-human animal, is a necessary and multifaceted material that can be utilized in many aspects of the rural ecosystem (shit's great).
16. Music makes the work, not easier, but a little more fun - Guster, Alison Krauss, Dessa, Alkaline Trio, Weezer, John Hiatt, Ben Folds - just some examples.
17. You bend over a lot on a farm.
18. Even though the work is just as hard as it always has been, it gets easier.
19. Since everything you do on a farm is phyical work, take that time to think, philosophize, learn, wonder, and dream - unless you're working with heavy machinery or sharp tools.
20. Chill out, guarentee every single one of you is stressed in one way or another right now, cut it out. What's the point? Life can be hard and life can be easy, it'd be pretty damn boring if everything worked out for you, wouldn't it?
Now, I'd like to teach you guys some things I've learned while working on a Palestinian farm. Some of them are just jokes but others make a lot of sense. I call them: The 20 Essentials.
1. Farms, and everything on them, are dirty, embrace it.
2. The body can handle not showering for 5-7 days, it's the mind that's bothered by it.
3. Germans have great work ethic, as long as someone is keeping an eye on them.
4. French folks whine a lot, but they realize this and apologize for it, so not a huge problem.
5. With horses, be respectful without being afraid - if this fails, just don't get kicked (almost happened to me, damn horse).
6. Goats literally eat eveything, I mean, shouldn't thorns hurt while eating them?
7. Water is precious.
8. Arabs don't show thankfullness for doing your job (I'm not really bothered by this but the Europeans seem to be).
9. Work gloves are great until they tear, get used to working without them at times.
10. A bandana is probably the greatest, most versatile piece of material ever created, ever.
11. You don't have to like your job to enjoy the fact that you're doing it.
12. There is no such thing as instant gratification on a farm, I probably won't see any real benefit from the work I'm doing during the short time I'm here.
13. Sun screen is great but sometimes the sun just wins in the end.
14. Without television, one truly begins to find the beauty and wonder in reading.
15. Fecal matter, both human and non-human animal, is a necessary and multifaceted material that can be utilized in many aspects of the rural ecosystem (shit's great).
16. Music makes the work, not easier, but a little more fun - Guster, Alison Krauss, Dessa, Alkaline Trio, Weezer, John Hiatt, Ben Folds - just some examples.
17. You bend over a lot on a farm.
18. Even though the work is just as hard as it always has been, it gets easier.
19. Since everything you do on a farm is phyical work, take that time to think, philosophize, learn, wonder, and dream - unless you're working with heavy machinery or sharp tools.
20. Chill out, guarentee every single one of you is stressed in one way or another right now, cut it out. What's the point? Life can be hard and life can be easy, it'd be pretty damn boring if everything worked out for you, wouldn't it?
Friday, June 11, 2010
Holy Town
So this weekend, I headed to Jerusalem for a couple days. It was amazing. I spent most of my time yesterday in the Old City. I had my little Lonely Planet book and junk so I just kind of wandered around until I found something interesting. First, I ended up at the Church of the Holy Sepluchre where Jesus was supposedly crucified/resurrected. I wandered around a little bit more until I got to the Western (Wailing) Wall, really cool. There were a lot of Jewish people there all praying, both outside and inside; very intense sight/sound to see/hear.
Afterward, I went to a restaurant next to the entrance of the Western Wall area where I ordered a Sprite, and saw an Israeli gentleman sitting at a table, I asked him if I could join him. His English wasn't great but I asked him questions about the Western Wall and this Jewish horn I bought and why they were important. After explaing this to me, he asked me my thoughts on Obama, I said I thought he was an alright guy. Eliow (told me to call him Eli) said he saw Obama as punishment from God on the Jewish people, I thought this was very interesting but it kind of makes sense if you look at our past presidents. Most have either backed Israel or left them alone but now Obama criticizes the Israeli government, and Eli was saddend by this. We talked about what I study and I had to describe it as "helping people and governments with finding shalom (peace)." He was so happy about this and he kissed me three times on the cheek. I asked him what he thought should be done to achieve peace, he actually had some very moderate solutions and realistic concerns. Then he bought us pasta to share (he said our conversation gave him an appetite) and afterwards, he took me back to the Western Wall and showed me how to pray. Eli prayed for me and asked God to keep me safe and help me make peace in this region of the world (what suprised me the most is how happy he was that I studied Arabic). He gave me his number and told me to call him if I ever needed anything in Jerusalem. I also got a number from a Palestinian cafe owner today named Naser who also told me to call him if I ever needed anything, so I got a little network going on in Israel now.
I also walked around on the roofs of the Old City where I bumped into some really young kids smoking argeelah, so I joined them and we talked a little bit. The rest of yesterday and today were just sight seeing (death place of the Virgin Mary, tomb of King David, sight of the Last Supper, Temple Mount - from a distance, Oskar Schindler's grave - that was pretty cool, etc.). Yesterday night, I met up with Agnus, saw some light show stuff in the Old City, had a few drinks, then headed to her place. The next morning, I walked to the Old City (about 4 kilometers or so) and saw some more sights, met Naser, etc., then headed back to the farm.
Overall, Jerusalem was amazing. I saw some fantastic sites and met some great people; hopefully I get to go back soon and meet up with some of the people I met. One last thing, I'd like to give a shout out to Eli, congrads buddy on getting married soon. All for now - Peace, Salaam, Shalom.
Afterward, I went to a restaurant next to the entrance of the Western Wall area where I ordered a Sprite, and saw an Israeli gentleman sitting at a table, I asked him if I could join him. His English wasn't great but I asked him questions about the Western Wall and this Jewish horn I bought and why they were important. After explaing this to me, he asked me my thoughts on Obama, I said I thought he was an alright guy. Eliow (told me to call him Eli) said he saw Obama as punishment from God on the Jewish people, I thought this was very interesting but it kind of makes sense if you look at our past presidents. Most have either backed Israel or left them alone but now Obama criticizes the Israeli government, and Eli was saddend by this. We talked about what I study and I had to describe it as "helping people and governments with finding shalom (peace)." He was so happy about this and he kissed me three times on the cheek. I asked him what he thought should be done to achieve peace, he actually had some very moderate solutions and realistic concerns. Then he bought us pasta to share (he said our conversation gave him an appetite) and afterwards, he took me back to the Western Wall and showed me how to pray. Eli prayed for me and asked God to keep me safe and help me make peace in this region of the world (what suprised me the most is how happy he was that I studied Arabic). He gave me his number and told me to call him if I ever needed anything in Jerusalem. I also got a number from a Palestinian cafe owner today named Naser who also told me to call him if I ever needed anything, so I got a little network going on in Israel now.
I also walked around on the roofs of the Old City where I bumped into some really young kids smoking argeelah, so I joined them and we talked a little bit. The rest of yesterday and today were just sight seeing (death place of the Virgin Mary, tomb of King David, sight of the Last Supper, Temple Mount - from a distance, Oskar Schindler's grave - that was pretty cool, etc.). Yesterday night, I met up with Agnus, saw some light show stuff in the Old City, had a few drinks, then headed to her place. The next morning, I walked to the Old City (about 4 kilometers or so) and saw some more sights, met Naser, etc., then headed back to the farm.
Overall, Jerusalem was amazing. I saw some fantastic sites and met some great people; hopefully I get to go back soon and meet up with some of the people I met. One last thing, I'd like to give a shout out to Eli, congrads buddy on getting married soon. All for now - Peace, Salaam, Shalom.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Iran Problems and Jerusalem
Now just a quick update as to what's going on with the whole "potential war" thing. I'm not too worried at the moment because there hasn't been a lot about the Iranian protected convoy on International news although I did find this article:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/06/gaza-blockade-iran-aid-convoy
This article does say some pretty interesting things including Iran's pledge to protect the convoy with everything they have and Israel's pledge to keep them away from Gaza. I'm going to be honest, both sides are a little nuts (if you read the article, you'll understand). I don't think this is a very good idea for Iran but if a war does break out, I'm pretty sure I'll be safe here or the embassy would recommend me leave the country, which I may follow up on.
Other than that, everything's going well. Daoud asked me to take my weekend tomorrow and the next day so I'll be heading to Jerusalem tomorrow. I'll explore a little bit and then at night, stay with Agnus (a german volunteer on the farm who lives in Jerusalem). I'm pretty sore and slightly burnt so all in all, I could really go for a beer which hopefully I'll find in Jerusalem. Next week, we'll continue digging the cistern for the entire week. Since my weekend is so early this week, I'll be working from Saturday - Friday this coming week (that's probably not going to be a lot of fun) in the cistern. Then, the week after, we're planning on renovating a cave in the valley that's belonged to Daoud's family forever. Overall, busy month coming up so I'm ready to get started (after a beer in Jerusalem).
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/06/gaza-blockade-iran-aid-convoy
This article does say some pretty interesting things including Iran's pledge to protect the convoy with everything they have and Israel's pledge to keep them away from Gaza. I'm going to be honest, both sides are a little nuts (if you read the article, you'll understand). I don't think this is a very good idea for Iran but if a war does break out, I'm pretty sure I'll be safe here or the embassy would recommend me leave the country, which I may follow up on.
Other than that, everything's going well. Daoud asked me to take my weekend tomorrow and the next day so I'll be heading to Jerusalem tomorrow. I'll explore a little bit and then at night, stay with Agnus (a german volunteer on the farm who lives in Jerusalem). I'm pretty sore and slightly burnt so all in all, I could really go for a beer which hopefully I'll find in Jerusalem. Next week, we'll continue digging the cistern for the entire week. Since my weekend is so early this week, I'll be working from Saturday - Friday this coming week (that's probably not going to be a lot of fun) in the cistern. Then, the week after, we're planning on renovating a cave in the valley that's belonged to Daoud's family forever. Overall, busy month coming up so I'm ready to get started (after a beer in Jerusalem).
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Interesting News
So, first of all, I just wanted to talk about the work I've been doing lately. Yesterday, spent about 5 or 6 hours cleaning rocks and gravel out of a partially-dug cistern. This consisted of one guy filling buckets with rock, me in the cistern pulling the rocks up using a pully system, and a third guy on ground level taking the rocks/dumping them in the trailer/throwing the empty bucket back down to us. It was tough work but a nice change of pace from digging holes around trees. Then today, we planted a field of grapes so within a year or two, they should be doing well. Then, I went back to digging holes around trees. But I handled to horses today which was cool, it's a mother and a daughter; if you bring the mother anywhere, the one-and-a-half year old daughter will follow. They both kind of have an attitude though so we can't stand behind them. We also keep getting visitors every day, today their were three groups, there's one here now (a group of Germans interested in what's going on around these parts).
Now for the interesting news, there is a possibility that Israel will be going to war. Now I know you've all heard of the flotilla that the Israeli military attacked, you know, the one going to Gaza. Well, Iran wants to try this again, only this time, the convoy will have an Iranian military escort. Israel most likely won't take this very well and could end up attacking the Iranian convoy - thus potentially leading to a war with Iran - thus potentially leading to a war with many of the Arab countries. I'm not too worried at the moment but I did contact the American Embassy here to let them know I'm an American citizen and I'm in the West Bank, so, "please keep me updated." They replied saying that they'll actually reply in three business days, so that's cool.
So that was just a quick update, I should be getting back to the Germans right now, singing 'round the campfire and all that good fun. Ma salaama.
Now for the interesting news, there is a possibility that Israel will be going to war. Now I know you've all heard of the flotilla that the Israeli military attacked, you know, the one going to Gaza. Well, Iran wants to try this again, only this time, the convoy will have an Iranian military escort. Israel most likely won't take this very well and could end up attacking the Iranian convoy - thus potentially leading to a war with Iran - thus potentially leading to a war with many of the Arab countries. I'm not too worried at the moment but I did contact the American Embassy here to let them know I'm an American citizen and I'm in the West Bank, so, "please keep me updated." They replied saying that they'll actually reply in three business days, so that's cool.
So that was just a quick update, I should be getting back to the Germans right now, singing 'round the campfire and all that good fun. Ma salaama.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
My Opinion
So today I had a free day so I just hung out on the farm: Honestly, if you're just hanging out on the farm all day without work, it's pretty boring. I finished my second of three books I brought here so I think from now on, I'm going to explore a little bit more during my free time.
Now, people have commented to and emailed me to get both sides of the story, to hear both sides, etc. of the whole Israel-Palestine issue. Trust me, I've done this forever, I've always listened to both sides and I've spoken to many people about this issue; from Zionists to fundamental Arabs. What I'm frustrated with in this issue is America. Our government has blindly supported Israel and turned our backs when the Palestinians needed us, still do need us. I understand that there were previous Israeli governments that tried to create peace with the Arab world, but Netanyahu is not one of them. I am working on a farm that is surrounded by five Israeli settlements, some of which where the residences are paid by the government to simply occupy the land and pray. Many of you may believe that the Israelis "deserve" this land, either because of religious reasons, or the fact that they've suffered throughout history, or because they've never had a state to call there own. According to me, none of these reasons justifies the treatment of the Palestinians or the support that Israeli has received from our government in the past. The Israeli state has been created, that's fine (we can work with that), but if Israel is going to continue calling themselves a democracy, then the Palestinians need to start being treated as equals (or be released from Israel control all together). They are harassed, abused, and insulted by Israeli authorities (Daoud and his farm is a perfect example of this) and much of the Israeli populace, where is the equality? The way I was judged by Israeli security for simply studying in the Middle East was appalling. Don't get me wrong, Palestinian groups like Hamas are also wrong in the actions they take. I believe that anyone who uses religion or politics to justify the negative or harmful treatment of another ethnic, religious, or cultural group of people are wrong and inhumane. This is what fundamental Christians, extremist Muslims, and Zionist Jewish people do (as well as many governments around the world), and, to but frankly, they are ignorant, naive, and honestly, kind of unintelligent. I am, by no means, against Israel as a whole or all the Israeli people, but something I do oppose is the current Israeli government. Until Netanyahu is out of power or has some sort of sanity epiphany, peace will never be achieved in this region of the world.
I understand this post may have offended some of you or you may not agree with my views, but I would like to hear what you have to say. I've only spoken to Israelis and I've lived with Arabs so I could very well be biased but this is my point of view and I wanted to share it with you.
Now, people have commented to and emailed me to get both sides of the story, to hear both sides, etc. of the whole Israel-Palestine issue. Trust me, I've done this forever, I've always listened to both sides and I've spoken to many people about this issue; from Zionists to fundamental Arabs. What I'm frustrated with in this issue is America. Our government has blindly supported Israel and turned our backs when the Palestinians needed us, still do need us. I understand that there were previous Israeli governments that tried to create peace with the Arab world, but Netanyahu is not one of them. I am working on a farm that is surrounded by five Israeli settlements, some of which where the residences are paid by the government to simply occupy the land and pray. Many of you may believe that the Israelis "deserve" this land, either because of religious reasons, or the fact that they've suffered throughout history, or because they've never had a state to call there own. According to me, none of these reasons justifies the treatment of the Palestinians or the support that Israeli has received from our government in the past. The Israeli state has been created, that's fine (we can work with that), but if Israel is going to continue calling themselves a democracy, then the Palestinians need to start being treated as equals (or be released from Israel control all together). They are harassed, abused, and insulted by Israeli authorities (Daoud and his farm is a perfect example of this) and much of the Israeli populace, where is the equality? The way I was judged by Israeli security for simply studying in the Middle East was appalling. Don't get me wrong, Palestinian groups like Hamas are also wrong in the actions they take. I believe that anyone who uses religion or politics to justify the negative or harmful treatment of another ethnic, religious, or cultural group of people are wrong and inhumane. This is what fundamental Christians, extremist Muslims, and Zionist Jewish people do (as well as many governments around the world), and, to but frankly, they are ignorant, naive, and honestly, kind of unintelligent. I am, by no means, against Israel as a whole or all the Israeli people, but something I do oppose is the current Israeli government. Until Netanyahu is out of power or has some sort of sanity epiphany, peace will never be achieved in this region of the world.
I understand this post may have offended some of you or you may not agree with my views, but I would like to hear what you have to say. I've only spoken to Israelis and I've lived with Arabs so I could very well be biased but this is my point of view and I wanted to share it with you.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Bethlehem
So today, I went to Bethlehem and it was the shiznit. I spent my whole time walking around the streets of the old city/Nativity Square and other local streets near by. I first visited a few shops and got some shwarma (no meat on the farm so some chicken shwarma was great) and then went to the Church of Nativity. This is the church where Jesus was supposedly born. There was a massive crowd there which was annoying but it was a beautiful church. There was also a grotto underneath the church where the birth took place and where the holy family hung out for a little while. Afterwards, I stopped by some more little shops and headed to the Milk Grotto. This is the spot that is claimed to be the home for the holy family for the first years of Jesus' life. The story goes that Mary, while breast feeding, spilled some or something and it changed the entire grotto white, hence the name: Milk Grotto.
After visiting some other holy sites around Nativity Square, I hung out at a cafe. I saw the most remarkable thing as well: around 200-300 men all praying at the same time. They were all standing outside of a mosque just covering the streets and sidewalks for an entire block gesturing and bowing at the same time with the Call of Prayer going on right above us.
I later met up with some friends from the SIT Jordan program who are going to hang out at the farm for a couple days, work a little, see how it's done, etc. We had a Taybeh beer (very good by the way, claims to be the best beer from the Middle East, it's true), then took a sheirut back to the farm.
I'll talk about the whole political issue with Israel attacking the convoy heading towards Gaza the other day in a later post but first I'd like to talk about our own political issues here on the farm. For a while now, Daoud has had lawyers going to court to try to convince the Israeli government not to demolish much of the buildings on this farm. This is why we haven't been working on any building projects for example because if we were, that would give the Israeli government more incentive to start the demolition sooner. Yesterday, we found out that, with the help of German, French, and American embassies and organizations, the demolition is postponed for some time until a final decision can be made. This means that we'll start working on the cistern and the cave in the valley again. We have to be careful though because if the military sees us (which they're here everyday spying from outside the farm's borders so it's a good possibility), then they'll go to the government and let them know what's going on. I'll keep you updated but very interesting stuff, kind of excilerating too. Honestly, it's getting harder and harder not to lean towards supporting Palestine as time goes on.
After visiting some other holy sites around Nativity Square, I hung out at a cafe. I saw the most remarkable thing as well: around 200-300 men all praying at the same time. They were all standing outside of a mosque just covering the streets and sidewalks for an entire block gesturing and bowing at the same time with the Call of Prayer going on right above us.
I later met up with some friends from the SIT Jordan program who are going to hang out at the farm for a couple days, work a little, see how it's done, etc. We had a Taybeh beer (very good by the way, claims to be the best beer from the Middle East, it's true), then took a sheirut back to the farm.
I'll talk about the whole political issue with Israel attacking the convoy heading towards Gaza the other day in a later post but first I'd like to talk about our own political issues here on the farm. For a while now, Daoud has had lawyers going to court to try to convince the Israeli government not to demolish much of the buildings on this farm. This is why we haven't been working on any building projects for example because if we were, that would give the Israeli government more incentive to start the demolition sooner. Yesterday, we found out that, with the help of German, French, and American embassies and organizations, the demolition is postponed for some time until a final decision can be made. This means that we'll start working on the cistern and the cave in the valley again. We have to be careful though because if the military sees us (which they're here everyday spying from outside the farm's borders so it's a good possibility), then they'll go to the government and let them know what's going on. I'll keep you updated but very interesting stuff, kind of excilerating too. Honestly, it's getting harder and harder not to lean towards supporting Palestine as time goes on.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Same Thing
Now, as you can probably tell, I will be posting a good amount. I underestimated the amount of internet access I'd get; not a lot of water, but fantastic internet. I won't be posting every day, but most likely every other day or so, just trying to get you kids aquainted with what's going on here at the moment.
So today was kind of the same thing as yesterday. Morning harvest of apples and apricots, except this time with a little twist. We used hoes and clippers to get rid of all the weeds and thorny crap around the trees - get them more water and sunlight. It was actually pretty fun but the back of my neck is just wrecked from the sun. Then after lunch, we did the same thing to little baby olive trees as we did to the almond trees yesterday, just built holes around them to keep the water in. After getting some water from the cistern (by "some," I mean ten 20 litre containers), we watered all the olive tree babies. Then we rounded up the horses, fed them and the goats, watered the sage/grapes/baby trees in bags, and that was it.
It was windy today so the heat wasn't bad at all. I have a few bed bug bites, mosquito bites, probably a spider bite somewhere, some sunburn on my neck and back, I haven't showered since I left the States, my blisters keep breaking and re-healing, but I'm still having a great time. Turns out you don't really have to shower to smell good, just some good deodorant and some water. Tonight I'm just hanging out and reading, the other volunteers are heading to Jerusalem tonight. Tomorrow's my last day of work before my weekend though so I'm thinking of heading to Jerusalem one of my days off, maybe with the Frenchman. I hear Jerusalem is kind of a big deal.
So today was kind of the same thing as yesterday. Morning harvest of apples and apricots, except this time with a little twist. We used hoes and clippers to get rid of all the weeds and thorny crap around the trees - get them more water and sunlight. It was actually pretty fun but the back of my neck is just wrecked from the sun. Then after lunch, we did the same thing to little baby olive trees as we did to the almond trees yesterday, just built holes around them to keep the water in. After getting some water from the cistern (by "some," I mean ten 20 litre containers), we watered all the olive tree babies. Then we rounded up the horses, fed them and the goats, watered the sage/grapes/baby trees in bags, and that was it.
It was windy today so the heat wasn't bad at all. I have a few bed bug bites, mosquito bites, probably a spider bite somewhere, some sunburn on my neck and back, I haven't showered since I left the States, my blisters keep breaking and re-healing, but I'm still having a great time. Turns out you don't really have to shower to smell good, just some good deodorant and some water. Tonight I'm just hanging out and reading, the other volunteers are heading to Jerusalem tonight. Tomorrow's my last day of work before my weekend though so I'm thinking of heading to Jerusalem one of my days off, maybe with the Frenchman. I hear Jerusalem is kind of a big deal.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
First Day
So, today was my first day working on the farm. We started by waking up at 7 AM (which is what it'll be every morning), ate breakfast, then the Frenchman, Daher (Daoud's brother), and I headed to the valley close to the farm where we grow apricots and apples. We spent a couple hours harvesting, then headed back for a break. After the break, I went and helped out the Germans dig holes around small almond trees with pick axes and hoes. The ground is pretty rocky and I got some gnarly blisters from the work, about 5 actually (then figured out I should throw my work gloves on). We took a break for lunch and then finished up digging the holes. After that, we collected six containers of water from one of the cisterns and brought them back to the field to water all the trees. After another break, I helped Tom (one of the Germans) water the sage and grape plants. Then after checking some of the hay bundles for snakes, we fed the goats, rallied up the horses/fed them too, and locked them all up. Then we fed the chickens and pigieons, got one egg from the coop, and that was it. Our day ended at 6 o clock and the rest of the night was just relaxing and hanging out.
I'm beyond wiped out right now and it was ungodly hot today with no wind. Hopefully we have more of a breeze tomorrow. Other than all the work, I learned a little more about the farm and about the Israeli settlements around the farm. We are literally surrounded by these settlements, some of which people don't even work in - they're just paid by the governemnt to pray and occupy the West Bank. I'm pretty jet-lagged and just worked for 11 hours so I think I'm going to head out but so far, so good. I'm enjoying the work and it's for a great cause so I'm going to try to go balls to the wall on this one. Ma salaama.
I'm beyond wiped out right now and it was ungodly hot today with no wind. Hopefully we have more of a breeze tomorrow. Other than all the work, I learned a little more about the farm and about the Israeli settlements around the farm. We are literally surrounded by these settlements, some of which people don't even work in - they're just paid by the governemnt to pray and occupy the West Bank. I'm pretty jet-lagged and just worked for 11 hours so I think I'm going to head out but so far, so good. I'm enjoying the work and it's for a great cause so I'm going to try to go balls to the wall on this one. Ma salaama.
Monday, May 31, 2010
I Made It
So I'm here. The trip here wasn't terrible. Two flights were delayed so I had a 7 hour layover in Detroit and another 6 hour layover in New York but other than that, everything went swimmingly. Israeli security wasn't bad at all. I was stopped right outside of the plane by a woman who asked me what I was doing in Jordan and Egypt. After I told her I study the region, International Relations, and Arabic, she kind of rolled her eyes and rhetorically asked "why?" She then asked me what my business is in Israel so I told her I'm just touring the holy land; couch surfing, hostels, etc. She told me that couch surfing wasn't very popular here; I responded with the statistic that around 6200 homes are available to couch surf in Israel, that kind of quieted her down and then she let me go. Customs was really easy too, the woman there looked at my passport, then at me, checked if I was on any "lists," and then let me through. I also had pre-Rabbi Dave help me out which was cool, he helped me find a sim card for my phone/find the sheirut service.
From there, I took a sheirut to Jerusalem and from there, asked around until I found a bus that took me to the border of Israel and Palestine. I walked through without any trouble and then took a taxi to the farm. We were stopped in front of the farm by Israeli military personnel and my taxi driver seemed pretty scared. They made him shut his car off, open the trunk, etc. Then I made my way to the farm with Samuel, a French guy I met who's checking out the farm as well. There are also two Germans here who have been here for 9 and a half months now (they're here for a year). They seem pretty legit so I'll enjoy working with them, they're both 20 so it's cool that they're close to my age. Sam is 30 but he'll talk to Daoud tomorrow about hopefully sticking around and volunteering for a couple months.
The farm is pretty rustic but comfortable. We have electricity for the most part at night with solar-powered internet access (or a battery). I'll be sleeping in this large tent-like building with paved floors and a whole mess of beds for volunteers. We are also restricted to one-minute showers so I figure I won't be doing that very often. I'll shower every few days, that should do the trick. Tomorrow, Daoud will show me around the farm and show me the ropes; I'm really excited to get working.
From there, I took a sheirut to Jerusalem and from there, asked around until I found a bus that took me to the border of Israel and Palestine. I walked through without any trouble and then took a taxi to the farm. We were stopped in front of the farm by Israeli military personnel and my taxi driver seemed pretty scared. They made him shut his car off, open the trunk, etc. Then I made my way to the farm with Samuel, a French guy I met who's checking out the farm as well. There are also two Germans here who have been here for 9 and a half months now (they're here for a year). They seem pretty legit so I'll enjoy working with them, they're both 20 so it's cool that they're close to my age. Sam is 30 but he'll talk to Daoud tomorrow about hopefully sticking around and volunteering for a couple months.
The farm is pretty rustic but comfortable. We have electricity for the most part at night with solar-powered internet access (or a battery). I'll be sleeping in this large tent-like building with paved floors and a whole mess of beds for volunteers. We are also restricted to one-minute showers so I figure I won't be doing that very often. I'll shower every few days, that should do the trick. Tomorrow, Daoud will show me around the farm and show me the ropes; I'm really excited to get working.
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