24th July 2008
Our Party was Tuesday, afternoon, at four clock. We had prepared tea and coffee, cold drinks, cakes, nuts and fruit much We had the usual concerns of the host if there is enough of everything and should be ready to run fast in the vegetable and fruit shop nachzukaufen. The next day, the apartment should be left completely empty of stocks back. But our guests were very loose, with a glance, they saw what all was on the table and which plate had to be protected. You talk easily with each other or with us. No one was sitting alone, people have introduced each other, or explain how they know each other. It ran like a well rehearsed loose game.
Our Party was Tuesday, afternoon, at four clock. We had prepared tea and coffee, cold drinks, cakes, nuts and fruit much We had the usual concerns of the host if there is enough of everything and should be ready to run fast in the vegetable and fruit shop nachzukaufen. The next day, the apartment should be left completely empty of stocks back. But our guests were very loose, with a glance, they saw what all was on the table and which plate had to be protected. You talk easily with each other or with us. No one was sitting alone, people have introduced each other, or explain how they know each other. It ran like a well rehearsed loose game.
Some are not able to come:
Pierre Habash, our landlord, who lives in another wing of the house. I have spoken several times with him. He is very concerned about the ever-shrinking Christian community in Bethlehem and mourns for his wealthy friends who have left the country. I'm with him. negotiated when the boiler was broken and we have since decided that the water heater is now not needed in summer, because the solar system provides enough hot water and hot water. Once I was upstairs in his apartment for tea, when I have given him the check with the rental. (And Justice, which made me go see high, it does not last long and afterwards come. Justice passes up an opportunity for a chat and is always eager to meet people.) Anyway, we had invited Pierre Habash and he has the same said he could not make it likely. We then passed the next day from him, Justice and me.
Fuad Giacaman, director of the Arab Educational Institute. He was my guest in
Blank field and has held talks in Berlin. When Nini was here, we were taught by him at home and have it brand new, as a father to know. It represents otherwise like his institute, but at home he sits in a chair, has a grandchild on her lap and listens to discuss what his son and daughter with us. Our program it accompanies critical and high expectations, he is one of the few Christians who feel responsible for this social program in Bethlehem. And unfortunately he could not come to the farewell party. The old couple from Al Waladja, Seham and Mundir Sahem I once had with the whole
team visited and where part of the team a second time, was invited to dinner. You live in a house that has twice been torn down and rebuilt twice. The whole village is relocated before been. That was in 1948, is now restricted their builders on their own land for future generations. Only one bedroom plus kitchen and bathroom are Seham and Mundir been rebuilt. Guests receive them in a tent outside the house. They were so pleased with our visit and offered us nuts and Askadinya. Unfortunately, they are then not come and we are sure that the error was that we had a taxi to send them. Yussuf, Contractors from An Nu'man and his daughter Naveen that has to translate, if his English skills are not enough for entertaining. From
previous years I knew more than Yussuf reserved annoyed by the media and international interest in the fate of his village, for all reports, documents and diplomatic intervention had nothing causes. But this year we were closer. He had shown us his construction company and says, 'Show me your site, show me your money and I'll put out a finished house. About my description of the terraced house made of prefabricated components, in which I want to spend my old age, he shook his head. The store owner, our neighbor who was always afraid we could buy things he had in his shop, in others. We then discreetly let him look into our plastic bags and the Little things that were missing we bought later, with him. But we have three or four times a day greeted, if we were always on the way into town or to the refugee camps with him gone. Come in for tea, he called and we
have said another time, here and now we have to go there. And he promptly asked us on the way back, how was it there and there and if we have time now. Twice I have drunk with him some tea. Once he has worried me for bread, because I had complained that I had been in vain in the Manger Street, all the bakers had already closed. Wait 10 hours - what he means with 10 hours? 10 years? No, you mean 10 minutes? Yes, of course, oh my English is so bad! It was then really took only 8 minutes and I had bread. He could not come to the party. But I've brought him later in the evening of that photo that made him doubly happy because there is a small section of his grandchildren and shows because it showed that I was not offended. Marwan from Holy Land Trust came the next day when we were at the packing and cleaning. He was our leader in the villages with the demonstrations in order Salomone and Al Khadr, has brought us to the farmers in their fields, the dense layers of Israel's new frontier, we unveiled contact people and is actually one of the reliable partner of the program. He was he just came by on Wednesday, under tremendous pressure because he
next week starts with the reconstruction of one of the demolished houses and building materials, workers in construction and especially the Finance must get together. The family calls every day and wants to make sure that he will keep his word and actually perform the reconstruction. Marwan is one of the many young Palestinians who have passed through Israeli prisons and have developed a certain fearlessness and contempt Israeli Machtbezeugungen. We have seen how he has been negotiating hard on the border of provocation with the officers of the army if the demonstrators were arrested. The
had come:
Clemence, Arabic teacher resides directly on the wall. The Israeli soldiers can watch it by the watch tower in the room, she has lost all of their fields on the Jerusalem side of the wall, part of the garden, where now the wall and a small road, access to the monastery, the other with no input been of Bethlehem would have been built. We are met Clemence on Fridays when we have with the Sisters of Charity in a procession around the walls three times prayed the rosary. Clemence but we also have visited at home. It is only a year and a widow is not well done. They gave us their idea of just the prayer procession displayed on the wall. We have learned from her once more, how can that be a lot more prayer, as the observer from outside.
Ghassan, who has shown us Battir and invited us to his house. No other
we felt so clear, which means land for the Palestinians, have land that their forefathers harvested built in terraces, with plants, where the women put the men to eat and helped in the harvest; country that many generations has nourished and given life. Battir, a beautiful village. It has its own sales in the Israel-Jordan Treaty of 1948: The Israeli railway may pass through the valley floor and farmers can work their land either side of the valley floor. But between the two wars (48 and 67) where 46 villagers were shot dead by Israeli soldiers. The valley is green and fertile, still beautiful, even if just by driving a train. It is the train from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. It leaves, however, without in Battir to stop and take passengers. There is no train station is no longer page 48. To our Party Ghassan had come to us to say goodbye. 
Mohamed Al Khadr who has acquired his degree in Greece, which is on the city council in Al Khadr, who will soon open a restaurant and us a taste of his culinary art in his House had presented to it and arranged a beautiful evening with his family and other local politicians. The city council is desperate not only robs the construction of the barrier fence 90% of the land of Al Khadr, 17 homeowners have received an order to demolish their house, it interferes with Israel's security needs, that is here in the Palestinian territory: the safety of the road to the illegal settlements . Mohamed was with other people from the city council and the mayor and our team in these fields, which are currently still available to us there and has served a picnic. Now he had come to see how we have lived in Bethlehem and to say that we can send the next team to him.
Gabi, one of our taxi driver , who must have a pretty good overview of our meetings with NGOs on conflict areas and about when we were too tired to walk a greater distance. Gabi was not in a good mood, makes his taxi not long and he has not got the money together to buy a new one. Dark words of emigration, a controversial word among Christians, came from his lips. Justice and accompanied him to the outside as he walked to his courage award, as does an African pastor the same.
Aloussi Suleiman, antiques collector, who should advise me how I old Arabic Calligraphy can muster, who wanted to take me to his uncle, the sign painter (Calligrapher). Because I then, a week later, see Suleiman could not, I asked a neighbor who has Suleiman called out of his house out, Suleiman laughed and said, now it's gone wrong, that's my uncle, the sign painter, who up has now brought to me. But the ancient calligraphy I have to look in Egypt, found the two, in Bethlehem, there is no market for such a thing, no money for valuable antiques.
and Ahmed Jamal, Beit Fajjar that we have met on the penultimate day. They showed us the famous town of quarries and stone masons. The whole industry is at risk there, because Israel can no more machines through customs, to sign the master stonemason the contract, the Israel's export monopoly and the dumping prices guaranteed. The two have touched the stones at the house of our landlord and inspected and identified the family, she has trimmed. Jamal and Ahmed are about to send the young generation of Beit Fajjar on universities to make them independent of the industry at risk of the quarries. Both me and the promise has declined to send the next team at the beginning of their time to them to Beit Fajjar.
Majdi, owner of the souvenir shop , all foreigners once come to his shop notes and makes them his friends. The invited us to his house for dinner and worked out for each of us has what we send gifts home
and must buy from him. Majdi has rarely see, if we are bent on the corner of Manger Street and San Antonio Road. He has called us to come to tea in his shop or he's come against us and asked if we are really doing well. He is a master of art, friendship and business relationship. Rianne and Sara, volunteers from the Alternative Information Center, with which we were often together, there in the coffee shop or AI Oush Grave, where we have thwarted attempts by the settlers, the land on which to create a theme park and a children's hospital, as we have held parties and small game festivities. Rianne is Dutch, and I have spoken with her Justice Afrikaans. Sara is Italian, at least when she takes the phone to his ear and "Pronto" calls, which is clear. Both are dedicated and show interest in our program. Here they were, to say goodbye good friends.
Eli, actually Elijah, the other taxi drivers who shared the our weal and woes, drove us past the road blocks on roads and through olive groves, so that we in the demonstration could participate in Umm Salomone. Could call and ask us how come we could quickly and cheaply here and there and when he could not drive themselves, sent us a reliable taxi driver, with which we did not have to talk about price because it had previously instructed. Once, at the beginning I called him, "Eli, you have to take me home, but I do not know where I am." "Give the phone to the boy there so rumschreit", said he and solved my trouble. Eli, Christian, dedicated, well informed and our friendship fond, a recovery in the stress of a tight daily schedule.
Daniel Munoz Rojas the International Committee of the Red Cross, where we have twice sat on the usability of our observations and advice at the checkpoint. He heads the branch of the ICRC in Bethlehem and told us, among other things, the work of the Red Cross and Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. We could compare stories we have heard constantly of Palestinians who have spent some years there. Daniel was one of the interlocutors, of whom we had the feeling that our work is appreciated by large organizations. The second time we were included because other employees had left. Daniel had to climb out the window and try to find next door a key. "Captives" we called it.
And then there were some friends we had not reached that were perhaps abroad or on business trips where they did not want to be disturbed. We would invite much more.
Suleiman Al Hamri, head of the Department of the Interior of the Palestinian Authority, which works with NGOs. 550 of them are in the area of Bethlehem.
Suleiman was very strict and dogmatic in the assessment of these organizations regarding their political objectives. Everything designed to ease the current situation , is for him "normalization" and this prevents a large target to denounce the occupation and stop. When we were at Suleiman at home and have learned to know him as host, we found a devoted father and educated interlocutors. Sorry, we no longer can say goodbye to him vin. The "party" itself, was four clock in the afternoon to early evening for us all beautiful and painful. We have felt that we found in this short time even with only random encounters good friends. From them we heard critical questions about our work: We know what the policy of looking away from the Europeans Change? Will you come back? Can you understand our lack of courage? Can you give us courage? Above all, we have this feeling of friendship and solidarity felt. The sentence about the fact that our world has become small and injustice in a region an injustice to the whole world is a pain that one people is added, the international community hurts - we have in this sentence as a strong feeling we watch them grow. We are moving away from Bethlehem and nothing has changed for the better. Nevertheless, we believe that the end of suffering comes to the Palestinians. We hope to make the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel will soon be visible.
addendum 23. July 2008
Today we left Bethlehem. In Checkpoint, already on the Jerusalem side
we have met some of the workers that we know of the morning Checkpoint Watches. If you are stopped, their tired faces friendly on us, without worrying about the Israeli security guards: Masa lkher! Masa nOnly! Kiif haalak? Mabsuu tiin ilhamdilla! It goes away? Yes, our time is up. This is bad! But thank you being there. And the men who are really alien to us have been standing there for a moment, sadly. Then they repeated: So, thank you! Shukran! Wa ma'i ssalaame! Ma'i ssalaame! And we were very woe, with the horrible checkpoint back. 
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