First impressions

There are many things I could have said about Palestine two and a half days after arriving. I could have tried to describe the smell of the pine and the olive trees in the warm air. Or the landscape of the Shepard's field that looks nothing like the images that went trough my mind when my father used to read the story of the birth of Jesus on Christmas eve. I could have told you about all the nice people that I have already met, and the work that they are doing, or the apartment I live in and how loud and beautiful the "muazzin's" voice can be heard in my room. Maybe I'll do that later, but for now I'll only post a picture I took when walking to Marie's apartment this morning.


The houses on the nearest hilltop belong to the area of Beit Sahour and are inhabited by Palestinians that speak arabic. In the distance is the settlement Har Homa. I am told that this hilltop also belonged to Beit Sahour and used to be covered by trees. Today more that 4000 Israeli families live there. They speak a different language than here, they use different roads, and probably have different views on the hilltop that they live on than the residents of Beit Sahour have. One thing is for sure, the Palestinians cannot go there, and the Israelis cannot come here. This is a fact, but it is difficult for me to understand, so that is partly why I am here. To see and to learn, and to hopefully understand a bit more about it all.