It’s been quite the first two weeks here in East Jerusalem. I’d like to share with you some of my experiences. I’ve been shadowing Sr. Sylvia Countess who is the assistant to Dr. Charlie Haddad, the Director of Education for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land.
Since classes begin at 7:50 a.m., I’ve been meeting Sr. Sylvia at 7:30 outside the gates to the Augusta Victoria Campus where we live in the Guest House. We walk down the street to pick up bus 75 which takes us to the bus depot in front of the Damascus Gate to the Old City of Jerusalem. I never leave “home” without my passport and cell phone.
The bus system is quite interesting. Buses come frequently—like about every 5 minutes. Sometimes they stop and let you board, and sometimes they don’t. If there’s a crowd of people waiting for the bus, when the bus stops, everyone rushes to the door of the bus and crowds in—women, men, young and old. No one gives way for anyone else. If you’re lucky, you get on the bus and pay your fare which is cheap compared to Canada. With a bus card, I can get to the bus depot in front of the Damascus Gate for about 2 NIS (New Israeli Shekels). Once I tried to get on a 75 bus, and I was told to get off—perhaps it was a special bus going somewhere else; I have no idea, nor do the people I asked about it.
If we’re going to the Bethlehem school, we take bus 124, for 3 ½ NIS, which takes us to the checkpoint at the security barrier. There we get off and walk through the security gates. As a Canadian I’m lucky, I just show the closed passport and the Israeli guard waves me through. Not so for many of the average Palestinians. I’ve watched them be taken aside and detained while I’ve been passed through. On the other side of the wall, taxis wait to take people to their destinations in Bethlehem or area. Fortunately, Sr. Sylvia has a taxi driver whom she can call when we get close to the barrier and so he’s always waiting for us when we arrive. Mussa then takes us to the Bethlehem school—Dar Al-Kalima—or the Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour, a community very close to Bethlehem. Sr. Sylvia has an agreed rate with Mussa and he charges her only 20 NIS for each trip (divide NIS by 4 for approximate Canadian dollar values).
If we’re going to Beit Jala to the Talitha Kumi school, we take bus 21, for 5 ½ NIS and we can be let off right in front of the school. However, the ride home can be quite the experience.
On Thursday for the first time, I took the bus home alone from Talitha Kumi. I had been invited to attend the principals’ meeting with the director of education, where I was introduced and my role here discussed. I felt quite comfortable catching the bus in front of the school on my own. It was my chance to be a bit independent for the first time and I was up to the challenge. Before entering East Jerusalem, the bus must pass through an Israeli checkpoint which requires all riders except the elderly to get off. The Israeli guards made us stand outside the bus until finally two of them decided to get on the bus and check the I.D.’s of those still on the bus. Then, leisurely they checked the passports or papers of the rest of us and one by one allowed us to get back on the bus. Their manner was abrupt and arrogant. I was most thankful to be carrying a Canadian passport! The rest of the trip home was interesting. I confidently changed buses at the depot only to share the frustration of the bus driver as we encountered two intersections that had been blocked off by police—a fairly common occurrence—that required the bus to take alternate routes through narrow crowded streets. The traffic was horrendous due to Ramadan. (The driving is aggressive, chaotic, and fast, but skillful.) So, I now feel completely ready to travel to the Bethlehem and Beit Sahour schools on my own.
The other day we went to Ramallah where the headquarters of the Palestinian Authority is located. The trip there on bus 18 (7 NIS) is about 13 km and took us about 20 minutes. Contrast that to our return trip. There are two sets of security turnstiles. At the first set, of the 5 or 6 stations, only one was open and so we all crowded into it only to find that they weren’t letting anyone through. We waited for quite a long time until an announcement was made that this checkpoint was closed and to move to another one which was opened further down the line. The crowd rushed there only to find that the green light had been switched to red and no one was being allowed through. Again another long wait until finally an announcement was made that only those without purses or bags were being allowed through. So again we waited and waited. Eventually they started letting people through a few at a time, had us place our bags on a scanner, and further along go through another checkpoint. After about an hour, we were through the checkpoint and able to board the bus to return to East Jerusalem. Imagine having to do this every day to get to and from work! Add to that the fact that the Palestinians aren’t always waved through as easily as we were. Many of them are refused passage for whatever reason. As a Canadian I am shocked by the degrading treatment the Palestinians are suffering on a daily basis. I don’t believe I’m quite ready yet to travel there by myself.
Since classes begin at 7:50 a.m., I’ve been meeting Sr. Sylvia at 7:30 outside the gates to the Augusta Victoria Campus where we live in the Guest House. We walk down the street to pick up bus 75 which takes us to the bus depot in front of the Damascus Gate to the Old City of Jerusalem. I never leave “home” without my passport and cell phone.
The bus system is quite interesting. Buses come frequently—like about every 5 minutes. Sometimes they stop and let you board, and sometimes they don’t. If there’s a crowd of people waiting for the bus, when the bus stops, everyone rushes to the door of the bus and crowds in—women, men, young and old. No one gives way for anyone else. If you’re lucky, you get on the bus and pay your fare which is cheap compared to Canada. With a bus card, I can get to the bus depot in front of the Damascus Gate for about 2 NIS (New Israeli Shekels). Once I tried to get on a 75 bus, and I was told to get off—perhaps it was a special bus going somewhere else; I have no idea, nor do the people I asked about it.
If we’re going to the Bethlehem school, we take bus 124, for 3 ½ NIS, which takes us to the checkpoint at the security barrier. There we get off and walk through the security gates. As a Canadian I’m lucky, I just show the closed passport and the Israeli guard waves me through. Not so for many of the average Palestinians. I’ve watched them be taken aside and detained while I’ve been passed through. On the other side of the wall, taxis wait to take people to their destinations in Bethlehem or area. Fortunately, Sr. Sylvia has a taxi driver whom she can call when we get close to the barrier and so he’s always waiting for us when we arrive. Mussa then takes us to the Bethlehem school—Dar Al-Kalima—or the Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour, a community very close to Bethlehem. Sr. Sylvia has an agreed rate with Mussa and he charges her only 20 NIS for each trip (divide NIS by 4 for approximate Canadian dollar values).
If we’re going to Beit Jala to the Talitha Kumi school, we take bus 21, for 5 ½ NIS and we can be let off right in front of the school. However, the ride home can be quite the experience.
On Thursday for the first time, I took the bus home alone from Talitha Kumi. I had been invited to attend the principals’ meeting with the director of education, where I was introduced and my role here discussed. I felt quite comfortable catching the bus in front of the school on my own. It was my chance to be a bit independent for the first time and I was up to the challenge. Before entering East Jerusalem, the bus must pass through an Israeli checkpoint which requires all riders except the elderly to get off. The Israeli guards made us stand outside the bus until finally two of them decided to get on the bus and check the I.D.’s of those still on the bus. Then, leisurely they checked the passports or papers of the rest of us and one by one allowed us to get back on the bus. Their manner was abrupt and arrogant. I was most thankful to be carrying a Canadian passport! The rest of the trip home was interesting. I confidently changed buses at the depot only to share the frustration of the bus driver as we encountered two intersections that had been blocked off by police—a fairly common occurrence—that required the bus to take alternate routes through narrow crowded streets. The traffic was horrendous due to Ramadan. (The driving is aggressive, chaotic, and fast, but skillful.) So, I now feel completely ready to travel to the Bethlehem and Beit Sahour schools on my own.
The other day we went to Ramallah where the headquarters of the Palestinian Authority is located. The trip there on bus 18 (7 NIS) is about 13 km and took us about 20 minutes. Contrast that to our return trip. There are two sets of security turnstiles. At the first set, of the 5 or 6 stations, only one was open and so we all crowded into it only to find that they weren’t letting anyone through. We waited for quite a long time until an announcement was made that this checkpoint was closed and to move to another one which was opened further down the line. The crowd rushed there only to find that the green light had been switched to red and no one was being allowed through. Again another long wait until finally an announcement was made that only those without purses or bags were being allowed through. So again we waited and waited. Eventually they started letting people through a few at a time, had us place our bags on a scanner, and further along go through another checkpoint. After about an hour, we were through the checkpoint and able to board the bus to return to East Jerusalem. Imagine having to do this every day to get to and from work! Add to that the fact that the Palestinians aren’t always waved through as easily as we were. Many of them are refused passage for whatever reason. As a Canadian I am shocked by the degrading treatment the Palestinians are suffering on a daily basis. I don’t believe I’m quite ready yet to travel there by myself.
1 comment:
Hi Donna !
The Holy Spirit is obviously alive and well in you and Pastor Dale.
The Palestines will appreciate the work you are doing, if indeed they haven't already.
a partner in Christ
Debra Lee
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