Time has flown by here in Ramallah
as there is lots to see and do and plenty of work to get started on; yet it is
hard to believe that we have only been here for one week as we have done so
much in a short amount of time, and it has been easy to settle in.
‘Shukran’: our most commonly used Arabic word
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| Even our coffee smiles at us |
It seems that the word we need to
know the most here is ‘shukran’, which translates to thank you, as what
immediately became apparent upon arrival is that the people living here are
extremely welcoming and try their hardest to help us when needed. We spent our
first day in Ramallah exploring the markets, which were initially overwhelming
due to the hectic atmosphere, but locals repeatedly shouted “Welcome!”, so
straight away we had a sense of the friendly community. The buzzing spirit in
the markets emphasises the way that despite living under the occupation, the
people here admirably keep up morale and maintain normality in their daily
life. Had it not been for the instant contrast from the smooth, wide roads of
Israel to the narrow and rocky roads of Palestine after crossing the check
point, the negative impact of the occupation would not be apparent at first
sight in Ramallah. Despite the West Bank not being as built up as Israel in
many ways, it is a shared opinion amongst us that the scenery here is beautiful
and we never tire of taking pictures. Trying local food has also been a
highlight, having not tried falafel before coming here, I could now probably
eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner daily! With many more places to visit,
it will be difficult to resist overspending in order to make the most out of
this opportunity.
Happy Ramadan!
Our team is lucky enough to be here
throughout Ramadan, so we get to experience the restaurant shutters coming up
at night, and people going into town to break their fast. There are also lights
decorating the city so the atmosphere is similar to Christmas in the UK. The
extremely friendly and welcoming community is epitomised at Iftar, as local
volunteers stand by the side of the road and hand out water to cars driving
past, ready to be drunk when the call to prayer resonates in the evening. Some
of the team have begun vlogs of their different experiences of Ramadan, and
it’s safe to say that the UK volunteers attempting to fast are struggling!
Ramadan means less energy, but not less work…
As already mentioned, during the
first month here our team at Sharek has the opportunity to experience Ramadan
in Ramallah. The lack of energy means working hours are shorter, and the summer
holidays means that skill sessions cannot be run so we are focusing on
continuing the Voice of the Youth project during our time here. Despite our
initial feeling that perhaps there may not be that much to do, there is still
plenty of project work to be getting on with and an enthusiastic attitude
amongst us. We are continuing the People of Palestine project from the last
cohort and are in the process of planning a summer camp for children aged 9-12.
This is to give families a break from their children as not all children fast,
and will enable the children to improve their English through games and other
interactive activities. Each of us also have other projects – both the
in-country volunteers and some UK volunteers are fasting and some are vlogging
their different experiences of Ramadan so watch out for those.
We also have trips to look forward to such as
to Al-Qud’s university in Abu Dis, the only university to be surrounded by the
wall, so we can continue to hear and spread the message about the negative impact
of the occupation on young people. Meeting and working with in-country
volunteers makes this experience even better, as we can learn more about
different lifestyles and opinions on the occupation. We are all enthusiastic
about getting started, and hope that the remaining 9 weeks don’t go by as fast
as this first one!
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| A sunset in Ramallah |
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