The Land of Living Stones

An update is long overdue—I have my computer now! By an amazing coincidence, I found out from my Palestinian friend and souvenir shop owner Majdi that someone was coming from Pennsylvania to Bethlehem. When I asked “from where?” he handed me the card of my former Bible professor who now works for CURE international in Lemoyne. Even more impressive, my sister was able to bring it to college with her (no extra trip needed) and hand it over right on campus. So it took no money nor any additional carbon output to get it here : ) Impressive! Yet, I have not really had luck with internet—at work I’ve not succeeded in connecting and at home the wireless has been down for quite a while so it’s not clear if that will be fixed.

 

The MCC administrator Bassem got married last Saturday and the whole office was invited to join in on the festivities. The Church of the Ascension on the grounds of Augusta Victoria Hospital, Jerusalem was the site of the ceremony, it a gorgeous building with elaborate and fantastic paintings on the high ceilings depicting the Ascension of Jesus and other Bible stories. The decorations were very classy and I think the service was very nice, though I couldn’t gather too much from the Arabic. In many ways it compared to the weddings we have in the States, with a processional, an exchange of vows and rings, and a recessional. The couple also took communion. Afterwards we chilled out across the street at the home of the MCC workers there, because it was several hours until the dinner reception which took place in Bethlehem. Bassem’s bride Nora is from Nazareth, so this was a bit of a trek for her family.

 

At the hall, we ate appetizers at the MCC table while awaiting the newlyweds who were off taking pictures. They finally arrived to an indoor entrance with sparklers, inaugurating a session of wild dancing, starring them of course. Their friends lifted them on their shoulders for an amusing scene—it looked like the couple was not too keen on the in air acrobatics. Most everyone was very well dressed—it’s interesting to note that all sorts of attire were evident for the women, from skimpy clubbing outfits to ball gowns and though this was a Christian wedding, many of their Muslim friends celebrated with them, some veiled. It was so fun to dance with everyone—especially the MCCers some of whom have great moves

 

The dancing stopped for the main course, and then Bassem cut the cake—with a sword. No smashing it into each other’s face unfortunately. Their first slow dance was accompanied by fog and fake snow being blown around. The last part of the night (that we stayed for anyway) involved a women’s dance where the females processed in, in the dark with lit candles in hand and dance with the bride—a good photo opp too apparently. Then the men processed in with staffs and fezzes on their heads to do some sort of masculine dancing and hoopla. All in all, a great time. Now Bassem and Nora are honeymooning in Thailand.

 

This Saturday I went to the annual Olive Harvest Festival in Bethlehem’s Manger Square where there were many booths set up for various groups. Mostly handicrafts and local food were on display, but there were some student performances and things as well. Apparently this is a good year for the olives (I believe that every other year has a high yield) and they were selling the first batch of newly pressed oil. Yum! I had a tasty falafel from the best place in town and wandered through the back streets that I haven’t explored yet, finding the market. I was still too timid to engage the clothes vendors though I am in need of some new items (my things seem to wear out so fast!) but hopefully in the coming days I’ll gain courage in shopping here.

 

Meanwhile, fall/winter has hit the area with lots of rain and cold. The high today is supposed to be about 60 degrees Fahrenheit but I think we might not even get there. And there’s no central heating in most (our) houses and offices, so we’re going to have to acquire some gas and/or area-heaters shortly so we don’t freeze our tails off. Though, last winter I lived with a thermostat at 50 so I’m not complaining.

 

If you care to write, my address again is:

Kimberly MacVaugh

PO Box 19208

Jerusalem Israel 91191

Eid-il-Fitr has arrived! After only 29 days of Ramadan, the cresent moon was sighted last evening, an event which apparently brings an end to this month of fasting, a day earlier than expected. I don’t have any Muslim friends with whom I expect to celebrate, but I have plenty of reasons to rejoice that all of us can eat during the day again! Restaurants will be open and tea and coffee will be endlessly poured once again! Three cheers for that!

In honor of this holiday I have the rest of the week off from the office and from school. Unfortunately, it coincides with Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year which occurs today. This means that the Israelis have closed off the West Bank, allowing no Palestinians out, ostensibly because they could potentially harm Israelis and hamper the festivities. No buses will be running until it is reopened. There are several more Jewish holidays in the near future, and I expect that they will have the same effect. No going out! This seriously hampers plans for a few days. The SALTer in Jordan, Justine, was supposed to come visit, but she had to cancel after realizing she couldn’t get from there to here today or tomorrow. We were going to see some touristy things and travel the country a bit, but that isn’t happening anymore. Hopefully other opportunities will arise!

In the meantime, I am dying for someone to bring my computer over the sea, so if anyone is coming this way, or knows anyone else from the East Coast that could be given my laptop for transport, PLEASE let me know! I would be eternally grateful! For serious! Hope all is well whereever you may be!