Like nothing I have ever seen

So I finally arrived in Tel Aviv at 2:30 AM last night. And my first few hours were just as expected. As I got off the plane, excruciatingly tired, I hadn't made it 10 meters before I was stopped by security. Of course I was the only person coming off the plane to get checked out. Perhaps it was my shoddy atire, dirty feet in flip flops, nose piercing, or Boycott Anheuser Busch t-shirt that raised the red flag. Or perhaps the Israeli security was already aware of my mission to Palestine. Regardless, I got the third degree every five minutes as I maneuvered through Ben Gurion Airport. What are you doing here? Where are you from? How long are you staying? Where will you visit? Where have you been? Each one seemed to asked the same questions, radio ahead to the next official, and let their colleague repeat the process. I got the feeling they were trying to catch me in a lie so they could somehow prevent my entrance. But I had nothing to hide so I kept giving them the same answers. I am on mission with the UN. I am working with UNDP's Programme of Assistance for the Palestinian People as a strategic planner for district development. I live in Canada but hold US citizenship. I will be here for three weeks. I will be in Ramallah and Jenin although I am staying in East Jerusalem. I guess after four tries they finally let me through... although they never did give me my work visa, telling me to let the UN figure it out. Classic.

I was met at the exit from baggage claim by my UN driver, Said. At first he didn't say much, perhaps surprised at my appearance and youth. But as we started driving from the airport and I proceeded to ask questions about life in the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem for Palestinians, he began to open up. And boy did he have a lot to say. We talked about the wall, the situation in Gaza, the feeling of hopelessness among Palesinians (both in West Bank and Israel), and much more. It was an amazing drive... seeing the wall under construction, roads that were built for settlers right through Palestinian territory, huge settlements with beautiful homes across from Arab neighbourhoods living far below the means of their neighbours, and more than I have time to describe here. We went through two checkpoints en route to Jerusalem, but being in a UN vehicle at 4:00 AM seemed to afford us easy thoroughfare.

After an hours drive I arrived at my hotel, the Notre Dame Guest House, a 120-year old castle-like structure built by French pilgrims in the late 19th Century. What a magnificent building, albeit surrounded by guards and a massive wall. The rooms are sparse but the views are extraordinary - overlooking the golden dome and the ancient architecture of the Old City. Finally, nearing 5:00 AM, I started to get some sleep.

This morning, after a short 5 hours of snoozing in my single bed (uggh), I awoke and decided to parouse the neighbourhood in search of a cash machine and some breakfast. In daylight it became quickly evident how beautiful it is here. More on that some other time. But the other thing that was quickly obvious was how modern and western Jerusalem is. If not for the old buildings it could be anywhere in the western world, full of nice shops, restaurants, and any other amenity you can think of. The people also come in all shapes, sizes and colours. It was amazing to hear oriental, african, and latin people speaking in Hebrew. And I must say that it is true... this place is full of beautiful people. Anyway, I had a nice breakfast of bagels and cream cheese (stellar bagels actually), a delicious lunch of hummous and falafel with fresh mango juice, and a lovely stroll through the city afterward. I am now back at the guest house preparing for my meetings tomorrow and my first journey to Ramallah. I will try my best to update this as I find time... and will surely include photos as I take them.

Wishing you all the best from Jerusalem,
Gerrit