November 12, 2001

Maqlube - Arabic for “upside-down”.

A quiet day. Nothing can be done, so we're trying to make the most of it - kind of hard when our visas have already expired, leaving us here somewhat illegally. Best to stay put in Jerusalem for the time being. We went to a music shop in West Jerusalem, and were serenaded to the sounds of George Clinton's "Atomic Dog" - gets your groove goin'. We then made a traditional Palestinian meal for our hosts and some other friends of maqlube (literally, "upside-down").

One of our friends talked about his time serving the Israeli Army in Nablus and Gaza - it was a very difficult time for him, and he remains frustrated by Israeli policies in the Occupied Territories. He and some of his friends have been active with Yesh Gvul, an Israeli group working in support of conscientious objectors, who are usually jailed by the Israeli army for refusing to serve. It's good to be reminded that there's far more variety within any population than we are usually led to believe.