We headed off to Bethlehem today, giving Marthame's family a chance to experience first-hand what life under occupation is like, as they crossed over a blockaded road to meet our waiting taxi.
Read MoreSince we had given short shrift to the Holy Sepulchre yesterday, today we gave it the time it deserves.
Read MoreWe traveled the Via Dolorosa, visiting both the impressive churches along the way (like the Church of Flaggelation with its impressive ceiling artwork of the crown of thorns) and the small chapels that simply mark one of the Stations of the Cross.
Read MoreHappy Palm Sunday!
Read MoreWe continued our rounds of the village, discovering that people are getting ready for Palm Sunday tomorrow (in Arabic, "'Eid ash-Sha’aniin" - literally, the festival of olive branches).
Read MoreSince it's Friday, it gave us the chance to walk around the hills near the new Arab-American University of Jenin.
Read MoreThere is a little too much Disney here for comfort.
Read MoreToday we confined ourselves to the Old City of Nazareth.
Read MoreA plan was hatched to spend the rest of the day in Haifa.
Read MoreAfter Elizabeth's adult English classes, we left with Marthame’s family for a few days in the Galilee district.
Read MoreMarthame's family is here!
Read MoreAs people lament about the vanishing Christian population (which is true), there remain these signs that people are planning for a future.
Read MoreWhile Marthame watched the mechanic at work, two Palestinian soldiers pulled up and asked the mechanic questions about him: "Is he Jewish? A settler? An Israeli?"
Read MoreMarthame's route took him down the Jordan Valley, which is where the brakes went out on the Citroen.
Read MoreEven though it's only half an hour's drive from Zababdeh, no one here can make the trip these days because of the closures (many can't even get to Ramallah), so several times we have found ourselves couriers for various things, including medicine and birthday presents.
Read MoreNow is peak beauty time in Palestine, and beautiful it is.
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The event was not without its sobering moment, though, as moments were taken to remember the mothers who had lost children during the Intifada.
Read MoreThis morning we met the head of the Bible Society of Jordan, snugly located in one of Amman's beautiful neighborhoods.
Read MoreAmman is an interesting mix between East and West. Clearly Arab and clearly a monarchy (King Abdallah's pictures are everywhere), nonetheless almost every street sign and storefront is bilingual - the years of British influence have clearly left their mark.
Read MoreWe have been hoping since we arrived that we would be able to visit some of the other Arab countries around us. One of the obstacles is the Israeli stamp in our passport. With the exception of Jordan and Egypt, no Arab country will accept a passport (or the person attached to it) that contains the Israeli stamp.
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