First Days
My first day
in Abu Dis opened my eyes to so much already. I was introduced to the local coordinator who showed me Dar Assadaqa and took me to Falafel King, the local eating
place. They served me the most amazing humus I ever had in my life and I can’t
even describe the pain that hit me when I realised I would never taste anything
like this back home. We headed on to Al Quds University which as only up the
road. Entering the university from the streets of Abu Dis is like casually
stepping onto another planet. Abu Dis is a very poor town whose situation has
greatly deteriorated since the construction of the separation wall divided it
from Jerusalem ten years ago. Many of the streets are in disrepair and
littered, the walls are crumbling. By contrast, the university is modern,
bright, clean and well maintained. It’s also extremely beautiful. The buildings
are white and spacious and surrounded by trees and gardens, such as the
AndalucĂa garden. There are also small cafes and drink stalls dotted around the
grounds where the students sit and socialise and sip ice coffees or fruit
cocktails. I am informed that the university is maintained with donations from
the Gulf countries and wealthy Palestinian business men.
Andalusia Gardens, Al Quds University |
Ramallah |
In the student advice office I meet a whole
group of interesting people. One young man is in charge of an animal rights
project that’s being developed, the Palestinian Animal League. That initiatives
like these are being built despite all of the problems that this country has been
facing for generations is really heart-warming to me. It’s obvious that all the
young people want is to build a country for the future generations. There’s a
lot of support for the Communist party here in Abu Dis and I can’t help but
wonder whether an alternative political system that failed so badly in Europe
might actually be a promising contender in a place like Palestine. It’s an
interesting possibility.
Birzeit |
I leave
Ramallah feeling positive. I really like this place, although I feel like there’s
still much more to discover here.
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