The new Imperial Hotel where we are staying in Jerusalem is an iconic colonial era building at Jaffa gate, just inside the walls of the old city. The owners of the hotel, the Dajani family, an old Jerusalemite Christian Palestinian family ( whose family tree goes back to 1492) have been engaged in a 20…

Our first outing today – a walking tour of the old city led by Mahmoud. We visited the Christian, Armenian and Muslim quarters, and within those the German, Spanish, Egyptian, Kurdish, African areas (and more). Despite being born here and spending his life here he is unable to hold a passport and can only get…

Yesterday we had a tour of Jerusalem, guided by Khalil from Grassroots Al quds ( Al quds is the Palestinian name for Jerusalem). Khalil is a lawyer and activist who was born in his grandfather’s house inside the Al aqsa compound, and he expertly guided us through a historical, political and cultural explanation of life…

On Thursday night we went for a wonderful meal at the ‘sunset’ restaurant Shams Al Asseel in the Makhrool Valley.  We were hosted by Josie and Hazem and their two children.  We were also joined by Shirabe, who is involved with the women’s scholarship fund, and Dhalia who is one of the scholarship young women. …

      This is the link for the online gallery at the Walled Off Hotel.  Some amazing art by Palestinian artists and a special exhibition of work by artists living in Gaza.  When the exhibition is over, any unsold work will have to go into storage because they can’t get it back into Gaza……

On Wednesday afternoon we travelled by bus to Checkpoint 300, the entrance to Bethlehem and the route taken each day by tens of thousands of Palestinian men who have permits to travel into Jerusalem and Israel for work. Onward by taxi alongside the Apartheid wall to stay in the Al rowwad guesthouse in Aida Refugee…

In a tranquil spot overlooking the valley in Bethlehem sits the Palestine Institute for Biodiversity and Sustainability, also home to the Palestinian Museum of Natural History – ‘an oasis of for people and wildlife in a place of conflict and rapid transformation’.  It is an urban farm on dry stony terraced land. There is a…

Baktub Esmek Ya Bladi (I wrote your name my country), about a longing for your homeland, for those displaced by the Nakba and Intifadas (originally Lebanese), by Eli Shwiri.

Something about children in Palestine from my first visit here… we have met a number of adults who have said they are worried about their kids – many young people feel there is no future for them and no-one cares about what is happening to them and this could lead them to be careless of…

Yesterday we travelled to Hebron along a new road cut into Palestinian farmland. I hope one of us will write about the roads here, about the brand new Israeli roads that Palestinians are forbidden to use and of course that includes ambulances. It’s all part of the big plan: build infrastructure to facilitate settlers whilst…

Sunday was certainly a day of contrasts.  We spent most of our time at the Lajee Centre,  a lively cultural and community centre at the edge of Aida Refugee Camp.  The director, Mohammed, and his staff team and volunteers work really hard to provide a welcoming, safe, calm environment for all members of the community. …

Safely arrived at beautiful Sebastia, in a gorgeous old guest house. However, a slightly eventful trip involving a breakdown, being towed a little bit and then our wonderful Sebastia host sent another minibus. A 2 hour journey lasted 5!

Yesterday we bade a sad farewell to the friends we made in Aida Camp and visited Dheisheh Camp, also in Bethlehem. Originally designed for 3,000 people, there are now 15,000 crammed into an area of less than 1 sq km. We were hosted by our friend Hazem at the Shoruq Centre, whose mission is to…

We spent Tuesday in beautiful ancient Sebastia 10km from Nablus. Woke to the delicious aroma of fresh filled breads being baked but then soon heard the terrible news of the morning: 6 young Palestinians killed in the dawn raid by the Israeli Occupation Forces on Nablus. I saw the BBC report about ‘gunmen’. I find…

Yesterday our group went to visit the Jordan Valley.  Our host there was part of Jordan Valley Solidarity. I have read a lot about how Israeli settlers stole water from the Palestinians but seeing it with your own eyes is different.  Water is yet another weapon used by the Israeli state to force Palestinians off…

While others joined the olive harvest, a couple of us took the opportunity to visit SEEDS in Nablus (we were advised it was safe). Our original plan involved us performing in the ‘Garden of Unity’ a space where people of Muslim, Christian and Samaritan faith can come together. Raed, the Director, talked of being in…

What a joy it was to spend Thursday afternoon olive picking!  After the intense rollercoaster of experiences and emotions of our trip so far, it was great to be out in beautiful countryside, sharing songs and laughter with each other and the farmer, his wife and friend.  We cleared two trees in the short time…

On Thursday morning we managed to fit in two joyful singing sessions with children in Sebastia. First stop was a kindergarten not far from the guest house, funded by Save The Children USA, and full of excited children in traditional Palestinian dress, taking part in a cultural day. As ever we had a warm welcome…

We had a wonderful experience performing at the Liwan Cultural Centre in Nazareth. You can watch the recording on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CkThyIOqXbq/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY= 

At the Nasijona Centre Nazareth.  Throughout Israel the teaching of true Palestinian history in schools is not allowed, but this academic year this has been extended to the whole of Jerusalem, including raids on schools by Israeli forces to check. The children are taught the land was empty before 1948, so they are being ‘indoctrinated’…

We went to Adalah, a Human Rights Organisation in Haifa:  https://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/7189 They do incredible work fighting legal cases against house demolitions, evictions and many other issues. It can be soul destroying work but they do have tiny victories. They knew about the campaign in the UK to shut Elbit down and told us how much it…

On Sunday we had a very moving trip to a destroyed village just outside Nazareth. It was called Saffuriya. It had been a thriving village before 1948. In ’48 it was attacked and almost completely demolished; some of the villagers were killed and the rest fled. 532 villages and towns were destroyed in ’48.  The…

Our trip is almost over, 11 of us are currently traveling back to the UK; four are staying on to do volunteer work (read more here). Our stay in ’48 (Palestinian name for Israel) has been very different to the other places we have stayed in. When you are there it is easy to think…