Saturday, September 29, 2007

28th September

28th September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

Today took me to Bethlehem again, where I taught in the morning.  Once I was finished, instead of making my usual journey back to Jerusalem I went north to Ramallah.  The journey from Bethlehem to Ramallah is beautiful.  It’s a scenic drive through desert-like landscapes on winding roads, passing through some villages that really seem to be ‘from another age’.
I have volunteered to take a one-hour class per week in Bethlehem called An Introduction to Music History, and I met with the other teachers who will be teaching the same course in the other two branches.  I say the same course - we’re each making up our own lessons, so we just have to make sure that we all cover what will be in the exams throughout the year.
After my meeting, I met up with some of the teachers who are based in Ramallah and we went out for a pizza together.  It was very nice to have a meal with friends, as it is something I love doing, and will hopefully make the effort to do it more often.
Yet again, I’m considering moving out of Jerusalem to Bethlehem.  It is so much cheaper that I could run a car, and the freedom to move between towns late at night would be a luxury.
I have my second Arabic lesson with my new teacher tomorrow, so must do some study as she’s quite tough.  Maybe, I’ll also learn about violin teaching from her.
Posted by Al at 14:35:45 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

26th September

26th September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

At some point soon, as we settle down into a routine now that the full-time programme has begun at the conservatory I expect the chaos to reduce, but today showed no signs of change in this direction.  Of the schedule that I was given at the start of the day, about 50 per cent of it was wrong, with gaps   that shouldn’t have been and with times where two people showed up together.  Apparently the cause of the problem is known and is being dealt with.
I’ve just heard on the World Service that the Israeli Defence Force have been in Gaza again today, killing eight Palestinians, at least three of whom are civilians – yet further moves towards an overt conflict, I believe.  While I’m on the subject of news, I found a great bookshop in East Jerusalem today that sells lots of current affairs books in English, many of which are on the subject of the Israel/Palestine issue.  I got a book that I’ve been looking out for called Drinking the Sea at Gaza by Amira Hass, the Israeli journalist who writes for Haartetz, and is unusual in that she lives in the Occupied Territories, currently in Ramallah I think.  It’s a well known book, and inspired a great film by John Pilger called Palestine is Still the Issue, which I first saw on youtube a year or two ago – although I now have my own copy, I hope it’s still on there as it’s really worth watching, if you are interested in the subject.
Posted by Al at 14:32:17 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

25th September

25th September 2007.

West Jerusalem.

I finally managed to arrange an Arabic lesson, so met with the teacher in a hotel in East Jerusalem at midday today.  It went well, although her method is to teach Arabic to English speakers using Arabic transliterated into English letters, which I’m not used to.  As soon as I become familiar with this it will help me to speak more quickly, but initially it’s confusing because all the words I’ve learned so far have been in the Arabic alphabet.  We have arranged another lesson for Saturday so it’s good that now I’m up and running with regular lessons again. Coincidentally, one of the administration staff has arranged informal group Arabic lessons for some of the new staff so it looks like I may be suddenly getting quite a lot of Arabic tuition – the more the merrier, I suppose.
Although today is my day off, I spent all afternoon in the conservatory because I had a little administration to carry out, and also had to deliver a couple of parcels that I brought back from Bethlehem yesterday.  The post service here seems to be more trouble than it’s worth so whenever things need taken between the branches we use staff members to carry them personally.
I had also arranged to do an interview over the phone for a local radio station about my concert when I’m back, so did that from the piece and quiet of my teaching room while I was there.
I’m writing this post from the internet cafe that I have started coming to most regularly, which is in West Jerusalem.  For the price of a coffee you can sit for as long as you like and use the free wireless, as the cafe is large enough that there are always free tables.  Around me sit the young and trendy of Israel, accompanied by their laptops - I suspect that I appear to fit in a little better than I might like to imagine.
Posted by Al at 23:53:21 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

23rd September

23rd September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

Well, after an uncomfortable night, I woke up this morning feeling a lot better than I had feared I would.
After a morning in the house, I went down to the area where the pre-1967 border used to lay to find the Museum on the Seam. According to the Lonely Planet Guide this is ‘not an amusing museum...does not have a happy ending...’ and deals with ‘conflict, prejudice, racism and (occasionally) coexistence.’ Sounding like just the thing for a Sunday afternoon, I was disappointed when I got there that it is shut until October 7th due the installation of a new exhibition. From the museum, I walked over to the market at Maheneh Yehuda in West Jerusalem and on the advice of a Jerusalemite friend of mine, had lunch there at a small Iraqi restaurant. Good advice is was too, as I enjoyed a very filling and tasty lunch.
Another teacher from the conservatory who was in Jerusalem for the day from Ramallah then called so we met for a coffee before wandering around then had a drink in a bar called Mike’s Place. Honestly, we could have been in the bar from any American B-movie. With the sound of an undignified middle-aged loudmouth sitting at the bar (wearing sunglasses inside, after sunset) combining with the noise from a group of American students asking to see the NFL on the television, it was about as relaxing as being awoken by a night-time break-in.
We thought it might be a good idea to make a trip up north next Sunday, to somewhere there are natural freshwater swimming pools, so will ask around this week to see who else is interested. It will be nice to do a bit of exploring outside of the three towns where my work is based, and the place we have in mind sounds amazing.
Posted by Al at 01:16:44 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

22nd September

22nd September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

As well as bringing most of Israel to a halt, Yom Kippur also put a stop to my teaching.  I now realise that organising lessons on this day is a mistake, as no one turned up.  Strangely though, none of them mentioned the forthcoming problem when I agreed their lesson times.
I spoke with the pianist I have been hoping will be able to do the recital with me when I am home in October, and he is able to do it.  I’m really looking forward to it now - it should be good fun as we are doing some really good repertoire and hopefully it will be a successful fundraising exercise.  I’m also excited by the prospect of getting even a few people talking about the situation here.
I’m feeling a little unwell tonight, so have stocked up a bit at one of the local shops, and am hoping to wake up tomorrow feeling ok.
Posted by Al at 01:11:58 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Sunday, September 23, 2007

21st September

21st September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

My journey to Bethlehem this morning was a little more difficult than usual. Yom Kippur starts tonight, so the Israeli Army is very much out and about. As I walked up the hill towards the Old City this morning amongst a group of about fifty Muslim Palestinians who had just come off a bus that wasn’t allowed any closer to the city, the sight of me with violin and laptop bag amongst the keffiyeh adorned and enrobed faithful was too much for one Israeli soldier. I assume boredom may well have had something to do with, but I was stopped for a couple of minutes while my bag was searched, luckily not too closely as I had said I didn’t speak Arabic and wasn’t looking forward to them finding my teaching notes, and my violin inspected. As I have found with most of the Israeli Army personnel, they were very curt with me to begin with, but soon warmed up, and wished me a pleasant stay in Israel as I left. When asked whether I was enjoying Israel, I only mentioned half the truth and said, “I love it!” It was neither the time nor the place for the ‘but’.
As I emerged from the Bethlehem checkpoint on the West Bank side I was met with the sight of an empty road, fifty metres down which was an Israeli Army roadblock and on the other side of that there were several hundred, if not a thousand Palestinians. Friday prayers are a time when many West Bankers go to Jerusalem to pray at Al Aqsa Mosque, but due to Yom Kippur no Palestinians were being allowed to cross the checkpoint. Both of my taxi drivers both from and back to the checkpoint complained about this obstruction to their ability to exercise their religion by the religious festival of the ‘other side’. Needless to say, it wasn’t the time for holiday snaps, so my photo at the wall will have to wait.
I went to the Old City to spend some time online today as everything in West Jerusalem is closed, and met with a guy I’ve seen a few times who is in Jerusalem researching a PHD at the Hebrew University. Two of his friends later joined us, and we went up onto the roof of his hotel. The sight of the Old City at night was quite something.
One of his friends, I’d like to meet again as she’s here from South Africa working for a Christian Zionist organisation in Israel. Many people are now making comparisons between the South African Apartheid regime and the Israeli government so I’d love to ask her a few questions about that. She’s bound to have some interesting perspectives on it, being from inside the former and supporting the latter. Tact will be the order of the day for that one, I suspect.

Posted by Al at 22:57:59 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

20th September

20th September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

My meeting with Heather went well, as my ideas were received enthusiastically. I’m now going to make first contact with the institutions I have in mind before handing over to Heather to work on the project. So, if you are in a position to instigate an appropriate scheme where you work then speak now, or forever hold your peace!
Afterwards I taught a couple of students before downloading to my computer the reports of Medical Aid for Palestinians from the last three years, which I’m flicking through in preparation for putting together some publicity for a fund-raising recital I’m hoping to do while I am back in Oban in October. A few choice facts and figures are never a bad idea when trying to represent the reality of life here.
I am also struggling to arrange some Arabic lessons here in Palestine – you would think it wouldn’t be a hard thing to do, but it was much easier in London. Although through practice I’m getting better at the little I already know, I’m not really learning much new so I need to fix up some lessons as soon as I can.
I’m going back to Bethlehem tomorrow and will try to take the opportunity to get a photograph of me at the wall, for a ‘context photo’ that can be used for my concert in Oban. I’ll need to be sensitive about it though, as many Palestinians resent the attention the wall attracts.
It is hard to imagine what this land was like before the wall was built and it’s also difficult to believe that it was built only in 2002 – it seems so permanent. At eight metres high it nearly always totally cuts off the other side from view. It’s a very contentious thing, and I’ll go into it in more depth another time, but the divisions it exacerbates can be made clear by noting that to the Israelis it is known as the ‘Security Fence’, yet to the Palestinians it is known as the ‘Separation Wall’, or even the ‘Apartheid Wall’. One thing is for sure though; as you will see from the photo, it is definitely more than a fence! However, it should also be said that neither is it a wall for it’s entire length.

Like it’s Berlin predecessor, it has become a place for artistic comment, with contributions from various well-known artists and celebrities alongside those of everyday, frustrated Palestinians.  The above painting I believe is by British artist Banksy.

Posted by Al at 22:44:47 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Thursday, September 20, 2007

19th September

19th September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

After I had taught for a few hours this afternoon, I hooked up my computer to the internet connection in the library of the Jerusalem branch where we then spent some ‘quality time’ together. I caught up on some of the news, which was a little depressing. Ironically, because I’m here and a little more out of touch than I have been in the past, I know less of what’s going on than usual.
It seems that Jerusalem is being graced my Condoleezza Rice at present, here to talk peace. It also turns out that Israel has just declared Gaza a ‘hostile entity’ – I don’t think it’ll have much immediate effect as Israel has been treating Gaza as one for a while now anyway, but it does show a possible willingness for invasion. Recently 69 Israeli troops were injured by a rocket attack from Gaza, and since then there has been an appetite for doing something about the worsening situation there.
Bad news from Lebanon too, yet another anti-Syrian member of parliament assassinated in Beirut. That’s one to watch, as it’s also an area ripe for implosion.
I’m meeting with Heather at the conservatory tomorrow to put forward some ideas I have of setting up some collaboration between the ESNCM and various schools, colleges or universities back home in the UK. I’d like to be able to show the students here that there are people just like them, doing the same thing as them elsewhere. Moreover, I’d like to show some young people in the UK that there are kids just like them, doing the same thing as them, but in a place they can’t leave and that’s why they are having to send an internet broadcast, rather than organise a tour.
Posted by Al at 20:57:19 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

18th September

18th September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

Today I went to the conservatory early and called some of the students to arrange some lesson times for tomorrow and Saturday. It’s a little more difficult at the moment as a result of Ramadan, but still relatively easy to sort out. I had to make sure however that on Saturday I don’t schedule any students who have to travel through a checkpoint as they will all be closed on Friday evening for about 24 hours due to the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur. Even this is easily worked around though so it wasn’t too time consuming.
I then walked over to West Jerusalem to go to a second-hand bookshop I’ve seen a couple of times. Most books were in Hebrew but there was a shelf or two of English books and I found one that interested me so bought it before going for some lunch nearby to make a start on it. It’s a book of short essays by various people on subjects as diverse as ‘On the dignity or meanness of human nature’ by David Hume to potato crisp making! It’s a great book to dip into for a half hour, here or there.
I did more exploring around West Jerusalem today than I have before, and it really is a nice part of town. If you want a chilled out atmosphere, with people hanging out in coffee shops, bars or eating food sitting outside little restaurants or fast (but good) food outlets, then it has it all. There’s a style to it as well, perhaps something even a little chic. The prize for the most surprising sight of the day however goes to the Iran Bazaar, on the trendy Ben Yehuda Street just past a very good falafel and shawarma place called Moshiko - it unassumingly supplies all manner of Iranian merchandise from rugs to teapots. What an example of the entrepreneurial spirit!
Posted by Al at 23:03:57 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

17th September

17th September 2007.

East Jerusalem.

The old saying Look after the pennies, and the pounds will look after themselves is true in many ways. What brings that to mind is the state of Palestine’s streets – they are without exception, covered in rubbish. Whether it’s just a few small things like plastic bags and cigarette ends, or what looks like entire rubbish tips left to rot in the sun, it’s a strange sight for someone used to the tidiness of Europe. I’ve also seen three unattended skips on fire on the pavement in the last two days.
But what is the reason for this? Is it that the state lacks the resources to tidy the streets? Or is it that nobody cares? Perhaps a bit of both, but I can’t help thinking that some street cleaning wouldn’t break the bank – also it would help if people didn’t throw down their rubbish with such constant abandon. In a similar way to when you have a tidy desk, surely everyone would think a little more clearly if their paths were not constantly blighted by obstruction.
When I was in Ramallah a few days ago with Ata from the conservatory, he seemed to agree; ‘the people here are very generous, very warm-hearted. But why do they litter? They don’t care about it – it makes me ashamed of being Palestinian that our country is such a mess. I never drop litter, and I never use my horn.’ The use of the car horn here is a story for another time, but he clearly feels strongly about the state of the streets. Maybe the saying could be reissued for Palestine; Take care of your country, and your country will take care of itself.
Posted by Al at 22:43:08 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |
1 2 3