The Truth Of Traveling In Palestine

BY MIA GIFFORD

In 2018, I had the opportunity to travel to Israel and Palestine and it was one of the most pivotal experiences of my life. I went with a group of students from my local Lutheran church in Minneapolis to learn about the decades-long conflict between Israel and Palestine by talking to leaders from both communities, immersing ourselves in their cultures and exploring the land where they have resided for centuries. While we spent our nights in Jerusalem, we traveled into Palestine each morning where I met the kindest people, ate the most delicious food and learned more about resilience, patience, and respect in two weeks than I had in my previous 19 years of life.

The idea of traveling to Israel and Palestine was nervewracking, as I couldn’t forget the horrific stories of confrontations between Israel and Palestine portrayed on television. However, by the end of our trip, I didn’t want to leave.

Woven into the fabric of immense hardship and sadness was inspiring resilience and hope. The locals we encountered could have pushed us away and made us feel unwelcome, but they did the exact opposite, leaving me with memories I’ll hold on to forever. Here are some of my favorite moments in Palestine.

Aida Refugee Camp

Our first stop was Aida Refugee Camp which is named after a woman who owned a coffee shop in the same location when the camp was built in the 1950s. As we walked through the narrow alleys lined with three-story makeshift buildings, we learned about life in the camp. With being placed under curfew enforced by the Israeli army, having your movements restricted and keeping water in a tank on the roof that was filled monthly - life in the camp was extremely difficult. Despite this, the families of Aida opened their homes to our privileged, white American group, feeding us piles of rice and chicken—the best I had ever had—and answering our every question. The residents of Aida showed us kindness and respect rather than resenting us for all that we had compared to them, teaching me that beauty and love can be found in the darkest of places.

H2 Area of Hebron, Palestine

Hebron is divided into two areas, H1 and H2; H1 is controlled by Palestine and H2 by Israel. The 350,000 Palestinians in H2 are under military rule and face extreme restrictions in their ancestral homeland. Hebron is among the top places to avoid when traveling to Israel and Palestine as an American due to its high militarization, but our group sought to gain a better understanding of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. After going through an armed gate to reach the Palestinian side of H2, we were told to be prepared for hostile words from the Palestinians due to our obvious look as Americans.

“I LEARNED MORE ABOUT RESILIENCE, PATIENCE, AND RESPECT IN TWO WEEKS THAN I HAD IN MY PREVIOUS 19 YEARS OF LIFE.”

Only one person spoke negatively about America to us. The rest either looked at us curiously or welcomed us to buy from their stores and hear their stories. In such a highly militarized zone supported by America, one would have expected a more hostile experience, but the Palestinians here showed me that the people of a country are not equal to their government. Judging someone based on what their country has done without getting to know the person creates unnecessary bias and limits opportunities for rewarding relationships to blossom.

MIA GIFFORD, PALESTINE

Ibrahim Mosque, Hebron, Palestine

Of all the incredible experiences I had in Palestine, the visit that ingrained itself into my very being was our trip to the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, Palestine. Despite this mosque’s dark history of being attacked by a white Israeli immigrant in 1994, resulting in 29 deaths and 125 wounded, its people opened their doors to our group of white, American Christians.

The horrors they experienced did not stop them from smiling genuinely at us as we passed through or sharing their sacred space. The worshippers at Ibrahim could have been wary of every white person that walked through the doors, particularly as bullet holes were still visible in the walls where they prayed. Instead, they accepted that the actions of one person does not define the whole group.

Even though it’s cheesy to call something life changing, there is no other way to describe my time in Israel and Palestine. Despite the tension between the Israelis and Palestinians, I have never felt more at home. Since that summer, I have consistently worn a necklace with a Hamsa pendant from Bethlehem, Palestine. Considered to be the woman’s holy hand that is meant to protect the wearer from evil, it reminds me everyday of the resilient people I met and the lessons they taught me. I hope to return to Palestine one day and encourage everyone to visit this beautiful land to experience its culture and complex history.

MIA GIFFORD, PALESTINE