Where is the heart? Some thoughts on spiritual tourism

Mary-tyn. Two Marys – in my mother in law’s garden with her and her friend.

Bashir and I were able to make it out of Palestine easy peasy.  Once Bashir procurred the needed permits, it all went downhill from there. As in, we went down hill to the Dead Sea, past the checkpoints, past the Bedouin who are about to be forceably relocated from their homes, past Jericho the oldest city in the world (10,000 years old) and then into the border crossing to Jordan.

We spent a night in Jordan, and had an easy flight out to Turkey.  We have spent the last week in Turkey and Greece soaking in the sun.

But of course my heart is there in the Levant.  My heart never fully returns home to California.  A part of my heart always stays behind.  It stays with the sunrise in Jordan, hanging out there with the moon in the dry desert sky.  It stays in the call of the muzzein beckoning the faithful to prayer.  It stays in the fresh za’attar, the bread of Abu Fouad, the morning cups of coffee with my hamati Mary and her friends.  These parts of my heart stay here even when I physically leave, because it is here that I feel alive, free and yet connected on a soul level.

Every trip to Palestine is unique in its own way.  This trip, my 5th, was a return after one year.  So, in some ways it felt like an immediate return to a land I love.  I am no longer a tourist or casual observer here. I am married to a Palestinian man and now have Palestinian family.  I also have my own personal relationship with the region that runs at a much deeper level.

I cannot say exactly why every trip to Palestine is important to me.  But it is.  Part of the reason is that these trips are always a spiritual pilgrimage.  The definition of a pilgrimage varies, but it always includes a trip of of spiritual significance.  A pilgrimage usually involves supplication and internal reflection for specific spiritual purposes. While yoga is not a religion, to shares the religious value of embarking on path even when that path is difficult.  My time in the Middle East always has a pattern that gets me out of the mundane tasks and into the important aspects of pilgrimage: prayerful activities, self-reflection, and communion toward my spiritual self.

My favorite poster, from the Singer Cafe in Beit Sahour

This part of the Middle East has been the site of pilgrimage for millennium.  It is, after all, the Holy Land.  The idea of the Holy Land is that it is a spiritual vortex, a place where the line between heaven and earth is much more porous, where the divisions between us and ourselves are much thinner.  Many people come to live in this place out of spiritual beliefs.  But the yamas and niyamas are missing these days in the Holy Land.  Instead, their rivals are here in full force:  anger, violence, misunderstanding and oppression that is experienced by all people on all sides, in varying degrees.

The Israeli government has, in many ways, made the concept of spiritual pilgrimage a modern-day farce.  Tourists come to the Holy Land, hoping for some sort of a deeper connection to themselves by visiting the important sites. Unfortunately, most tours to the Holy Land these days herd people on and off buses before they have a chance to meet any locals, much less commune with them. More time is spent in stores then in prayer or self-reflection.  Even the tours that are marketed as spiritual pilgrimage focus on consumerism and materialism, separating visitors from the locals and taking them to places that have been set up as modern day replicas rather than actually bringing people to the original holy sites.

I have always tried to be different kind of a tourist.  I have visited the Holy Cities of the world, Benares, Rome. Bodhgaya in search of a connection to something both within me, higher then myself and yet universal.   I walk the streets of Hebron, Silwan, and Bethlehem in the same way.  I talk to as many locals as I can.  I go to the churches, the mosques, the places of prayer that are still alive with living parishioners.  I engage in volunteer activities.  It is important to be a witness when you are on a pilgrimage, to be in communion with others.

Traveling abroad is one way that we can find our own spiritual selves because we are forced to explore the yamas and niyamas in new and unfamiliar ways.  One place where this is discussed in the Kairos Document, a document written about spiritual tourism by Palestinian Christians.  Though what I am talking about it shared by all spiritual seekers of all kinds.  What I am talking about is a connection to my soul.  A part of my soul is always here in Palestine.  This place with Jerusalem at its center has been the navel of spiritual thought for millennium.  And as a yogi, I am part of this.

Always here, I get great nourishment out of my communion with others, my time at the spiritual sights, and my personal yoga practice practice.  I get time to walk my soul’s path.

The view of a once thriving part of Bethlehem, just a few steps away from the nicest hotel in town.

A part of my soul’s path has to witness the suffering of the Palestinian people, to understand the causes that underlie this suffering because it does relate to the suffering of all people. We all read the papers and have some general notion that there is a problem between Israelis and Palestinians.  But how many Americans actually understand what is actually happening here?  And why it is happening here?

I have not done an adequate job at explaining what I have seen, because it would just sound trite and not do an adequate job at providing justice to those who shared their stories with me.  You have to come and see the wall for yourself!  You have to meet people on both sides of the wall and understand their stories.  I have never wanted to be a writer, there are many people who are more articulate then me about the conditions here.  I recommend you subscribe to sources like +972 Magazine for getting the real scoop.

One thing that I can do is encourage all of my readers to come and visit.  See this amazing place for yourself!

What else can I do to support the Palestinian cause?

(excerpt from the Kairos Document)

* Pray for justice in the region.

* Support our appeals by distributing and sharing them with your own churches, congregations and dioceses to inform and educate your sisters and brothers about the situation of your Palestinian brethren living under Israeli occupation.

* Send letters of solidarity and support for justice in Palestine/Israel to the Israeli embassies in your own country. For further information, see: www.allembassies.com/israeli_embassies.htm.

* Come and see. We pledge to share the truth of our reality with you, receiving you as pilgrims coming to pray; carrying a message of peace, love and reconciliation. You will know the facts and the people of this land, Palestinians and Israelis alike (Kairos Document 6.2).

* Raise awareness about the root causes of the conflict, the rights of Palestinians, and the need to build a right-based political vision for peace-making. Study and educate others about Israel’s system of occupation which prevents the self-determination of the Palestinian people and constitutes the root cause of Israel’s systematic and protracted policy of forcible population transfer; likewise, seek to correct erroneous and prejudicial misconceptions of the Palestinian reality.

* Encourage your community to engage in concrete measures of solidarity with the Palestinian people and in concrete initiatives toward peace with justice. Join the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Campaign (BDS) and undertake political measures that put pressure on Israel and other decision-makers until they respect their legal obligations to the Palestinian people, including the refugees. Likewise, urge communities in which you participate (church-related, business-related, academic or otherwise) to support the BDS campaign by divesting from companies that directly or indirectly support the illegal Israeli Occupation.

* Expand community-led advocacy work that intensifies public pressure toward Israel’s accountability to international law. Churches, church-related organizations and civil society, particularly human rights organizations and legal experts, should continue efforts toward investigating and prosecuting Israeli perpetrators of international crimes and other complicit individuals/institutions. Promote the application of universal legal principles and best practice to foster robust mechanisms that will bring Israel into compliance with international law.

* Promote accountability of Israeli suspects of international crimes in domestic courts. States parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention have a legal obligation to investigate and prosecute perpetrators of war crimes in the territory under their jurisdiction.

Iyengar Yoga in Palestine

It seems that I am the first person to teach Iyengar Yoga in Palestine.  What a thrill!

On this trip, I taught two weekend workshops.  The first is at Farashe Yoga Center, located in the heart of Ramallah, the other at Beit Ashams in Beit Jala.

Some of you may remember my plans from last year.  This was second visit to Farashe.  Last year, I gave them several copies of the preliminary course and promised that I would come back if they practiced.  And they did!  So I came back!

I taught a two-day workshop at Farashe.  The first day was a co-ed class open to men and women from around Palestine that have participated in Farashe’s teacher training programs.  Most of the participants were yoga teachers and serious students living in Ramallah, the staff and board members of Farashe.  One participant was from a refugee camp outside of Hebron who was using yoga to help him from chonic pain.

The second day was for women only.  This class drew from a completely different sector of Palestinian society – women from Nablus and surrounding villages took the long drive to Farashe (Pictured here).  The whole session was translated by Suheir, and the women absorbed every word.

The first day, I taught mostly in English with no translator.  We covered all the categories of poses and got into some of the more tricky asana like arm balances.  In the afternoon, we had teacher education where I zeroed in on some of the concepts that those in Iyengar are familiar with – order of instruction, hands on adjustments and learning to see.  It was great fun and very meaningful. I taught poses that were new to the students, and I saw many light bulbs get switched on.  Students told me they felt light and energized, ready to practice at home and receive the benefits of yoga in even more meaningful ways.

The second day, I focused on women’s health.  We covered major concepts related to how a woman should practice throughout her life: adolescence, menstruation, pregnancy, menopause and beyond.  This group of ladies was very interested in how yoga can overcome trauma.  For example, we talked about what poses to do while standing at checkpoints (Urdhva Hastasana, Baddha Anguliasana, Urdva Prasarita Padasana) And, what poses can help you keep your calm in other adverse situations. Many of the women work in hospitals and refugee camps.  They asked questions about how to take care of themselves, their families and at work when they are in very stressful situations dealing with people who are in states of immediate trauma.  I could offer no magic bullets, only what I have learned from the Iyengar family and my own practice.

Part of the Wall in Bethlehem

We did most of the session using the wall for the standing poses.  Regular Iyengar practitioners know that the wall provides stability and support.  It can help an “addled brain” feel safe and steady.  So it can be really nice for people who are feeling unsure, or not able to feel their own body.  And, for people that don’t have the regular direction of a seasoned teacher, the wall can be a very good guide.

One problem with using the wall so much is that in Palestine, the term “the wall” has very bad connotations.  In Palestine, if you mention a wall, the first thing we all think of is the Apartheid Wall.  Known by many outside of the region as the “separation barrier”, inside Palestine we all know what it is.  The Apartheid Wall surrounds the West Bank, cutting people off from their land, their water, their families and schools.  It has been a disastrous component of the Occupation, and ruined all aspects of life for every Palestinian.  So it was very hard for me talk about using the wall for support and stability.  But there is no other word for it, and the students knew what wall I was walking about.

Both times at Farashe have been very special.  Certainly, the students completely understand the value of yoga in their lives.  There is a level of commitment to the practice because they understand its power.  They understand its physical and spiritual components.  We were able to spent time talking about how the yoga practice can serve as a type of prayer to bring serenity in very trying times.  It can bring both stability and stamina to all of us, when we need it most – if we practice!

The second weekend I taught in Bethlehem at Beit Shams in Beit Jala, a town very close to Bethlehem.  Beit Shams just opened, its so new they don’t have their website or schedule finished yet.  But that doesn’t matter, the yoga teachers of that area managed to get nearly 30 students on the first night!

The demographic that came to this workshop was completely different then at Farashe.  Most were young and strong – types that go to the gym and regularly work out.  We had lots of men in the class, and plenty with big muscles.  That was fun!  This group was clearly drawn to yoga as a form of exercise.  But trust me, they were tuckered out by all of Geeta’s arm work!

The second day of the workshop at Beit Shams was much smaller – it was a Sunday which is a workday for many.  But a smaller class is often best for people who are at a more beginner level.  Thanks to the incredible Nahed Bendak, a local teacher, we had fantastic props.  Nahed has been collecting proper chairs, bolsters and blankets for years.  That combined with Pune belts I brought from home made a wonderfully complete set.  The students had requested back bends as the theme for the weekend.  So the first day, we did back care.  We focused on poses to help you take care of your back.  That is super important because we all know that when we are stressed out, our back hurts!

The second day we were able to get into more typical backbends. They learned lots of new poses, and we had some nice laughs when it came time for camel pose.  This Setubanda on the chair was incredible!  Everyone was so well prepared that they achieved deep and lasting quiet in the pose.  It was so beautiful.

Teaching in Palestine has a completely different flavor then teaching in the United States.  In the US, students have so many choices about how they spend their time, and where they wanted to study.  Basic freedoms are a given.

In Palestine, people’s movement is restricted.  Yoga gives people back some of that freedom to move, it gives them some space inside.

Because literally people cannot travel, they do have to wait for training to come to them. There are occasional visitors to Palestine that come with skills, but there are no full time Palestinian yoga teachers with more than 1,000 hours of training.  That means that there is not a lot of resources for people to learn about yoga, that I can tell.  Certainly, yoga is hugely popular.  The world is small and Palestinians definitely know that yoga is the hip thing to do!  But for most people who are interested in the subject, their direct contact with yoga is limited to pop culture, and not actual practice.

On this trip, I made sure to focus on poses that can help people develop their home practice.  After class, there was some diligent note taking.  One student sent his drawings (pictured here).

I think it is important for people to come to Palestine, to see what is happening.  Palestine is an amazing area, its spiritual energy is palpable.  Spiritual pilgrims have been coming here for thousands of years, and I am no different.  These days, Palestinians often feel that the world has forgotten the actual people that are here.  It is always important for me to be a witness.  Teaching yoga is one way I have of both being a witness to people’s bodies and spirits.  And, it is a way that I can give people something tangible that encourages self-empowerment.  Many, many NGOs and organizations of all kinds come to Palestine with projects that ultimately make no difference at all, or cause more harm than good.  It is important to see the actual suffering happening, and to consider what we can do to alleviate it.  My hope is that with my regular visits to the region people will develop a home practice – and the community will develop its corp of professional teachers – so that yoga can make tangible progress in helping people improve their own lives.

 

Passportayn and a few more complaints?

In Arabic, anything that is two has the suffic “ayn” as in “Marhabtayn” or two hellos to you my fine friend!

So good news – Bashir is the proud owner of two passports again! Which is a really good thing because the American consulate got back to us after several days silence. What they told us was the lamest thing ever.  They sent some standard language about when traveling in this region, one has to take into account the potential hazards, and how we needed to make arrangements on our own. It made me sooooo mad to see the American government absolutely sit on its hands like this.  I am once again rather ashamed of my government, and am tempted to go on and on about how awful the situation is here.  Because now that we have two passports doesn’t mean we are going anywhere.  We still have to get permits to go with the passports.

On the other hand, I am very much contemplating this whole issue of complaining.  It is a national pastime of the Palestinian people to sit around and talk about the sad state of affairs.  And truly, the situation here is a very sad state of affairs.  The Palestinians have been forced into a culture of complaining and analysis.  The economy is in shambles, the once rich social fabric has become a tattered shroud, there is a complete lack of freedom of movement.  In general people feel harassed and under duress daily.  It is incredibly important to talk about with each other.  It is also a huge waste of energy to spend time hashing and rehashing situations, planning and replanning things when there are many more productive ways we could spend our time. At some point doesn’t one have to stop complaining so much?

I am thinking about this.  I have noticed that you my dear readers are appreciating all the posts, but its the food posts that you are enjoying most.  Why is that? Well who does like food stories?  It gets us away from our daily problems.  Talking about the situation here, at some point starts to feel less like the processing of information and more like gossip?

I have found a few alternatives to the complaints, and I am inspired.  I have been reading this incredible magazine called “This Week in Palestine“.  It has been a regular magazine for nearly 20 years, but in my recent trips I have seen the magazine get better and better.  Every issue has a theme about Palestinian society.  And, rather than complaining about the situation, they document when is actually happening – past present and future – in many crevices of Palestinian culture.

For example, The most recent issue was on the disappearing trades of Palestine.  Next time I visit, I am going to go out and buy myself a tarboosh, a pair of sabot (wooden shoes) and buy a new wool comforter! Some people call the editors of “This Week in Palestine,” the “eternal optimists” but to me they are the only folks who have stopped complaining and have started to think about solutions for every day life.  When I finish this post, I am going to read the issue on the Palestinian economy.  I started the first two pages, where it describes each of the cities in their own economic microcosm, the effects of the efforts to boycott Israeli products, and what we readers can do to understand and support our brothers and sisters.  All of the articles are written by extremely well educated and talented professionals – some of whom I have met on past trips.  In addition to the articles, even the advertising is interesting.  I have learned from the magazine about a huge variety of events and museums that I can go to.

Rather than sit around an complain about my problems, This Week in Palestine is encouraging me to get up and stop my complaining. Thank you This Week in Palestine and thank you dear readers.  Stay tuned, I have more stories to tell.

Assistance Needed for American Citizen to Cross into Jordan‏

Well, the American passport for Bashir has arrived in Jerusalem as promised.  Zippety zap.  Today we go to pick it up, provided we can find a way in, since he is not legally allowed to enter.

The Palestinian passport is now the main problem.  They are not issuing passports at this time, they haven’t been for the last 5 weeks. It could be 45 days till he is able to get one, that is how long they say it takes to replace a lost passport!

Bashir cannot get out of Palestine without his passport. We are supposed to leave in exactly one week. Inquiring minds want to know: will we be stranded here?

There is no one better suited to describe the politics of this infuriating situation then my brilliant husband.  He wrote to the American Consul in Israel and Jordan to appeal for help in getting him out of Palestine.  We are waiting to hear back. I recommend you read his letter line by line, and digest each sentence.  The sentences are short, but their meaning is profound. Really it is pathetic what is happening here.

“Dear Consul General of the United States in Jerusalem:

This is a request for a letter from your Excellency addressed to the Jordanian Authorities at the King Hussein Bridge to allow me safe passage into Jordan on my American Passport. Please reference my name in the American Passport “Barry Anastas” and my passport no. issued by the Jerusalem Consulate in the past few days. Please copy the U.S. ambassadors in Amman and Tel Aviv if you deem it appropriate.

Background:

My wife and I arrived in Amman from San Francisco on the 29th of April and after a short visit in Jordan, we attempted entry into Israel on May 2nd.  I had entered Jordan on a Palestinian passport and my wife, Heather Haxo Phillips, on her American passport. This was our fifth visit via the King Husseing bridge as a married couple.

—[My note: You know the story from here, so I skip to the part you don’t know]—-

While Heather was waiting for me in Amman to add her to my Israel ID, I went to visit Jerusalem on the last day I had a permit to visit and forgot my backpack with my American and Palestinian passports on the train near Damascus Gate. I immediately sought the assistance of the Consulate staff who were courteous and helpful and I will be heading tomorrow to collect my new passport from the consulate.

 

Replacing the Palestinian passport is proving to be an ordeal. It appears that (a) there is a longer process for replacing lost as opposed to expired passports; and (b) there are not many blank passports available because the PA is transitioning to chipped passports and changing providers/is in dispute with the current provider.”

[Note:  Yes he is saying that they don’t have a process for replacing lost passports!  It is true!  And you may wonder what this “dispute with the current provider” is about. We understand it is in part that the Palestinian officials ordered new passports to say State of Palestine.  The Israelis will not allow this change, wanting it to say Palestine Authority. We also understand it is because the Palestinian Authority did not pay its bills.  Why did it not pay its bills?  For many reasons, one being that the Israeli government is withholding the money from tax collection as punishment for one thing and another.  Regardless, they are at a complete stalemate, with the people suffering in between.  Bashir was in line at the administration building with many people in dire situations, waiting to be allow to go for medical treatment in Jordan, waiting to be reunited with family in other countries, etc.]

 

“I have travel plans starting early Wednesday the 27th in Jordan (meaning I will cross on Monday the 25th) with 3 flights in Turkey and the main flight back home – all non- refundable. I also have commitments back home relating to business and housing. I explained all this to the PA staff dealing with passports and am awaiting a reply but was also told it is a minimum 45 day waiting period. 

 

I am therefore requesting your assistance with a letter addressed to the Jordanian Bridge Authority to allow me passage on my American passport.

I asked the PA interior staff in the instance where it is not possible to get a new passport,  that they permit me to relinquish my Palestinian passport. I was told in no uncertain terms – it is not possible. I am not  optimistic that I will be given a written reply if I asked for one. 

[Note:  Yes, what Bashir is saying is that if we wants to give up rights to being Palestinian, he cannot. Every other country in the world allows you to give up citizenship if you choose!]

 

“It is now evident to me that the Palestinian passport is simply a tool of population control by Israel.  As far as Israel is concerned, I can leave though the King Hussein Bridge with the Israel ID and a permit, OR, with a Palestinian so called “passport” provided it has been entered in Israel’s computer system. Otherwise, a Palestinian passport that has not been entered in Israel’s interior ministry’s computer system must be accompanied by an Israel permit.

 

Because I have entered through Jordan using the Palestinian passport, Jordan will not allow me to re-enter using the American passport. Jordan ‘may’ allow me entry through Sheikh Hussein Bridge to the north were visas are granted but Israel will not allow me exit through Sheikh Hussein Bridge because it is reserved for foreigners which Israel does not consider me to be. 

 

As I hope you can see, this is not a simplistic apartheid scheme. This is a sophisticated scheme of control that involves the PA and Jordan which seeks to mask Israel’s ultimate responsibility in all this for a population that it controls. The U.S. government needs to get clarity from Israel on the status of Palestinian Americans/ former residents of the West Bank. My understanding of State Department policy is that former country law applies for naturalized citizens but clearly Palestinian Americans are not Israeli citizens. I will leave in the good hands of the State Department to clarify my status with the State of Israel.

I am now very worried that I will be left stranded as an American citizen with no legal recourse to get back home.

Thank you very much for assistance with this urgent matter.

Sincerely,

Barry (bashir) Anastas”

Food on this side of the wall – Rice with Tomatoes and Eggplant

We came to Bethlehem to be with family, and truly it has been wonderful to be here.  I have had so many wonderful experiences in the last week.  I will do my best to share some of them with you.

Bashir’s family home was built in 1857 from local Bethlehem stone.  The walls are 3 feet thick, keeping us cool in this unseasonably hot weather.  I spend a lot of time at the house, because that is where Mary is!

Mary is Bashir’s mom.  And like Bashir, she is a bundle of energy!  Things are very busy for her these days, because she just published a book on Arabic proverbs.  But she is till making a lot of time for us.

Like the Mary Anastas in Amman, this Mary Anastas does a lot of cooking in the traditional way.  This trip in particular, she is letting me in the kitchen a lot more.  I am her tall shadow the whole day through.

Here is one interesting picture – in the basement she keeps many things including the supply of olive oil from the family’s trees.  The oil is pressed and then put into plastic jugs.  But it is stored in traditional clay carafes.  One of my job’s has been to keep the carafe full.  Mary and I then put the oil into the glass jars that live up in the kitchen.  First she made the sign of the cross on the carafe, and then using a coffee pot and funnel, carefully poured the oil in. Ladies have been doing this for thousands of years.  It felt so eerie to do it myself.

Bashir’s mother has made it clear that while she likes me very much, I am not the best wife because I don’t cook meat for my husband.

She is making up for lost time.  Here is a picture of seasoned meat patties, wrapped up in grape leaves and topped with garlic and tomatoes.

We sent that down the street to the neighborhood bakery.  Traditionally, mothers didn’t really bake at home.  They sent everything down to the corner bakery to get cooked in the wood fire.  It takes much longer then a convection oven, but everything comes out so delicious.

Mary is one of the last moms on the block to use this old fashioned way, but she does it all the time.  We have made so much delicious food using the services of Abu Foad’s ovensTwice now Mary has baked bread for us.  This bread is incredible!  It is stuffed with all sorts of little nuts and seeds like poppy, sesame and sunflower.  We don’t have anything like this in the states and it is just delicious.  I eat it with zeit o’zattar and dibis and tahini.

Now dear reader, as you know one struggle my hosts always have is how are they going to feed me?  Mary is pulling out some of her favorite recipes, new recipes that I have not had before.  This one is Rice with Tomatoes and Eggplant.  I will do my best to give you details of what we did.

You will see that we did the cooking in original kitchen (Mary has a modern kitchen she uses most of the time.) She has a propane stove she uses in the old kitchen, I never sure why she chooses this.  But I am happy to practice my malasana.

First step:

Select 3 – 5 basic tomatoes and 1 eggplant.

Slice tomatoes and eggplant into thick pieces, about 1 inch thick.

Fry in an inch of oil for quite a long time.  Yes this is basically deep frying. You know you are done with the pieces are brown but not in any way burned.Leave on paper towels to take some of the oil out.

At this point, you can leave the veggies in the fridge for a day.

Second step:

• Fry some onions in olive oil. 1 small onion.
• Soak some rice.  About 1 cup.
• When the onions are brown, turn them off.
• Drain the rice and add to it about 1 teaspoon allspice and salt to taste
• Add the rice to the onions and mix well.

Third step:

• Select your main cooking pot.
• Layer a little rice at the bottom, then fried veggies, then the rice again.
• Put a glass bowl on top of them so they are weighed down a bit.
• Then pour water over the whole thing.  You need enough water to cook the rice, 2 cups or so.
• Start cooking the whole thing like you would plain rice.
• The glass bowl should remain on top to hold everything in place and keep the fried vegetables from getting too soggy.
• After 5 – 10 minutes, remove the bowl and continue cooking on very low head until done.
• VOILA!

To serve and eat, you put the platter on top of the pot.  Then turn it upside down.  You will have crunchy rice.  That is the delicacy for the children to eat!  Then dig into the rest.

Bethlehem Bound!

It was last Thursday, around noon.  I had settled into the living room ready for a day at the computer when Bashir called.  “Hurry” he said “Get to the bridge right now!”  I looked down at myself, lounging still in my jammies. I was in complete disbelief.  “Really?  Right now?”

“Yes”, he said.  He wanted me to get to the bridge immediately because the papers were ready, and if I got there before the Palestinian offices closed, I would be more likely to resolve any potential problems with crossing into Palestine.

Never in my life have I packed so fast.  The amazing lunch Mary had packed for me was thrown into tupperware.  The cab was called.  Within 45 minutes I was whisked away.

Oh the backroads to the Dead Sea are so beautiful.  We go through Bedouin countryside with red-hued cliffs, hundreds of goats and the rivers still rushing with water.

But oh I was so nervous!  I have never crossed the bridge on my own.  What would happen?

I will keep this story short, because there are so many more to tell after this adventure.

The bottom line, is that I took the VIP service which is the white-glove service where I get access to the comfy couches and air-conditioning.  The VIP staff whisked me through the lines and allowed me to sit in the waiting room by myself where I had complete control of the remote control.  This brought great relief because I was climbing out of my skin with nervousness.

I sat and prayed.  And via Viber many prayed with me.

It took many hours, I sat for a very long time.  But eventually with very little fanfair, the Israeli passport control gave me a visa.  I was in!

I jumped for joy, danced a jig and then sprinted out of the terminal.

Only to wait.  For a very long time.  Getting from the terminal out to the city was not easy because appropriate transport was not available.  But at least I was allowed to go!

Now I write from my mother in law’s house in Bethlehem.  Hurray for this small victory to be allowed my own rights.

I sent much love to my friends and family back home and around the world.  Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes.

And now, back to the regularly scheduled adventure.

My fairy godparents

Its important that I mention my other guardian angels, Ramzi and Mary. Ramzi is Bashir’s cousin and Godfather, Mary is his wife. They have 4 grown children living all over the world (Gaza, France, Qatar, and Canada). They were absolutely amazing hosts.

In America, guests are like fish – they start to smell after a few days. But in the Middle East, attitudes towards time, family and hospitality are completely different. Mary and Ramzi didn’t seem to mind our sudden arrival. They didn’t even know were in the country and yet welcomed us with open arms when we called from the Bridge. Bashir spent the night, but departed quickly to the West Bank, leaving his English-speaking wife behind.  I had met Mary and Ramzi several times over the years, but never spent more than an evening with them.

Ramzi and Mary didn’t seem to bat an eyelash at having me dumped on them. While they were completely shocked that I don’t eat meat, “Ever??!?” “Correct. Never ever” Mary threw herself into that task of pampering me night and day.  Ramzi, well you can look at his picture.  He insisted on posing that way.  Cause that is how he likes to come across to people.  But he is a lamb!

In her next life, I hope Mary runs and bed and breakfast, because it is clearly her calling.  She is incredibly well suited to feeding a small crowd for every meal. She is well known in the family for cooking elaborate meals every day that include many old fashioned dishes most people have forgotten about. For example, she forages the neighborhood for capers that she then pickles. She will drive an hour for the highest quality cheese, milk and yogurt products that she can turn into appetizers. She makes all her own jams and gathers wild herbs at just the right time of year to serve as delicacies.  She is the best housekeeper I have ever seen.  Totally amazing.

Mary and Ramzi have an exact schedule from which all the unique gastronomy unfolds, which suited me very well because I was feeling so completely un-tethered. Here is what I recall from my experience eating with them.

7 am – Coffee and news in the tv room.

I skipped that for my morning pranayama.

  9 am – Breakfast

Breakfast at Mary’s house is an elaborate affair with no less than 5 homemade preserves present on the table. She has a wonderful lazy susan where the options are displayed, and many extra dishes around it.

          

Here is a sample breakfast:

• Fresh homemade bread whole wheat bread with seeds, two kinds: with olives, one without
• Lebneh (greek yogurt) drizzled in olive oil.
• Olives, two kinds: black and green.
• Homemade jams: Plum (AMAZING), apricot, orange
• Honey for tea or whatever you want.
• Butter, freshly from the Bedouin community. Made of goat or sheep milk I think.
• Fresh cheese
• Zeit o’ za’taar – fresh olive oil and thyme mix.  Za’taar is a traditional mix of arabic thyme, other spices, salt and sesame.  Mary’s is completely homemade and includes Sumac (a purple herb that has a lemony taste) Dip your bread in the olive oil then in the z’ataar and pop it in your mouth!
• Duukha – a lesser known spice mix that Mary puts right there next to the za’taar.  Its an Egyptian mix, usually made with ground spices, nuts and seeds.  Its red in color, but my online research doesn’t tell me what herb makes it so.
• Jarjeer (a wild weed) in yogurt
• Fresh vegetables like tomatoes and cucumber
• Fruits – strawberries, grapefruit, apples and loquat.
• Dibis and tahini. Dibis is grape molasses. Put dibis on the bottom, tahini on the top. Stir if you like. Dip your bread in there and eat it. DIVINE and especially good if you have a sore throat.
• I love several cups of black tea with honey and milk in the mornings.

Yes, all this was served at every breakfast. I had to pace myself!

After breakfast, we go for a garden tour. The family has carefully tended gardens surrounding the house. It’s the time for roses, so they carefully gather the fresh buds and bring them in the house for proper arranging.

11:30 am – Coffee under the grape arbor

Ramzi reads the paper. Mary looks at the incoming pictures of grandchildren that are emailed daily. I do something obnoxious like lock as out of the house (one morning) or spill the coffee grinds all over the stairs (another morning)

2 pm – Dinner

Mary really pulled out the repertoire of food that is “siami” . “Siami” is the food you eat at Lent, or for fasting, which is all vegetarian. She served some wonderful soups, stews, casseroles and pastas during my time there. Ramzi howled “where is the meat” and I just smiled.

One highlight was stuffed leaves of cauliflower. The cauliflower here is HUGE and so are the leaves. Mary went in the fields and carefully cut dozen of leaves. She stuffed them with rice, vegetables and spices. Then steamed them and served them to me.

Dinner is always served with many side dishes.  You will see here in the pictures:

• Different kinds of bread
• Fresh cut vegetables

8 pm – Supper

Ramzi insists that the evening meal is supper, in the European style. Which means everything is served cold.  It adds in hard Eurpoean-style cheeses and several glasses of wine, plus the jams and small dishes from breakfast. The aforementioned cauliflower leaves are delicious in both their worm and cold forms!

Ramzi loves classical music. So for most lunches and dinners, SORRY, most dinners and suppers, we were serenaded by Mozart, Bach and their friends. It was lovely.

The days I spent with Ramzi and Mary were the first time I had ever held to strict eating times in a home, and it was great. I kept myself from eating too much, because I knew exactly when the next meal was coming.

The days I spent with Mary and Ramzi were so much fun. I am extremely grateful to them for the kindness and generosity in my time of extreme duress. But I was eager to get to Bashir. So, when the call came, I went.

Stay tuned for that story….

A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Medicine Go Down

A step in the right direction: The Palestinian Authority has accepted the documentation from Bashir that attests to our marriage.  That means we don’t have to stage another wedding here in Jordan.

Now we await it to be processed into the computers. I may try to cross the bridge in a few days.

Today’s bad news: I have 100% laryngitis. As we left Feynan, I woke up with a tickle in my throat. There was too much going on to pay attention to it. After my nose turned raw and red from all the congestion, I realized “oh boy, I have a cold”. Yesterday it traveled down to my throat. I cannot speak above a whisper and it is impossible to be far from the tissue box.

The good news about this is it has allowed me to catch up with this blog.

I haven’t yet told you about my fairy godmother Yasmine. She is one of the reasons why I am actually enjoying this portion of the trip.  Yasmine is the daughter of Suleima, my yoga host here in Jordan the last several years. I have taught twice in Jordan, but we had decided to skip this year because she was going to be in San Francisco.

Anyhow, as soon as Suleima and Yasmine heard about my troubles, they came to my rescue. I have really enjoyed my time with Yasmine and her two children. They have brought a sense of normalcy to the situation – going to piano lessons, walking the stroller around the neighborhood and eating some delicious ice cream. Yasmine lent me some great books and lightening fast internet connection so I have been very content. THANK YOU YASMINE!

Over the last few days, I got to watch the new version of Annie (hated it) and the old version of Mary Poppins (love it). 5-year old Miriam lets me sing along to all the songs. What a wonderful companion she is!

A spoon full of sugar certainly helps the medicine go down…

Problems with my passport

Did I mention that there is a problem with my passport too? After the Israelis put a huge stamp of “DENIED” in my passport, I examined the book and realized that this trip through Istanbul, Amman and now the Israeli Border used up my last pages in my book!

Finding myself staying 20 min from the American Embassy, and with plenty of empty days in front of me, I decided to live by “Heyam Dukam Anagatam” – the pains to come can and should be avoided.

The American Citizens Services Dept of the embassy is only open for 2 hours a day. Timing my call in just the right way, I picked up the phone and explained my situation to the nice lady on the phone.

H: I don’t have any more pages in my passport. Is this going to make my future travel difficult?

Nice Lady: Yes, it will.

H: Do you mean that if I fly to a country with this passport, they will not let me in? Would they send me back?

Nice lady: Yes. It depends on the country, but yes its possible.

H: (Gulp.) So what do I do?

Nice lady: Make an appointment online, follow the instructions carefully. There are no appointments this week though.

H: (Freaking out completely) Ok thank you, I will get online then.

Getting off the phone, it sinks in that I am literally stuck in Amman and Bashir is literally stuck in Bethlehem.

Luckily I was able to get an appointment fairly quickly and yesterday I was at the American embassy. What a place! It is, of course, an absolute fortress. But the most organized, efficient fortress I have ever seen.

To get admitted, I was ushered from point to point from various guards. Security was heavy – they confiscated my phone, headphones and USB drives and then let me in.

I had to enter and exit several buildings but then landed in the right one. It was a fancy DMV – I collected a number written in Arabic and English and awaited my turn. Mostly, the office served people seeking visas to visit the states.

Once it was my turn, the nice lady at the counter was very patient with all my questions. She helped me understand how to get extra pages in my passport, how to apply for a replacement passport that is stolen AND how to get a second passport.

I was hoping I could get a passport for him. No can do. Turns out if your passport is stolen, you need to apply IN PERSON and have a police report. The problem is, as a Palestinian Bashir isn’t allowed into Israel to apply in person. He will need a special permit to get to Tel Aviv or Jeursalem to apply for his American passport. And, if he wants to apply for it in Jordan, he needs his Palestinian passport to get out. I am not sure what he is gonna do. Stay tuned to this blog and find out. Inquiring minds want to know!

Why would I ask about a second passport? Well, if I am indeed stuck in Jordan and Bashir is stuck in Palestine, I will run out of tourist options fairly quickly because I need to be fairly stationary with a good internet connection. One options is I could hightail it to Lebanon, only an hour away by plane. I have close friends there, and I could go hang out till Bashir is ready to leave the region. But, to go I would need a fresh passport with no Israeli stamps. Lebanon doesn’t allow visitors with Israeli stamps.   That said, I will cross that bridge after I cross this bridge – the Allenby Bridge.

If you have read to this point in the post, you know that there are many stories within this story.  to finish with my Embassy story:  I was very happy with the Embassy adventure. I got my passport back this afternoon. Boy is it fat!

Before signing off I should mention how I get to the Embassy. My aunty took me in the morning. In the afternoon Uber took me. Yes that’s right there is Uber in Jordan! It has been here for 2 months and there are 4 drivers in the entire country!  Amman is the 200th country that Uber is in.

My uber experience was fantastic! I feel a lot safer than riding a regular taxi, and they are cleaner. There was water and good music too.

My friend made the arrangements for the ride. It was an hour drive because I had to wait at the Embassy, and the whole thing cost about $7. Thanks Uber!

Triple X Bonkers of a trip

Good news: I have discovered Viber! Its free to talk on phone with anyone that has Viber. When we have wireless, Bashir and I can talk as much as we want. He doesn’t seem so far away now.

Bad news: Bashir left his bag on the tram in Jerusalem. The bag had nothing in it but his passports and all legal papers related to our situation. Yes that’s right. All his passports and travel papers are gone.

It was the last day of his permit to be in Jerusalem. He was at the patriarch trying to get a super official marriage certificate because the priests of Bethlehem said they couldn’t help and he was worried our flimsy photocopy of a hardly official church certificate will not be good enough for the authorities.

But now, our situation has gone from bonkers to triple x bonkers. Bashir has no travel documents. Not one. Just an American drivers license, Palestinian ID and Israeli police report.

He will have to figure out how to get into Israel to file for an emergency passport.  Emergency passports require an in-person application.

More to come on this…