Stories from Jerusalem / Al Quds

When tourists visit Bethlehem, especially in an organized tour, they usually visit the Church of the Nativity and when they are lucky also the Shepherds fields in Beit Sahour, but hardly does the guide take the tourist to visit the Milk Grotto Church. And that's a pity. Because this hidden gem is just a five minutes walk through the Milk Grotto street where you can also some of the oldest bui...

The first time that Naji al Ali drew Handala, the little refugee boy with shabby clothes and no shoes, he depicted him with his face towards the audience. But after his disappointment in the Americans and Arab leaders in the early seventies, he turned his back towards the viewers in protest against the 'American way' and the negative tides in the region. Handala is a ten year old boy and...

If you heard episode 2 of season 1 then you know I am obsessed with the history of caves in Palestine. The caves in the mountains were formed by a natural process due to the effect of rain on the limestone that created natural caves. But in this episode you can learn about another type of caves that can be found in the area to the west of Hebron, west of the green line, where over 3.500 man-made c...

While I spend the summer in Holland, I while record weekly short episodes with information about a specific topic related to Palestine, its history and cultural heritage. Summer short number one is about the history of the Palestinian flag and the meaning of its colors. For this episode I used a lot of information of the Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs. Check ou...

I made this episode upon request of the Friends of Hope flowers School foundation in the Netherlands. They support the school financially and they raise awareness about the very difficult circumstances under which the school has to operate. The school is located in area C under full Israel military control and a big Israeli settlement is moving closer and closer towards the area where the school i...

 During my visit to family and friends in the Netherlands, I also meet my Palestinian friends from the Gazastrip who live here. It's the only chance for us to meet as they can not come to the Westbank or Jerusalem and I cannot visit the Gazastrip. In this episode you can learn more about the Gazastrip and hear a conversation I had with Wasim and Nader who grew up in Gaza and moved to the Neth...

During my June podcast break between season 2 and 3 you can listen to three episodes I made for PAX Palestine Podcast.  PAX is a peace organization based in the Netherlands.  PAX works together with committed citizens and partners to protect civilians against acts of war, to end armed violence, and to build a just peace.  In Palestine PAX supports local partners in building resilient communities,...

During my June podcast break between season 2 and 3 you can listen to three episodes I made for PAX Palestine Podcast.  PAX is a peace organization based in the Netherlands.  PAX works together with committed citizens and partners to protect civilians against acts of war, to end armed violence, and to build a just peace.  In Palestine PAX supports local partners in building resilient communities,...

During my June podcast break between season 2 and 3 you can listen to three episodes I made for PAX Palestine Podcast.  PAX is a peace organization based in the Netherlands.  PAX works together with committed citizens and partners to protect civilians against acts of war, to end armed violence, and to build a just peace.  In Palestine PAX supports local partners in building resilient communities,...

This week we finish the last semester of the tour guide program at the Bethlehem Bible College.  With twenty Palestinian students I have been studying for two years to get the tour guide diploma. This diploma will allow us to apply for the exam of the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism. If we pass that exam then we will become licensed tour guides. In this episode you can listen to our program manage...

In June 2020 the town of Beit Sahour was recognized by the World Craft Council as the World Craft City for the year 2020 based on its long tradition of olive wood carving. The World Craft Council is a UNESCO-affiliated organization that was founded in New York in 1964 to promote and support craft work. Palestinian olive wood carving probably dates back to the Crusader time and is artisan work that...

A lot of things are happening in Palestine. In the previous episode you could hear from seven Palestinians from different parts of Palestine what was happening in Sheikh Jarrah, Jerusalem, the Aqsa mosque, in Gaza and the Westbank. On Tuesday 18 May all Palestinians in the Westbank, Jerusalem and the 48 lands (the current State of Israel) went on national strike. This was the first time since 1936...

This week a lot of things happened and shifted in Palestine. It started with the Israeli restrictions imposed on Palestinians in Jerusalem during the month of Ramadan. In the same time there were protests to support the Palestinian families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood who are threatened to be evicted from their homes by settler organizations supported by the Israeli forces. The Israeli force...

My friend Rosemary, who is French and also married to a Palestinian, invited us to join an afternoon hike followed by an iftar, to break the fasting during this month of Ramadan, organized by the Palestinian Association for Mountain Sports Development (PAMSD). I took my recorder along and on the way I talked to two of the organizers and tour guides and several of the participants about how hiking...

We are half way the month of Ramadan and the previous two episodes were related to this month of fasting for Muslims. Fasting is one of the five pillars of Islam. In this episode we speak about the other four pillars of Islam, about the history of Islam and some of the important traditions and believes of Muslims. I worked on this episode also as part of my tour guide studies. We had a semester wi...

In the Palestinian refugee camp 'Aida' in Bethlehem a group of women with children with a disability came together to support each other. It started as simple as collecting money to be able to buy cheaper nappies in bulk so they would save money. The mother's group grew out into the Noor (which means light in Arabic) Women Empowerment Group (WEG). In this episode you can learn more...

The 9th month of the Islamic Hijri calendar is the month of Ramadan in which Muslims are fasting from dawn to dusk. This is one of the five pillars of Islam. In this episode you can learn more about the month of Ramadan, why the fasting is happening in this particular month and why the month of Ramadan is never in the same period of time. You can also virtually join the preparations of a big iftar...

This is the second part of the interview with Ramy Sayyegh, history teacher and tour guide in Jaffa. It is the continuation of episode 9. In the first part we heard about the history of Jaffa from the ancient times until the Ottoman era. In this episode we speak about the big changes that happened to the city of Jaffa and for the residents of Jaffa with the arrival of the European colonial powers,...

Until my first visit to Palestine in 2006 I was not really aware of the fact that there were Christian Palestinians. Which is quite ridiculous if you have only a little understanding of where Christianity came from! Of course there are Christians in the land where Jesus was born, preached his message, was crucified and resurrected, according to the Bible.  In this episode I speak with three studen...

In part 2 of the virtual podcast tour in Battir, Hassan takes us to the area of the Railway that used to connect Jaffa with Jerusalem. The railway station has been demolished after the creation of the State of Israel. The villagers of Battir, led by Hassan Mustafa, managed with a very creative trick to keep out the Zionist militias and unlike most surrounding villages they were not expelled. In a...

Join us for a lively virtual podcast tour in the beautiful town of Battir, south of Jerusalem, right on the Green Line, the demarcation line between Israel and the Westbank. With Hassan Mu'amer we explore the history and cultural landscape of Battir. He explains us how an ancient water system, that brings the spring water to the eight families of Battir, is the reason that Battir exclusively...

This is the third part of a Trilogy from Jerusalem to Jaffa, a guided virtual podcast tour. In this episode we learn about the history of Jaffa and its main historic sites from Ramy Sayegh, a resident of Jaffa and history teacher. The continuation of the history of the Nakba of 1948 for the residents of Jaffa will be published in the next episode. Ramy has a history podcast in Arabic that you can...

It is spring time and Palestine is full of greens that are very healthy and that are part of the traditional Palestinian cuisine. Food foraging was always an important part of the heritage of Palestinians. Izzeldin Bukhari, founder of Sacred Cuisine, looks for the stories behind the food. In this episode we talk about greens like hwerna, khobeza and mlukhiya. Where do the names come from, what are...

In the second part of this virtual bus tour we will learn about Abu Ghosh, also called the 'humus capital' and named after the Abu Ghosh family that originates from the Caucasus. There are two important churches in Abu Ghosh, one connected to the Bible story of the Ark of the Covenant that stayed in Kiriyat Jearim for 20 years. The other one connected to the Bible story of the two people...

The motto of this social running group in Palestine is "We run to tell a different story". The group started in 2012 when Palestinians tried to organize a marathon in the city of Bethlehem but they could not find a stretch of 42 kilometers without being limited by the Israeli segregation wall, the settlements, checkpoints and Israeli bypass roads that circle around the Palestinian city....