Bethlehem, Beit Sahour and the Apartheid Wall photo dump

Sorry to everyone who has been checking in lately, we have been super busy working on our research projects, exploring and writing for classes, Iwill have History part 2: Palestinian perspective up soon, but while you wait, check some sweet photos of my travels!

This is an overlook of Nahalin Village, the first of two villages that we are volunteering to collect research in.  This village is surrounded on all sides by illegal Israeli settlements (on Palestinian soil) and only has one road in or out of the
town.

In Nahalin we visited a 2200 year old roman olive press used to make olive oil.  

This is the beautiful village of Battir, where I will be spending my  days doing research on water shortages and pollution that has been effecting the health and livelihood of the 4,500 villagers. the left of this picture is in Palestine, while everything to the right of the train tracks is in  Israel.

We spent a day walking along the Apartheid wall.  I couldn't believe all the beautiful murals that had been painted on the Palestinian side, protesting the wall with artistry.  The wall separates Israel and Palestine but has been constructed on Palestinian soil, in many cases separating Villages and towns from their farmland.

This is a mural that has been painted on the separation wall in a Palestinian Refugee camp in Bethlehem representing the First Intifadah, when  youths throwing stones were pitted against heavily armed Israeli soldiers.

Just past the wall you can see Palestinian olive groves that can no longer be accessed by the Palestinian farmers.  An illegal Israeli settlement looms along the ridge-line in the background.
 

Palestinian children play games at recess in the yard of the UN refugee school built within Aida camp.

The children of the refugee camp had made a mural depicting the history of the refugees.  I was drawn in by the simple beauty of this woman's hijab (Islamic head covering).

I captured this picture in the courtyard of the Nativity church, purportedly built atop  the site of Jesus' birth.  

 New post soon, I promise!  I just want to get it all right!