Definitions of Peace

Peace cannot be achieved through violence, it can only be attained through understanding.

-- Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed.

-- UNESCO Constitution

The other day my friend Ambreen called me and asked if I wanted to join her shopping in the Old City. We walked to one of her favorite shops in the Jewish Quarter.

The man who owns the shop is a Jewish Canadian (how would you say that? Canadian Jew?), a former family therapist, and dedicated to opening dialogues about the 'situation' here. He successfully opened a dialogue with us as we were checking out. A highlight (paraphrased):

"When I think of peace", he said, "I think of the end of suicide bombs and rock-throwing, of people getting killed." "But when I talk to an Arab, he believes peace is being able to move freely from one place to another, to not have to go through checkpoints, and to be able to make money for his family." "This is why," he continued, "you should always ask what a man's definition of peace is.. otherwise, you may be using the same word but meaning completely different things."

Transport Frustrations

YESTERDAY:
(wave down taxi)
me: Silwan for 20 shekels?
cab driver: no
me: 25?
cab driver: no - its Arab neighborhood.
me: ugh, fine.

(wave down next taxi)

me: Silwan for 20 shekels?
cab driver 2: no, its Arab
me: fine.

(wave down next taxi)
me: Silwan for 20 shekels?
cab driver 3: (drives off)

repeat a few more times... 7th or 8th cab driver is Arab, so we are in luck, get a ride to Silwan.....

later that day in Silwan:

(wave down taxi)
me: Mount Scopus for 20 shekels?
cab driver 4: no, its Jewish.

you have got to be kidding.


TODAY:
I have to catch an 'Arab' bus to Azarya, the Bedouin village where I work with the teachers (yes, there are "arab" buses and "main/public" buses- they go to different neighborhoods)
I am standing at a 'public' bus stop near my university waiting for Arab bus #36 to come along.

THREE 36's pass me without stopping, despite frantic waving gestures/jumping out into the road.

Why? Why are they not stopping??? I look around - what could it be? I have no idea. The only thing I can think of is that there are a bunch of soldiers around me... but they are all relaxed and just sitting waiting for a bus- I don't know. Maybe a there is a rule against them stopping there? They seem to stop EVERYWHERE else - I don't get it.

So after waiting for almost an hour, I haul myself and my half broken leg down a hill into Isawiyya - an Arab village right by where I live - and of course, a #36 bus stops immediately.

Seriously, folks - what gives? There has to be some easier way of transferring between the Jewish and Arab worlds here.

A side note - on the #36 on the way home, I was the only person on the bus for a while. For whatever reason, the people on bus #36 are SO nice to me. The other day, they drove out of the way to drop me where I needed to go (at the insistance of the people sitting around me). Today, the bus driver bought me a bag of salted soy beans (or something - maybe chickpeas?) from a street vendor - they were delicious, and I was touched.

Jerusalem Map Madness

So, I should just put it out there that I am the worst person with directions... EVER. I have been lost in more cities, in more countries on more continents than ANYONE should be allowed. I really don't know how I have survived this long, considering the amount of traveling I have done. I STILL have troubles once in a while in my home town (population 8000) - let alone major cities in countries where I don't speak the language OR read the script.

So my one saving grace so far has been that I am half decent at reading maps (I say 'half' generously). This has always been my tactic - find a map, orient myself, get lost, ask someone to point to me where I am on the map, get lost again, etc. Eventually I find what I am looking for.. usually.

Well, I have never run across a place QUITE like Jerusalem. Yes, I have a map... and sometimes I even remember the name of the place I am supposed to be going (the words don't really 'stick' since the sounds are still foreign to me)... but find it on a map?! It would seem so easy..

Fortunately, most road signs and maps have names in Hebrew, Arabic, and English, but oh, the horror of TRANSLITERATION - meaning that Hebrew words don't necessarily have a perfect English spelling equivalent, so people have just sounded them out. Take a word like 'Caesarea' for example - when looking on a map or a road sign, it may be 'Qisariyya, Kesarya, Qasarya... etc. (Thanks Lonely Planet for the example) Or maybe the Hebrew word will be used instead of the English one - Yerushalayim instead of Jerusalem.... you get the idea.

So I just got instructions from one of the Rabbis at Rabbis for Human Rights as to how to get to my internship (starting Sunday) - and spent about an hour and a half figuring out what those directions actually meant on the map - and now I have to figure out which buses to take to get there, and which stops to get off at - all while guessing from about 5 or 6 name choices for each of those variables.

Don't get me wrong, its do-able (mainly because I will ask people the whole way and probably call everyone I know once or twice) - but seriously, it is not the most intuitive situation. To make it worse, there is no bus map in English... so its all just word of mouth, the not-so-trusty--non-bus-map, and of course my sense of direction. Oh boy.

Obama's Inaguration - Israel Style

I have had a truly international perspective regarding Obama's rise to the presidency... I watched the primaries, voted and watched the election in South Africa, saw the aftermath of the election in Kenya, and watched the inauguration in Israel.

After the EXTREME excitement radiating through Africa over Obama's election, it was a bit of a downer to see Israel's. They are not such fans, let me tell you. In fact, I would say that overall, they are somewhere between nervous and short of hostile. I think there is fear that there will be a massive change in foreign policy (please yes) and that Israel won't be quite as "in."


Regardless, I celebrated with other Americans on that historic day. We watched from the student center, where they fed us pizza and beer in true American style, and played the festivities on a big screen - ironically, we watched it all on Fox news ;)

This is my super excited terrible picture saying "I was here kids!" I think no matter what your politics are, it can be said that it was a huge day for American politics.

My First Shabbat

Last Friday, I experienced my first 'Shabbat' in Jerusalem. Shabbat is the Hebrew word for Sabbath, which is observed by Jews (and consequently, the state of Israel) on Saturdays. This means a few things that are new to me:

1. Weekends are Friday and Saturday, meaning the work week runs Sunday through Thursday.
2. EVERYTHING shuts down in Jerusalem at dusk on Friday and only reawakens after three stars have appeared in the sky on Saturday. That means restaurants, grocery stores, public transportation... everything.
3. There is a huge tradition surrounding Shabbat dinner, which takes place after dusk on Friday. Traditionally, families come together every week and share a large meal together - the trick is, it all has to be prepared before dusk, so Friday is a 'gathering' cooking, preparing day.
4. After dusk on Friday, observant Jews do not work until after dusk on Saturday. For some, that means even the pushing of a button is forbidden. It is AMAZING the inventions that have materialized to compensate for this. For example, there are elevators in Jerusalem that have a 'Shabbat function' - on Saturdays, they automatically stop at each floor so that the user does not have to push a button to get off. I've also heard rumors of self-starting ovens that work on a timer so that no dials have to be turned.

To prepare for my first Shabbat, I opted to join Talia, our group leader, to go to the traditional market in Jerusalem and stock up on fruits and veggies for the weekend (it is kind of silly now, but I was actuallymore than slightly worried that I would not be able to eat for the whole weekend since everything would be shut down and I had no food in my house yet -- I have lately developed this irrational fear of being hungry). ANYWAY, the market was fabulous, complete with all of the smells, colors and chaos that I adore. Middle Eastern foods abounded - hummus, tabouli, dates, pita, absolutely no pork, etc.

My favorite experience of the day (which I don't have a picture of) was a stop at a woman's juice stall. She had all sorts of juices that I had never heard of, and was so kind - once she heard KC and I were from America, she let us try almost all of her juices for free. My favorites were almond and a hot drink I forgot the name of - but that reminds me of hot horchata, only thicker. I ended up buying pomegranate mixed with orange, and we sat with her for quite a while, chatting, learning Hebrew slang, and eating sesame pretzels.

Check out the amazing color of this eggplant:

Talia invited everyone in our program over for our first Shabbat dinner with her family. Her father is a Jewish immigrant from New York and her mother, an Israeli attorney. Her grandmother also joined us - she is a famous television educator, apparently one of the first women who had her own show in Israel. (think Mrs. Doubtfire)

Here is our glorious Shabbat feast:

And of course, dessert:

Uganda turns to mass circumcision in Aids fight

FRANK NYAKAIRU | KAMPALA, UGANDA - Aug 13 2008 12:21
Ugandan authorities have launched a mass circumcision drive with the hope it will reduce HIV/Aids rates in the East African country.

Some studies indicate circumcision could be 70% effective in protecting men against infection by the virus during heterosexual intercourse, when used in conjunction with condoms and other safe-sex practices.

Government officials in Kampala have decided to take advantage of a month-long traditional "circumcision season" practised by some tribes to drive the message home.

"Socially, it is uniting, and now it has also been proven medically; that is gratifying and it is now part and parcel of the strategy for fighting Aids," Kibale Wambi, chairperson of Sironko district in eastern Uganda, said.

The government plans to circumcise more than 3 000 local youths between the ages of 12 and 18. HIV activists say there needs to be more money and efforts like this on a global scale.

But some critics of circumcision in Uganda say it is brutal and dangerous. In traditional settings like Sironko, circumcisers have used the same knife for each young man.

This time, the government has introduced a strict one-knife-per-operation ruling to ensure no infections are passed on.

"If a knife is to be re-used on another person, it first has to be sterilised," Wambi said, wearing a traditional hat covered with cowrie shells.

"We have also discouraged the traditional practice of forcing the circumcised males into sexual intercourse to prove their manhood after the wound heals, to avoid the spread of sexually transmitted diseases."

Some experts fear that some of the newly circumcised men may believe they are immune following the procedure -- translating into even more risky sexual behaviour.

"All I know is that when I am circumcised, it will not be as easy for me to get infected with HIV/Aids," said one young man, Kizeja Michael, as he lined up for the operation.

"People who are circumcised are not able to get Aids," said his friend, Peter Kibatsi.

Uganda has been widely praised for an education campaign about condoms that is credited with cutting HIV prevalence rates from 30% two decades ago to about 6% today. -- Reuters

Slight Delay

I find it humorous/helpful/surprisingly organized that a few moments ago I received a text message notifying me that my bus would be two hours late.

Cool stuff. Not so much that the bus is delayed (that's not so cool), but that they let me know, and by text message none the less! This country never ceases to amaze me. Anyone who tells you that they have South Africa all figured out... is lying. Or they are much, much smarter than me.

South Africa's Croissant Crisis

In our cafeteria, we have an announcement board. The last couple of weeks, there have been notes of solidarity and mourning for the victims of the riots and whatnot happening in Joburg and Cape Town.

YESTERDAY, however, the board had a new message that said something to the following:

"The kitchen staff needs to profusely apologize for the lack of croissants at breakfast this morning. Please know that they were ordered with plenty of time to spare, but did not arrive this morning as scheduled. This has been due to a nation-wide shortage of croissants. We will do everything we can to make up for this unfortunate event. This morning you may have two yoghurts instead of one. Sincerely, the kitchen staff"

And THIS my friends, is what makes South Africa so fascinating. In the same seriousness that we deal with violent riots, we deal with a national shortage of croissants. YES, we have dire poverty, YES we are in the midst of a global food crisis, YES we are dealing with violence in our major cities. But today.... today we will worry about croissants.

If you would like to send croissants to South Africa to help out with the national crisis, please email me. ;)

indeed too good to be true

the internet people have been coming to my house now... for 8 days. I asked them on the first day which day they would be done... they said tomorrow. I asked them on the second day which day they would be done... they said tomorrow. I asked them on the third day which day they would be done... you get the point. They didn't come back today, I don't know what that means. It really isn't a very big deal - I can walk to a computer lab easily. Almost nothing else about the different ways of working bother me at all - i understand when shops are closed for hours at a time in the middle of the day for no reason, or when the waiter suddenly disappears and takes 2 hours to bring our food... all of this is part of the experience of living in South Africa. The internet thing, though, is driving me crazy. I think its more because I keep expecting it to be installed and ready to go when I go home every day. Anyway, any of you who are waiting for me to have skpe... we're still waiting. Maybe we should just give in and buy a lot of phone cards. ;)

More about last night

I arrived early at the talk I went to last night (mentioned in depth below). I was warned that they may run out of seating as many people would want to hear the speaker. I arrived approximately 1/2 hour early.... and along with my friend were the first people there. By 7, when the event was to start, the auditorium was only half-full, which was a good thing, because the speaker was not there.

After 20 or so minutes, the MC announced that the speaker was caught in a roadblock and would be arriving late. As soon as she stepped away from the mic, one of the students in the back stood up and called out a song at the top of his lungs, and within seconds, dozens of students joined in the song clapping and swaying. It was beautiful - again, South Africans have an AMAZING ability to harmonize. The funny thing was that only the black students sang, with a couple of exceptions. The white students either just ignored it or looked around uncomfortably.

It was a very interesting interaction, and the singing continued on and off until the speaker arrived, and then picked up again after he was announced until he started speaking.

I hear that PAC has some of the most radical and passionate followers of any of the political parties - I am now getting a glimpse of what that means.

The members of the speaker's entourage wore shirts that said: Eliminate poverty before poverty eliminates you. ((which he referenced in his talk when speaking about how poverty is a breading ground for terrorism - he said that during the struggle, when he had to rally support behind the idea of violent revolution, he just had to speak in an impoverished area.))

Barefoot... in the library?

There is an abnormally high number of people here who do not wear shoes. I am not talking people who cannot afford shoes, but instead people who choose not to wear shoes. These barefooters are almost exclusively white and well-dressed. I would say I see at least 2 people a day who are walking around barefoot - to class, to the grocery store, to the movie house, you name it.

This is going to require further examination.

Internet Frustration

So remember how I was going to get internet in my house "just now"?
Just now just got extended 4-8 more weeks. WEEKS. (Just so you know it was supposed to get put in 4 days after I moved in)

So I am slowly coming to terms with the fact that I may just not have internet super-accessible this year.

As of now, my internet access is in the computer lab, which is only about a 10 minute walk from my house. Not bad. Not ideal, but not terrible either.

Anyway, sorry for the delay on postings and update emails. Usually when I am in the lab I am (gasp) doing school work. But now that I am accepting the fact that this may be as good as it gets, I'll be much more deliberate with postings.

I LOVE hearing from people, even if its just one or two lines, it means so much to know that people are keeping up with me back home. So forgive my tardiness in communication, and please keep the emails and comments coming. :)

Much love!

Now

There are highly subtle differences in South African English and American English, which can cause incredible confusion. Take for example, "now."

In the United States of America, when we say "now" we mean something along the lines of this very moment. In South Africa, now means something to the effect of "in a little bit." You would think this would not be that hard to figure out - but somehow it is a daily struggle for me. For instance, I went in to the Student Fee office to pay my tuition today (the amazing cheapness of tuition will be covered later). I walked up to the desk, smiled my best smile, said how are you, its a beautiful day, etc. (pleasantries are HIGHLY important here), and then told the secretary I was there to pay my fees. She pointed to the door and said that the woman would see me... now. So I trotted over to the door, smiled my best smile, and waited. Occasionally she would look up and say something like I'll be with you.... now now.

Which brings me to the next level of waiting. The now now. Now now means something to the effect of "later than now" and if we remember, now means in a little bit. If you get a now now that means you'll be waiting maybe a few minutes.

So I was ok with that, I had time. Then.... she stepped away from the desk and threw at me the "manana" of South Africa. "Just now." She said she'd be back.. just now. While in America, just now means it happened a few moments ago, in South Africa, just now means AFTER now now... or maybe not.... maybe tomorrow. Or next week. Or maybe not at all. Luckily for me, today just now meant in about 10 minutes, not too bad.

Unfortunately however, I called my house warden this morning. I still don't have internet in my house, and they said it was supposed to be in by the end of this week. I asked if that was still on schedule, and they told me, its coming just now. So if I don't reply to emails, I'm waiting on just now. :)