semira

Day one in Cairo: Got caught in a swarm of men running with batons while I foolishly walked around Tahrir Square at midnight. Day two: Went to a bizarre party where young activists veiled themselves and got drunk as a way of mocking the Muslim Brotherhood. Day seven: Joined thousands of peaceful demonstrators in Tahrir Square for the Jan.25 anniversary of the Egyptian revolution. Their presence was a clear sign that the revolution was still unfinished. That is how my first week in Egypt in mid-January 2012 left me weary, inspired, curious, and most importantly, hooked! I stayed for three months when my intention was to stay for two. Cairo is very charismatic though sometimes it is hard to figure out why. Of the expats living here, some find it overwhelming and leave. Those who stay ... read more

Spending a month in Ramallah was a great idea. The small city-town—with its bars, well-paid jobs, expensive restaurants, and international NGO offices—is a bubble sheltered from many of Palestine’s problems. But through its numerous bus and taxi services, I had access to towns and villages all over the West Bank. Day trips to the WB would have been more difficult if I had been living in Jerusalem because of the Qalandia checkpoint. Entering the WB is easy but leaving it can take a looooong time. Up to two hours sometimes. Actually, what surprised me a lot about Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories is the close proximity of everywhere. From Jerusalem, Bethlehem or Ramallah are only a 30-min bus ride, while it takes one hour to go to Tel Aviv. From Ramallah, the furthest city is ... read more

Hebron is the most vivid reminder of the Israeli occupation. I don’t understand how Palestinians living in Hebron’s Old City have the energy to stay in the face of routine settler violence. Over 500,000 (illegal) Israeli settlers live across the West Bank. But Hebron’s case is unique because settlers live right in the middle of the Palestinian city—rather than maintaining a degree of isolation, as is normally the case. Because of the settlers’ existence, the Hebron municipality was divided into two sections in 1997: H1 (under Palestinian Authority control) and H2 (under Israeli control). H2 includes parts of the Old City, such as the al-Ibrahimi Mosque. Visitors and worshippers have to go through three checkpoints to get to the mosque! The H2 area (roughly 20 percent of the Hebron municipality) has 40,000 Palestinian inhabitants and 500 ... read more

I lived in West Jerusalem for the past three weeks and visited the Old City at least a dozen times; yet, there’s so much I still need to see! Jerusalem is many things—beautiful, frustrating, magical, mysterious, tense—but one thing that it’s not, is dull. I can walk around the city every day and still be overwhelmed by its labyrinth-like alleys (which, by the way, rarely have signs). I tried finding a place in East Jerusalem but became mesmerized by the Palestinian town of Ramallah before I could. Now I have to go through the gruesome Qalandia checkpoint every time I travel between Ramallah and Jerusalem—a 10-mile distance that can take over an hour (and hoursss if it’s Friday) to cross. Going from Israel into the occupied territories is easy, but the other way around can take ... read more

A few pictures from Petra--an ancient Nabataean city built between the 3rd century BC and the 1st century AD. Petra is Jordan's most popular tourist attraction so it's best to visit the site as early in the morning as possible.... read more