Summer 2011 Vacation Pictures

I have long awaited this trip for many years. Three years to be exact.  That was the last time I had traveled to Palestine.  My in-laws and sister had come to visit us in that time, but I needed to be there.  Ever since my very first visit in 2004, I fell in love with the country that gave birth to my parents and holds the remains of my ancestors. 

I packed my heavy DSLR, an extra lens, and my external flash. And my charger of course.  My camera would be of no use without any battery life.  I had huge plans to take hundreds, no… thousands, of pictures.  My husband’s family had grown considerably with new brides, babies, and new neighbors.  I needed to document it all so that we could look back years from now and see how much we’ve changed and grown, just like we constantly do with albums from years back. 

I needed to take pictures of the souks, outdoor markets,  that I love so much. Souks that given the chance I would spend all day long in.  Taking in the smells of fresh spices, spiral cooking meats awaiting shawerma sandwiches, warm pita bread, hot oil frying up falafel, and even the exhaust fumes coming from the buses and cars.  Through pictures, I would remember those smells.  I wanted to visually hold hard copies of my memories.  Row after row of colorful, patterned hijabs, headscarves.  Plastic covered and brightly colored children’s clothes hanging waiting for mothers to pick out just the right outfit for their little ones.  Shop after shop of shiny new housewares –  clear glass tea cups, tiny Arabic coffee mugs, silver and gold trays, fake plants covered in glitter, ornate vases of all sizes.

I wanted to remember the streets.  The streets I would walk along with my sister-in-law as we exchanged secrets and caught up on stories that we could never fully share through the unclear static-y phone lines.  A road that we would drive up and down many times through out the day.  I wanted to remember it a few years later and see how the shops and buildings around it have changed and grown.

I love food.  I love authentic Palestinian food.  One of the reasons I wanted to go so badly on this vacation was for the food. I kid you not.  While back in the States, I wanted to look at those images and nearly taste it all in my mouth. I wanted to remember the conversations and laughs and second helpings that all came with the territory.  All of my favorites that I always crave but couldn’t even replicate here if I tried. 

Very few pictures exist of me with my girls. It’s usually just them or, if I’m lucky enough and they’re cooperating, there will be pictures of them with their father.  But very little of me.  I wanted to pull out pictures and show my girls the time we traveled far away together by ourselves. Tell them about the memories we had.  Share the cute things they had said or done.  This was going to be the vacation that actually included me as well.

Unfortunately, that was not the case at all during this vacation.

There were many factors behind taking very little images.  The weather was extremely hot and uncomfortable.  So much to the point that I wished clothing was optional.  I just would not have the energy or patience to lug around my heavy camera or to even bring it down from my room.  The horrible weather led to my severe dehydration.  Like go to the hospital, need a couple bags of IV kind of dehydration.  (Without proper hydration, a ton of walking, and intense heat, this was bound to happen.  Entirely my fault.)  After that I became incredibly lazy careful as not to trigger it again. Lots and lots of water and plenty of rest in my sister-in-law’s air conditioned room.  And you can forget about walking through the hot crowded souks completely.

Then there were the girls. My precious, sweet little girls that threw rules and years of discipline to the wind and let loose.  Major snacking on things that I would never let them snack on became a daily thing. Behaviors they never had took shape over night. Biting anyone?  I would become incredibly furstrated and irritated. You want me to take pictures of this? I’d rather not remember.  Even the times that they were slightly themselves, pictures were hardly an option.  Did you know my daughter’s hate taking pictures? Any images you’ve seen on the blog are usually the one image I can get out of them before a full blown “I don’t want to take a picture!” meltdown. 

All that being said, I loved my vacation.  I just don’t have as many pictures to show for it.  So please enjoy what I’m about to share as years later these will be the images that remind me of our summer 2011 vacation.

Jerusalem

A site I never tire of – the tile work of The Dome of the Rock.

Mandatory Palestinian picture.  No vacation or family is without this image.  Note: M not looking, J covering her face, and me none the wiser. 

Palestine’s #1 dessert, knaffa from Hajj Jafar. This alone was worth the 10 hour layover in Brussels. Yeah, you read that right – 10 hours.

The children’s choice of sweets.  A typical candy shop filled with halal and kosher gummies.

Ramadan lights for sale the night before we left.

Ramallah

Leading up to what is essentially Palestine’s version of Times Square.  Can you spot the “Stars and Bucks”?

Hand tossed fresh bread.

Produce so fresh you can still smell the dirt from which it came.  Every fruit and vegetable had such a strong scent that fought for your attention in hopes to be carried home with you.

Showcasing and take pride in her finest figs.

A day’s worth of earnings in the palm of her hand.

Roasted, salted watermelon seeds (Bizzer) are to Palestinians as chips are to Americans.  The country’s number one snack usually accompanied with mixed nuts. Known as makhloota, mixture, it’s also the number one things everyone brings back to distribute and share at home.  We literally bring home pounds and pounds of it.

Don’t even think about leaving Ramallah without world famous (well famous to Palestinians all over the world) Rukab ice cream.  Pistachio, yum.

Jenin

Home to all of my husband’s family.

The best moment was witnessing my incredible sister-in-law’s graduation.  The only one in her family to graduate college. She’s going on to continue with her Master’s degree. I am so proud of her.

We laughed at old photos. That’s the hubs on the bottom right.

Prepping a ton, okay half a ton, of fresh cheese with one of our favorite cousins to use for breakfast, dessert, or to eat with fresh cold watermelon. What, you don’t eat cheese with your watermelon? Must be a Palestinian thing.

Super excited to be just a few seconds away from taking a bite of a real cheesecake.  The smiles on their faces do not do justice to portray how happy they were.  Good thing they loved it, that sucker was expensive to make. You don’t even want to know how much cream cheese costs out there.

The view from my “presidential suite”.  There is a mini apartment on the roof of my in-law’s home – 2 rooms, a kitchenette, and a bathroom all to ourselves.  I’m working on having them install an AC unit for the next time I visit.  Sitting on the roof is one of the best places, especially while sipping mint tea and eating makhloota.

My all time favorite Palestinian dish, mussakhan.  Large round bread baked on stones, covered in cooked onions sprinkled with a whole lot of sumac and browned silvered almonds.  Made entirely in my honor for a huge family dinner.  I adore this family.

Around Israel

The girls were their absolute happiest whenever water was involved. The warm water of Yaffa was amazing and the seashells were in abundance, the complete opposite of the beaches I’ve been to in California.

Ramat Gan drive-thru safari and zoo.

Oh how I wished I could have taken this little guy home with me but I was sure I would have some trouble getting through customs.

Sakhne, literally translates to Hot. Gan HaShlosha as it’s known to Israelis.  After coming home I found out that my husband and his family used to visit here every single Friday during his youth. It was so close to them that they sometimes used to walk to it’s location! Certainly beat the 2 hour car ride from Jerusalem.  Unfortunately the way that Palestine is now partitioned off, this area is now off limits to Palestinians that do not hold the Jerusalem ID cards, which would be my husband and his family.  I’m glad that my daughter’s will now have similar childhood memories as their father’s.  The girls adored this place. 

It’s true, I was also there.

And if you were ever wondering why “do not use as a flotation device” was written on your air mattress, you can thank this guy for answering that question.

Longest. Post. Ever.

You’re welcome.