Back in the saddle again....

So I thought I'd write a quick note about my trip so far.

I watched two movies on my way to Paris..."Hors de Prix" and "The Queen". I highly recommend the first..very cute and funny. It's a french flic staring Audrey Tautou. As for "The Queen"...I don't see what the hype is about. So, the Helen can act like she's void of emotion. It's just as bad as Dame Judy Dench winning a freakin' oscar for her 2 minute appearance in "Shakespeare in Love."

Aside from watching the movies, nothing much happened. Oh wait! I totally fell asleep right before landing and had a heart attack when the plane touched the ground. Thank goodness I had my wits about me and only gasped out loud, clutched the arm of the surly russian man sitting next to me all while spilling the can of soda I was hiding from the 7 foot tall stewardess. DUDE, it was horrible.

This amazonian behemoth stewardess kept taking my tray away. I wasn't even halfway through the main course when she swooped in and nabbed the tray from under my nose. I was so looking forward to the 1 inch square piece of chocolate cake. Then she took my drink away after I had taken just a few sips. Was she trying to tell me something? Do I look fat in an Air France coach seat? Well, she wasn't going to get my second 'complimentary' can of soda! Honestly, it wasn't even my beverage of choice. See, as a valued member of the "i ain't a member of jack --it," club, I was lucky enough to be seated near lavatory in the back. Choice seats, highly sought after. By the time she got to me, they had lavatory tap water and diet lemon/lime coffee soda. I don't know if that's what it was, but it tasted like it.

It was a matter of principle that I keep this can safe from her clutches. Even when the announcement was made that we were about to land and "si vu ple au fa fee, au fau fa" I wouldn't give up my soda. Look who's laughin' now bie-yatch!

Ok ok, so the stewardess is laughing...

Does anyone know how to get soda stains out of denim?

I'm home and safe

hello all, i'm home and safe. I'm quite shaken up over the whole ordeal and feel horrible for having left such good new friends behind. I'll continue to post so please continue to read.

Sun: June 16: I'm ok

hi guys, i'm ok. they're canceling the program and we're coming home. they've evacuated us all and we're in tel aviv. i'm dying to come home and very emotional. get ready to start a support group. i love you all.

Thurs : 9:15pm - Bombing in Haifa

hi guys, i'm ok and still in nazareth. we may be moved further down south tomorrow. as of now, we are staying here in the arab town where it is safer. please do not worry. i am ok. i tried to keep everyone calm and then just broke down crying. it's not easy being here alone. even though i'm with the other students i barely know them and it's difficult. they are all freaking out and it's getting to me. but i'm ok. i'm safe and will get out if it gets really bad.

love, wajmah

Thurs- July 13: Israel hits Beirut airport

We've been watching the reports closely. Although Nazareth isn't too far away from where the attacks are going on, we're very safe here. We've been asked by our director if we'd like to go home. If so, he'll arrange it. My classmates and I are determined to stay because the general mood is calm here. As soon as the locals freak out, we'll be on the first plane out. I'm less worried than I was yesterday. I've come down with a bad cold so I'm more focused on that.

I don't know how to explain how surreal the situation is. CNN and other news sources are freaking out but the people on the ground are acting as if nothing is happening. I'm just going to take the attitude of the people here. I'm going to sit and wait it out. I'll keep updating while I've got internet access.

Wed: July 12 - Israel enters Lebanon

We're hearing reports that Israeli troops have entered into southern Lebanon. I'm surprised at how calm everyone here is. I guess it's just normal for them. I'm a little freaked out to be honest. The reports are coming in minute by minute. Hezbollah says that Israel started and Israel says Hezbollah started it. I honestly don't know how anyone gets work done here. There is literally no peace and quiet...Pardon the wording.....In this country. Yet, things go on as if nothing is happening. AHH! I'm not sure how to react. I just wanted to post to let everyone know that I'm ok. I just pray that this doesn't escalate into something worse. I'll be careful and stay close to home.


6:30pm...The news is the same. It seems that Israel and Lebanon do this all the time. It's just that the media is increasing coverage because there is little else to report. I called several of my friends in the area and their response was, "We're used to it, Don't worry." This is the life of young and old, men and women, boys and girls.

I experienced something amazing the other day. I went to the beach with a group of people in Haifa. We realized that we had forgotten cups for the soda. A young friend Samer (about 18) and I went to ask for cups from a local smoothie stand on the board walk. Samer is a tall lanky Arab Israeli with a warm smile and mischievous eyes. As soon as the attendant saw Samer his manner changed. I can't describe it but you could see how the attendant looked down at Samer. Samer is different..He's Arab. That's the feeling I got from the attendant. He refused to give us cups even though we offered to pay for them. We had to go to several places before someone would even listen to our request.

The situation here is simple. The Arabs of this country are treated like the blacks of early America. Discrimination is blatant. Within Nazareth, everyone is Arab so you don't see it. But when you travel outside, it's different. In Nazareth, Samer comes from a very rich, educated and prominent family. Outside, he is nothing but an Arab. Forgive me if I sound so very onesided but this is the reality of the situation. It's extremely depressing.

I met another young man in his early 20s who described what it's like to be an Arab man in Haifa (a beautiful port city on the Mediterranean). He talked about going to a club and meeting a girl, hitting it off, dancing...Really getting along. But something changes the moment the girl finds out his name. As soon as she finds out he is an Arab, it's over. This man no longer bothers to talk to girls. He says it's no use. His Muslim culture and religion also make it hard for him. It's like people here can't get a break. They are oppressed in one way or another.

Ugh, it's really all very sad.

Monday: July 10: Four-wheelin' in the Negev

I just got back from an amazing trip in the Negev. There is little or no connection to the civilized world, so I didn't get a chance to post to the Brog:)

On Thursday night several of the other students on the trip came to stay with us in Nazareth. We had dinner at our little hangout. The Can Cun (as in Mexico's Cancun) is owned by a very jolly and very nice man named Ramon. The little Mexican restaurant does not serve Mexican. It actually doesn't have a menu but they do have a bar. Ramon just cooks whatever he's got in the fridge and it always turns out wonderful. He also makes the best cupa-shino (cappuccino). That night he made us a mini feast for the gang. I also had my very first absinthe drink. It was a very low alcohol content level but it burned going down. I honestly didn't get too much out of it. But it's fun to say that I've had absinthe.

Early Friday we piled into a van and headed down to the Dead Sea for a little mud slathering and a bit of a float in the salt water. Since I've been already, the experience lacked novelty. What did strike me about the spa was the amount of old people. As I entered the dressing room I was confronted by the oldest pair of breasts known to man. I was looking for my locker number when this tiny old woman walked towards me. She was wearing this brownish-tan bathing suit with an abstract pattern. I thought nothing of it….until closer examination! That was not a bathing suit at all! It was her skin! The woman was at least 200 years old and worst of all…..she was naked! Lord help me, I think I saw Jesus Eyes. My life flashed before me. I can’t describe the fear that oozed over me; the fear of getting old. And the lack of proper coverage of the cleavage and lower nether regions shocked me a bit too. Have mercy old people! Why is it that the older people get the smaller and tighter their swimwear gets?!!

After a traumatic 3 hours at the spa we hopped into two landrover jeeps. The desert tour started off with a stop in a cave, then to some amazing springs and overlooks. I can’t tell you how ‘at-home’ I feel in the desert. A quiet calm spreads over me and I feel like cares and worries evaporate. Our drivers Bari and Barak raced through the desert while I shot water from tiny water guns from one jeep. We had a blast. We ended the night at a Bedouin tent, where we had a traditional dinner of rice with chicken, hummus, salad and other tasty dips. The night sky was fantastic. I’ve never seen so many stars in my life. That night we slept under the stars next to a dwindling fire. We woke up the next morning, had breakfast and loaded up the jeeps again.

We toured the desert some more, climbed ridiculous hills in the jeep…literally defying gravity! It’s mind-blowing to think what these drivers can do. The highlight of the day was walking to a fresh water spring. The spring was at least 25 meters deep, cold and refreshing. You could drink the water that fell from a tiny fall above the spring. The spring was surrounded by a steep cliff on three sides. Several guys decided to dive from one of the perches. It looked easy enough so I gathered up what little courage I had and began my assent. I would jump too.

The closer I got to the little ledge the more I remembered how afraid of heights I am. An intense fear came over me. I couldn’t figure out what had come over me. What the hell was I doing on this ledge 50 feet above this tiny green pool? My classmates and friends were at the bottom cheering me on. I couldn’t do it. This was too much. The audience started clapping and slowly chanting “Wajmah…Wajmah….Wajmah.” The pressure was on…. I looked down….held my nose and jumped. The trip down took a millisecond. As my feet hit the water I tilted back a little too much and landed flat on my ass. Yes, I did an ass flop.

For those of you who have never experienced a 50 foot dive into a complete ass flop, I shall elaborate. As your butt hits the water, the intense force causes your swimsuit to miraculously shrink and travel north, through your nether regions, into your spleen and somehow reaches your throat. I could literally taste my bathing suit. I had the wedgie of all time. I thought I might need medical treatment. It was quite an experience.

After the springs, we dried off by lying on the rocks. We then went to a local goat farm/winery where we sampled some amazing cheese and wine. We toasted the end of our desert excursion and made our way back to the Naz.

Thurs. JULY 7 - Futbol Funk

My team lost and I'm in a terrible mood because of it. The suspense and tension of the game almost led me to a very early death. I bit my nails to the nub, smoked at least 3 packs of cigarettes and was being force-fed black label whisky by the bar owner. Needless to say, it was an interesting game and an interesting night. We've made some well-connected friends within the old town of Nazareth and were invited to the "Cinematech" to watch the game with almost half the town. This bar/old movie theatre serves the best food in town and just about every type of alcohol you can think of. I was a guest of the owners and was given three whiskeys (on the rocks) for free. I don't like whisky, I don't really drink but somehow they thought I looked like a whiskey girl and kept bringing them to me. I didn't want to be rude so I drank the first one. They brought another at half time and I somehow went through the glass while talking to the locals and my fellow GMU students. The third glass was meant to be sipped on like the first two, but I believe I slammed it down in the 90th minute in a blatant attempt to get drunk enough to forget that Germany hadn't scored yet.

The last few minutes of overtime were the most painful in my life. Granted, Germany didn't play as well as I had expected, but damn it all! It made me sick to my stomach to see the Italian fans jumping and cheering. Some would turn around and give me a nod as if to say, "I understand your pain." But they didn't understand, they had no idea! My stomach was churning, my head was spinning, I felt woozy and my speech was slurring. All of this because Germany lost. I know what you're thinking. Wajmah, it could be the three glasses of whisky you drank. I, at some point, blacked out so I can't tell you whether it was the emotion of the libations that did it. I vote for emotion. No?

The crowd outside the Cinematech was fantastically rowdy. Cars, with Italian flags pasted on them, flowing from them, painted on them, lined the main street. Young men in the drivers seats continuously honking and yelling things in Arabic. It was amazing. Of course this intensified the hurt and nausea I was feeling. As my group and I headed towards the hotel, we came across one lone Germany fan. He wore the Germany flag tied around his neck like a cape. The poor guy just stood there staring at his feet. As I passed by he looked up, saw my Germany scarf, and nodded. Yes, this man understood my pain. I nodded back, desperately trying not to cry...or throw up. I will never drink whiskey again. I will never drink alcohol again.

By the way, things are going well at work. We're almost done designing the new newsletter for FUCAE. We've been asked to think of new logos and such for the organization. This is wonderful but at the same time, it's a daunting task. With my small bit of experience, I happen to know that creating a logo for a nationally recognized organization is not easy. We only have three more weeks here. In that time we need to travel to different schools, interview several people and write original articles to fill the newsletter. I'm not very optimistic but I know we'll be able to finish at least most of what we set out to do.

France plays Portugal tonight. I pray that France and Zidane win! Viva la France!