It feels good to be at home!!!!--091210, Haifa, Israel

The past two days have been pretty slow. I have been cleaning, cooking, job hunting and studying Arabic. Except at night when I have been out, to get some fresh air and to feel the city. I think that I have stayed home because I still cannot believe I am not homeless anymore. It feels so good to cook and save some food for next day. Not having to look into my suitcase every time I want to change or take a shower.

So, yesterday I went out with a Palestinian friend and we went to the "Superpharm" for some miscellaneous stuff, soap, toothpaste, etc. I went to the cosmetics area because I lost my cosmetic bag somewhere (not that I loose stuff easily!!!!). I was in SHOCK, to see the price of a mascara: 115 NIS (about $30), that was an insult!!!!A single eyeshadow, like $17.....wow. I thought Israel was expensive before, but this, beauty needs; totally unacceptable. Poor women from Haifa!!!!We need an NGO for beauty rights!!!Just joking, but I guess the natural beauty and the inner beauty will always win! Thank God I got concealer and eye liner when I was in Turkey, everything seems to be much cheaper there!

After that shock, I needed something sweet, to recover, We went to get ice cream on Ben Gurion street, where all the restaurants and bars are. The street was full, my friend explained that these were families from the nearby villages that came to Haifa, because of the Eid holiday. You could observe walking side by side women in hijab and miniskirts. There was even a girl with hijab and tight clothes!!!! My friend was explaining that this is what makes Haifa a distinctive city and that he likes that, that everyone respects each other right to wear whatever they want. Here, he said, there are about 6% of Palestinians in Haifa of which 60% are Christians. He said in his village, you could also see girls with really short jeans.
We were talking about how here in the north there was an identity crisis (among Christians, I guess), because some Palestinians don't know if they belong to the east or to the west. They think that wearing jeans and shorts make them be part of the west. He was saying that most people don't care about politics, they just want to live their lives. But for me is really hard to think that they don't care about politics, because the Palestinians from Israel, they remember 48 very well. My friend always has this number in his mind: before 48 this, or after 48, that. But they were born here, in a place that they know as their country: Israel, but a country that does not recognize them as real Israeli citizens equal to Jewish Israelis. They have a feeling for Palestine, but Israel is their home. I feel weird when they ask me: Do you like Israel? I don' t know exactly how to answer.....

So, today I went to church, and the only roman catholic church I found, the mass is in Arabic, so now I am trying to learn the prayers in Arabic. So, the Our Father goes: "Abbana alathi fi samawat..." At least I can follow the readings, although I cannot understand them.

I came back home after church and I got a private Palestinian concert, there is a wedding beside my house and I can see and hear the music. This people party all the time, yesterday there was also some kind of party. I guess next time I will have to join them, cause it feels the party is here in my living room literally, well i got a video from my bathroom! Anyway, I don't mind.....it looks that they are having a lot of fun. And so am I....