Standing at a bus stop, the bricks of the Old City hovering on the horizon and a deadly heat radiating off the highway pavement, I boarded a minibus that 20 minutes later had me face to face with the wall – yes, that wall – on the edge of Bethlehem. Disembarking the vehicle and walking (tentatively) toward the massive structure, complete with rusted barbed wire and ominous towers, I passed through the series of indoor turnstiles and ramps that landed me in a queue line. I knew these places existed, and equally knew the vitriol-strapped arguments surrounding them: security fence, separation barrier, land grab, open-air prison. Call it what you will because in this moment, standing in the stark reality of a hot-button issue, I’m not thinking about semantics.

On my last day in Palestine, just before leaving, I went back to visit one
of my favorite spots in Jerusalem. Located in the Western Wall plaza,
there is this place you can stand where the shining gold of the Dome of
the Rock arches ever so slightly over the holy wall. Seeing the two
religious sites juxtaposed against each other is breathtaking. It’s a
visual symbol of how close two societies in conflict are to each other,
yet it’s depressing because they’re so far apart.

By David Tzam

In September of 2005 I set out to explore the world. I had finished my undergrad degree the previous April and I was determined to see as much as I could. After nearly four months and twenty-four countries in Europe I flew from Athens, Greece to Ben Gurion Airport, just outside of Tel Aviv.

I was not enticed, per se, by birthright’s web pages inviting me to Experience Israel! adorned consistently with photos of youths huddling happily together, advertising how incredibly intimate they had become over the course of their ten days together – in fact I suspected these were amateur models posing to receive generous stipends from Taglit’s overflowing coffers. I was more attracted by the free airfare…