The Excellence Center Reviews

This was my first experience in both Palestine as a whole and the first city to visit in Al Khalil. I joined the law and human rights programme with the Excellence Centre for a week and it was truly eye opening and insightful. What we see in the media is only a small glimpse of the reality here on the ground. I was able to talk to legal professionals and their lives here in Hebron and I was able to talk to locals and understand their struggles living under occupation and segregation. I feel more inspired to do more to promote human rights now and can't wait to be back in Al Khalil again!

Hebron is also quite safe, even walking at night, there are many women and even when we travelled to Bethlehem, the locals made sure to help us get an affordable ride back to Hebron.

I came to Palestine eager to learn more about the country, culture and people and to also lend a helping hand in whatever way i could and I have been extremely satisfied by my experience here at the excellence center. I was staying with an amazing host family that provided me with a great home to rest and relax and enjoy with them. I have also been able to volunteer with the refugees and learn more about them and their livelihoods and it was an amazing experience.

My biggest takeaway would be the people in palestine. They are some of the, if not, best people ive met on my travels. Eveyrone has been so kind and helpful and I have never felt safer anywhere else. Safety, in general, was a concern of mine when coming but it soon became something I neve thought about because of how safe and welcomed I felt. I never expereinced anything that felt like it would put me in danger or any situations where I felt unsafe and that was really awesome and relieving. I absolutely will be back and am excited to return here.

Thank you so much Excellence Center and my brilliant host family for giving me an amazing trip to remember and god bless everyone here in this amazing city (Hebron) and country!

My name is Mami, I am from Japan, currently I undertake a postgraduate study in migration and development. I participated in “Volunteering for Palestinian Refugees” program between 8th January to 21st January 2023.

Homestay
During my 2 weeks, I was at a homestay with a family in Hebron, with another Dutch girl also volunteering for the excellence centre. My host family was absolutely amazing, one of the warmest people in the world with a lovely sense of humour. They have experience hosting over 11 years, to more than 40 people from all around the world. In their apartment, myself and another Dutch girl shared a bedroom separate from the family’s house and provided us with a private shower and toilet for us to share. We were often invited to eat with them and have a chat in the evening around their fireplace, and the living room was always filled with laughter.
Spending time with this lovely family, I started to think a lot about what it means to be happy, what we should seek in our life. It was so nice to see many people visiting every day, and relatives having tight knit communities. They also mentioned how children are raised by the whole family and relatives, which is very different from what mothers experience in Japan or in the West. I deeply appreciate all the kindness they have given me through the homestay and thank also the excellence centre to introduce this family to me.

Safety in Hebron
Although the situations for Palestinians are complicated, I felt very safe in the city as a foreigner. There was not one moment when I felt in danger. In my opinion, this is the most welcoming place I have ever been as a foreigner, with people saying hi, welcome to you everyday on the street with smiles, and I never experienced any racism nor those pushing to make you buy something / trying to rip you off. 3G network works well in most places, although you need to get a SIM card from here (the one from Tel-Aviv didn’t work in Hebron).

To the Excellence Centre
Thank you so much for everything. It has been a wonderful 2 weeks here in Hebron.
I don’t know how I can give back all the kindness you and people I have met here have offered to me, but I would like to share the stories I have heard during my stay and encourage others to also come to Palestine to experience for themselves.

Just one tip for travelling – Don’t come on Friday night / Saturday morning. There is no public transportation and private taxis could be very expensive. All other days, you can travel by affordable trains from airport to Jerusalem and then shared taxi from Jerusalem Damascus gate to Hebron.

I am so glad and thankful for having had the opportunity of this wonderful experience at the Europe Excellence Center. Although I visited the Center in Halle for a short term, not only did I have very much fun and empathy with my language students in English and in German, the whole atmosphere at the academy was warm and welcoming, I felt the kindness and open-minded mentality of everyone there from the beginning on.

The staff was always absolutely helpful and nice, their disposition of sharing time and personal experiences with the volunteers was marvelous! For the reason of my international background (I was born in Colombia and my family of origin is german), this possibility of communicating and interacting with people from different cultures and mentalities was a very rewarding experience, not only because of the opportunity of learning from others, but also - for me the most important fact of all - it enriches you personally at a very deep. spiritual level, in which giving and receiving flows in a very spontaneous, natural way.

I fully recommend the programs offered at the Europe Excellence Center, as well as its staff and teachers, not only for younger people, but also for those of us who are more aged in time but always young by heart, because of all the fun and learning you will experience at the Centerl! I therefore express my deepest gratitude to each and everyone there whom I had the opportunity of knowing and interacting with!!

I came to Hebron to study amiya Arabic commencing 1st of January 2023 for 2 weeks, as a taster session in advance of planning a longer trip next year for myself and my husband. I had three hours of lessons every morning at the centre from Sunday to Thursday with Mahmoud, one of the teachers at the centre. The lessons were tailored specifically to what I needed and my level; and they were excellent... Mahmoud was very engaging and provided a good blend of local dialect, some MSA at my request, colloquial expressions and useful phrases.

I feel that my spoken Arabic has definitely improved since I've been here in just 2 weeks and when I come back for longer, I feel it will make a huge difference to my understanding. The experience has been enriched by some excursions organised by the centre; notably to a refugee centre which was both extremely informative and uncomfortable in terms of the plight of the Palestinians, however these experiences are crucial in understanding the lived experience of those who are here.

I travelled in winter when Hebron is cold, and I would recommend people travelling here to dress comfortably and for cold weather. Many of the buildings are not centrally heated, using small heaters instead and so I packed a hot water bottle and it was invaluable!

At all times I have felt safe travelling in Palestine both on my own as a woman and with the group, and the initial trepidations I had before travelling here was assuaged shortly after arriving. People are extremely kind and helpful if you have any issues. Staying with a host family has been an incredibly warm experience where no problem is too great and you are part of the family immediately. On this trip I have largely stayed around the Hebron area, but in future trips I plan to travel more widely and see more of this amazing country. The Palestinians are hospitable and welcoming, the food is amazing, and my impressions post-visit are very positive. I would encourage anybody considering a trip to Palestine to go for it! Much of what we read in the news about Palestine is biased and so I would counsel people to see the country for themselves.

Anybody with an interest in learning more about the culture, the history and human rights situation in Palestine, or learning Arabic should utilise the Excellence Centre as they are set up for facilitating these experiences.

I spent three weeks at the center and I came in not knowing what to expect. It was the first big/ long trip I have taken on my own, and I could not have asked for a better experience. The center is full of kind and welcoming people, who took me throughout to city to learn more about Palestine and the struggles of the people who live here. My time here was so informative and such a wonderful overall experience. Additionally, I stayed with the most wonderful family who took me in and treated me like a daughter. I hope I have the opportunity to come back soon!

I am Amelia, age 31, I spent a week going the Women's Rights programme. Every day was an incredible chance to be immersed in the culture, politics, people, joy, laughter and sadness that the amazing city of Hebron has to offer. The staff were some of kindest, most passionate people I've met, I felt fully supported. I felt completely safe as solo female traveller, the locals couldn't do enough to help you. My hosts became family to me. This is a life changing trip -I can't recommend your visit enough!

My time at the Excellence Center in Europe was amazing and I am very grateful for it. I am so thankful for the opportunities I had to connect with the local refugee community in Halle and individuals throughout the city. I loved the community at the Excellence Center and the friendships I developed there. While at times it was difficult adjusting to a new environment, all the people I met made me feel very welcomed and cared for. I really enjoyed getting to teach English to so many students, being able to hear their stories, and build lasting connections with them. I will never forget my time there, especially the project I did interviewing local Syrian refugees about their current lives in Germany. My experiences at the Excellence Center solidified my desire to work with the refugee community in Germany as that is the next step I am taking in my life. I know I will see everyone at the Excellence Center again soon and I am so grateful to all of them for all they did for me and making my time in Halle so special.

I spent two weeks at the Excellence Center in Hebron in winter 2022/23 and it was an amazing experience. Not only I could improve my Arabic in a very short time but I could join a lot of activities of the Center to get in touch with local people and stories. And also I appreciated a lot meeting all the other international guests who were there during my period. I felt like being part of a big family within just 2 weeks!
A few words about travelling in Palestine: it"s absolutely safe and simple, believe me! And people are so caring and welcoming. I absolutely recommend it!

I came to Hebron for 1 week to understand the Human Rights issues between the Israeli and Palestinenian people. The week was an eye opener and I got to visit many places including the refugee camps as well as womens centre and spoke to Palestinian families in the H2 area of Hebron.
The Excellence Centre are a fantastic programme who raise awareness through international students/volunteers and show the issues that the people are dealing with. Marwa and Osama are great people! I have really enjoyed my time here and hope to come back again soon!
It is very safe in Hebron and at no point did I feel i could not travel alone or in a group. I came across no issues and would absoloutly recommend this program.