The Excellence Center Reviews

Program completed in 2015:

I enjoy the program in The Excellence Center. My teacher was really a good one, very pedagogue. And I was really well welcoming by the Center as the family who was hosting me. Both way to learn the language and the culture as well. I booked 2 weeks, who were going too fast. I wish I could stay more. But I will be back to going on my arabic. For those who wondering, there's no safety problem in Hebron. The place is really safe, and people really nice.

Program completed in 2016:

It's my second time in the Excellence Center, and for sure not the last one. It's a very good center with good teachers, and the best way to learn arabic in an efficient and fast way (of course if you study). Everybody here are very welcoming and helpful. Some people can be concern about the security, and it's understandable. But in reality, and I talk as a woman who use to travel alone, Hebron's streets are very safe, and there are some cool places where you can have chicha or some soft drinks. One regret ? Yes: I wish I can stay longer.

I am Daniel, I am 32 years and I work for a wine company in Galicia(Spain), this is a small family business, although my passion and what I want to work in Psychology. I am in my last year of college and, hopefully, I will work as a social psychologist specialized in empowerment participated in Excellence Center TESA program, I was teaching English and studying Arabic.
I am a starter arabic student , it was a little bit difficult but the teacher was very good and I learned a lot. The experience of teaching was amazing. I had no experience as a teacher and I am not a native speaker but the staff and the other volunteers are always helping you . Children who study at the Excellence Center are most of the time paying attention, furthermore they are so thankful and kind with the volunteers.
The time I spent here I felt safe. To be honest, I can’t sleep with my door unlocked at home, and I slept here with the door unlocked. Some areas are more complicated but here in h1 and where the school is I felt completely safe.
About the arabic language, I took only a few classes before I came to Hebron, so it was difficult to communicate with some locals at the beginning. Nevertheless , although I think to know the language is not necessary to participate in this program because people are very welcoming and eager to help you. Of course if you know Arabic you would be able to communicate with locals at a more personal level. But with the lessons I took at the Excellence Center, in two weeks I was able to speak a little bit with my neighbors, a very nice and welcoming family by the way.
My best experiences here are, for example, share some makluba with the friends I made here, (chicken with rice and almonds), or some of the others exquisite food like falafel, the sweet kunafa... another good memory is any of the trips the Excellence Center planed for us, this is an amazing country with the most welcoming people I have ever met in my life.
Concluding I would definitely recommend this program to anyone interested in teaching and learning about this culture.

I studied Arabic at the Excellence Center for three weeks. Overall it was a really good experience.

I was very happy with the classes and my teacher Shayma. She is a really good teacher and she always prepared her classes very well. I learned a lot from her and the classes were useful and fun.

The Excellence Center organised some trips and dinners, which gave me the opportunity to meet some new people, and all of the peope from the center were very nice.
All the Palestinians I met were super friendly and hospitable and I made some great friends.

I was living with a host family, this gave me the opportunity to experience the Palestinian culture and enabled me to practice my Arabic on a daily base. My host family became like a second family to me. I did not feel bored at any moment because there was always something fun to do.

I recommend this program because I learned a lot, not only Arabic but also about the Palestinian culture and what it is like to live in Palestine.

I’m Alessandro Cordova, from Italy. I’m 21 years old and I study Intercultural Communication in the University of Rome, to get a future job in the field of International Cooperation for Development and Humanitarian Aid.
I participated in the TESA program because I wanted to get an insight view on the Palestinian issue and reality, because I wanted to improve my Arabic both through lessons and real-life communication and because I wanted to live an amazing life experience that could make me grow academically and personally.
Hebron is a safe city, easily comparable to many European towns. I was positively impressed by the incredibly low rate of micro criminality in the streets. I never felt to be in a dangerous city, not even at night. The situation in the old center of the can be surprising at a first sight, because of the presence of soldiers in the streets, but I never felt threatened by that. This applies to basically every city in the West Bank. They’re all normal and beautiful cities, full of life and amazing things, absolutely not a war zone.
I would recommend learning Arabic before coming here basically because the direct contact with Palestinians is an essentially important part of the experience. Moreover, even if starting from a basic level, living and studying here is the chance to get an incomparable improvement, especially in oral communication skills.
My best memories in Hebron are the visits to Umm Abed, a woman living in the center of the city. I just loved hearing all her stories and tasting her amazing handmade food, prepared with lots of love. I loved to see how genuinely happy she was every time we visited her.
I tried to learn some Dabka steps, but unfortunately I didn’t have enough patience for that. But for sure I’m willing to learn Maqluba recipe before going back home. Maybe from Umm Abed herself.

Wow, what a place Palestine is. My time there was a truly transformative and unforgettable experience. As soon as I arrived, the Excellence Center made me feel like a member of the family. I learned Arabic with a great teacher. From the first class the teaching was very personalised, and I improved swiftly. The classes were fun and light-hearted, more like two friends hanging out than a teacher-student relationship! I also greatly enjoyed teaching the local Palestinian students. They were very bright and eager to learn, and it was a hugely satisfying experience making a positive contribution to their lives. I was given help and guidelines with which to teach, but also a lot of creative freedom in how I taught. As for Hebron itself, it was an amazing city with a real pulse and energy. Everyone was welcoming and friendly. Despite the difficult situation, I felt completely safe the whole time. I can honestly say there was no moment when I felt threatened or in any danger. In Hebron life goes on as normal, and everyone tries to make the most of it. For anyone thinking of enrolling in this program, I'd say this-do it. You won't regret it!

I did not know what to expect before coming here in Hebron. I had been told a lot of scary things about Palestine: the rough airport check, the security, the food... I had none of these problems!
My airport check was fine and went smoothly, and I never felt in danger here in Hebron and the staff was eager to handle any kind of problem I had (small or big).
The flat I was given was not one of the best flats I could expect, but that did not influence my staying here at the center!

During my free days I was able to explore almost every corner of Palestine, and the staff here is very flexible when it comes to working hours and days off.

Here you will meet many kind, warm and welcoming people. I really feel like I boosted my Arabic a lot, and I would definitely recommend this internship to someone!!!

My name is Sascha Kochendoerfer, 28 years old and I am studying Integrated Water Resources Management in Cologne, Germany. I came to Palestine at the first of August and stayed at the center until the end of August but in Hebron in general until the end of October. I took the 60 hour one-on-one spoken Arabic course at the center. I took this course to learn spoken Arabic for job opportunities and because I will definitely return for travelling. Talking to people in their native language always creates a completely different atmosphere and shows appreciation for country and culture. At no point during my stay in Hebron I even felt remotely unsafe. If you want you can spent your time in Hebron without even noticing that it is a rather controversial place. But I can only recommend to visit the settlements and see for yourself how life is there for both sides and how this environment shapes the people there. All the people that you meet on the street or just in the money exchange shop are very outgoing and generous. Everyone asks from where you are, how you like Hebron and if you would like to drink coffee before they ask for your name. Two years before I came here, I attended an introductory course to standard Arabic. I learned reading, writing and pronouncing. In my opinion this helped a lot because learning the alphabet and pronunciation takes time that you can better spend learning new words or sayings. I think our evenings in the coffee shops smoking shisha, playing cards and cooking together for the regular food days, are the most important memories that I will take home with me. But it is actually hard to decide, since I have many amazing memories. I met so many beautiful people with whom I could joke and laugh for hours. All the staff is so funny and nice and will help you whenever you any need help. My time here was really important for personal growth and seeing the conflict not only from a scientific or historical point of view but also from an emotional one.

I only had a short time but really enjoyed my stay. My teacher was lovely and helped me improve my Arabic even though my time was limited. The staff were great, always checking in to be sure there were no problems. They were also very flexible with the tour times to be sure whoever wanted to could come along. Host family were amazing. I really enjoyed my time with them........................................

There is always some apprehension and anxiety when traveling abroad. Especially to a place you have never visited before. This is perfectly understandable. However, I want to relieve some of those anxieties for people.

I volunteered two months at the Excellence Center teaching four classes and taking Arabic lessons. On my off days, I traveled throughout Palestine. Managing your time and preparing your lesson plans ahead of time is crucial to keeping students engaged. The staff will provide you with lesson plans depending on the student level you will be teaching. Furthermore, the staff encourages the volunteers to come up with their own creative ways to keep the lessons interesting and fun (games, field trips, etc).

I understand safety is big concern for many who are contemplating coming to Palestine. For the two months I stayed in Palestine, I personally have never felt threatened or in danger. It goes with out saying, staying out of trouble will most likely keep you out of trouble. One will have to get accustomed to seeing soldiers and checkpoints throughout Palestine but after a couple weeks you'll adjust to your surroundings.

Traveling is pretty organized and efficient. The cabs in Hebron are affordable and dependable. There are shared service vans you can take to different parts of Palestine -- Bethlehem, Ramallah, Nablus, etc. Going into Jerusalem and Israel will require you to take a bus, which you can do in Bethlehem. All this transportation is reasonably affordable. In addition to traveling on personal time, the staff at the EC will also take you on weekly field trips to areas in Hebron and around it. You'll get an insightful opportunity to meet the locals and hear their stories.

No need to overpack personal hygiene things. You can purchase everything upon your arrival in Hebron. It's Palestine's most populous city with bustling businesses and shops throughout.

People are INCREDIBLY friendly and hospitable. This type of generosity is very common in the Middle East and Muslim-majority countries. As an international you'll stick out like a sore thumb but this is no reason to fear. People will ask you in the streets where are you from and after you tell them, you'll get the same response, "welcome to Hebron! welcome to Palestine!"

I’m currently completing my second experience teaching with the Excellence Center in Hebron, Palestine. I initially came to Palestine to teach for one month in the fall of 2015, when I first fell in love with the bustle of Hebron’s streets and the warmth of its people. I returned to teach again for two months this spring, and will complete my time at the Excellence Center in just a few days.

I wholeheartedly recommend that others come to have this volunteer experience as well. The curriculum that we’re expected to teach at Excellence is interactive, and I’ve loved getting to know my students during the past two months. The local Arab staff are kind and supportive, and eager to help with any potential issues that volunteers might have in adapting to the culture or in settling in with host families. Hebron is beautiful, with gorgeous hillsides surrounding the city and an incredible Old City, that in Palestine is rivalled only by Jerusalem in terms of size and style.

Although Hebron is famous for being a center of Palestinian-Israeli tension, I’ve learned that there is so much more to this city than conflict. It’s a city of amazing people, who continue to welcome me into their homes. They have housed me, given me shoes, and shared countless cups of coffee and tea. It’s a city of generous and patient people who help me when I’m lost, feed me when I’m hungry, and give me roses from their gardens when I’m sad. Now this is what comes to mind first when I think of Hebron: not the conflict, but instead the sweet students, friends, and strangers who have made me feel like I belong in their city.

Of course, there are also challenges to living in a new culture. There are many things I still don’t understand, and I certainly can’t learn Arabic quite as quickly as I’d like. There are significant cultural differences, and I’ve had to adapt appropriately. Schedules (and lifestyles) are generally less structured here than they are in the US, and I’m continuing to learn to be flexible and gracious.

Overall, I am so grateful for the time that I’ve spent with the Excellence Center here in Palestine. I’ve learned so much from my time in Hebron, and will continue to process my experience here for a very long time. I’ll take back to the US many fond memories of a city that now feels like home, and people who now feel like family.