2 Weeks in Palestine at the Excellence Centre!

Hi! I’m a medical student from the UK and just spent the last 2 weeks in Hebron, Palestine with the Excellence Centre. I was involved with both the Teach English Study Arabic (TESA) and Medical Healthcare Programme.

On the TESA programme, I spent a week travelling to a nearby village (paid for by the centre) to teach 2 classes of around 20 kids aged 7-13. Although varying in levels, being able to build a bond with the kids and try and make their lessons as fun and useful as possible was very rewarding. Most of the kids were very eager to learn English which certainly helped make the class environment more fun. Teaching them basic words/phrases also gave me a chance to improve my own very basic conversational Arabic.

My Medical healthcare programme was shorter. In my 5 or so days, I was able to visit 2 hospitals, a nearby refugee camp and listen to a couple of presentations about the healthcare structure in Hebron and Palestine. The visit to the nearby Al-Alia public hospital was the most memorable experience of this programme. The hospital was rammed pack and was certainly in need of additional funds/staff and supplies. It was an eye opening experience but the doctors and staff from each ward were very friendly and happy to take time out to answer any Q’s we had.

The people in Palestine, particularly Hebron were super friendly. I read a lot of people say the same thing before I travelled to Palestine, but having been through it myself I cannot overstate how friendly Palestinians truly are. From teachers/students at the EC to taxi drivers to even street sweepers. Everyone was super happy to talk to foreigners and help out in any way possible. This also means a lot of coffee offerings and even 1 wedding invite from a particular taxi driver lol. Marwa and Osama (the people who run the centre) were extremely accommodating in my short time there. I felt reassured that I could raise any concerns with them at any time. Marwa even cooked a local favourite dish (Mansaf) for my flatmates and I - for which I am super grateful!

Due to the nature of the course and having weekends off, there is also a lot of scope to travel around Palestine which was something I really enjoyed. In just 2 weeks at the centre, I combined my free time and visited Jerusalem, Ramallah and Nablus with a few friends that I made from the centre.

One concern I had going into Palestine was safety. It’s completely understandable given the media portrayal but I am 100% convinced when I say Hebron is safer than London in every way possible. The people are incredibly funny and cannot remember coming across/witnessing anything confrontational at all. The only sense of tension I got was when visiting the occupied areas near Ibrahimi Mosque.

Some things I would tell volunteers to expect before they come would be to be prepared for the surprisingly high cost of living in Palestine. Due to the political and economic situation in Palestine, costs and prices alike have gone up. It’s not uncommon to pay £15-£20 for a meal. However, I would still urge to do so and help out the local communities who are still struggling very much. Another things would be not to expect a 5* hotel accommodation. I think I got quite lucky with a very nice apartment for my accommodation, but I heard of less fortunate situations. Do not have your expectations for living arrangements through the roof, especially considering the very reasonable price of the course. Lastly, if you are planning on coming it would be in your own best interest to learn as much Arabic as possible beforehand - this will make your lessons and interactions with locals a lot more enjoyable and fruitful.

Overall, I couldn’t recommend the Excellence Centre enough. If you are lucky enough to have the opportunity to see Palestine and visit the Excellence Centre - please do it!