Studying Arabic at the Hebron Excellence Center

My name is Tristan and I'm from America. I participated in the Excellence Center's intensive Arabic studies program for two weeks in early 2019.

I decided on the program as a means of both improving my fledgling Arabic and visiting an area rich in culture and political interest. While I mainly stayed in Hebron, where the program provided living accommodations, I also visited Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Traveling in Palestine is generally cheap and easy, though it helps to have functional Arabic.

My stay was likely too short to fully review the quality of the program, but without a doubt my teacher and the staff at the Center were extremely kind, patient and knowledgeable. Some of the staff have much more English than others, and my Arabic isn't conversational, so that limited my interactions.

This may have been because I was at the Center a short period, but I do wish there had been more trips/tours organized by the staff. On my penultimate day we visited the last remaining kufiyyah factory in Hebron, but this was the only trip during my stay.

I would say any of the programs here will be most beneficial to somebody who already has functional Arabic and is very social. If you have a good 'base' of Arabic and you're a social learner, you could dramatically improve your Arabic via this program, even in a short amount of time.

In general, the Palestinians I met were all extremely gracious and were without exception interested in chatting and engaging with tourists. The Center didn't always feel entirely structured but I think anybody with the right attitude and disposition could get a lot out of the Arabic studies program.