Excellent experiences at the center

I had a wonderful experience with the Excellence Center in Hebron for 2 weeks, and honestly I wish I was able to stay longer. I did both the English teaching programme and the intensive Arabic course (6h/week). As soon as I arrived I felt both really welcomed by Osama and Marwa (and their family) and the people in Hebron/Al Khalil. What was special about the Excellence Center for me, is that they could provide a range of activities for free (I would have not been able to have accessed on my own as they rely on a wide network) related to the teaching programme, in order to get to know Palestine, Hebron and its neighbouring communities in a more profound way. To give some examples: I had a tour in the city of Hebron where the traces of occupation are clearly seen and pointed out and according to your own interests they might try to show you particular places that you might like. It's something that is harder to explore on your own as they provide you with info and special access to certain sites.
Secondly, I really liked and valued the teaching programme a lot. Especially because they provide a variety of educational contexts where you can teach English and visit the different schools. To give you a slight idea of the places I was able to teach in or visit in just 2 weeks: twice a week teaching in the Excellence Center itself, another two times in two different camps (Al Fawar and Al Aroub), and even a visit to the orphan school and the school for blind pupils.
Besides that, the breakfasts they provide every weekday are a nice way to be together with the family and the other volunteers, the cooking class is a nice way to learn about the Palestinian cuisine, and even some evenings we were invited at their place to have dinner on the terrace.
Next on, I was happy to have followed the 6h/week Arabic classes. Usually they were in the mornings after breakfast until noon. I felt that they matched me with a teacher that was able to work with my (basic) level of Arabic. My teacher (Haya) was very motivated to learn me to read and write the Arabic alphabet, and after 1 or 2 weeks I managed to do so.
Next on I was very happy to see that they gave me the freedom to organize two activities I wanted to do with the children of the Center: one was a (virtual) classroom exchange with some of my students in Belgium and another one is an Ultimate Frisbee training.
I'm eternally grateful to the Excellence Center for having been able to have experienced all these different sides and aspects of Palestine and Hebron - thank you!!! All the best and hope to see you soon, Thomas.