Happy New Year

1st January 2011

Well, today is a new day and a new year. I

The christmas period is now finally over and I can truthfully say that I' happy for it. Not because I don't like christmas, in fact I love it, but because it has been so far the toughest part of my stay in Palestine. Its hard to understand how much you appreciate your family and friends untill you are unable to be with them.

It is now nearly 8 months to the day that I left my home. It feels like from now until May it will be a real up hill struggle. The longer I stay, the more chance I have of not being able to stay. I had to renew my visa on the 27th at the Israeli ministry of interior in Jeruslem, this they did not do but instead an interview was set up for february 6th to dertimine whether I can stay a further three months or not. Many I know who have been to this interview have been given just hours to get out the country. Obviously this is playing on my mind somewhat. For the sake of my own mind I am trying to stay positive.

We had a great day and night in Bethlehem on the night of the 23rd and on christmas eve. In Ceilidh Beyond Borders fashion I organised a busking trip. We played outside the church of the nativity singing carols and playing reels and jigs. We then went and played in an Armenian christian bar around the corner. We played for nearly 5 hours whilst the owners plied us with beer and bottles of wine after wine until none uf us could play coherantly. We travelled back to Nablus before having a small get together in the music centre where we once again sang all the old classics including 'God rest ye merry gentlemen' and 'Last christmas' by Wham.

Christmas day was celebrated in my apartment. It was fine 5 course turkey dinner which was started in true British style with a Gin and Tonic at midday. 12 internationals attended and a good day was had by all.

So, party time is over. Its back to the grind as they say and there is much to do. In early april there will be a travelling bunch of muscians and dancers from Durham and hopefully SOAS Univervsity. Im organising it as a minature folk festival along with a good friend called Ffion . It will be hosted bythe Nablus culture centre where concerts, ceilidhs and workshops will be taking place. Legally or illegally I will be here Nablus for this. After, my fate is not in my hands bar some visa miracle. There will be more infomation coming soon on the Nablus Folk week I am organising.

The situation here is as tense as ever. Settlements grow, the US stalls and Palestinians suffer. Not one week ago ultra conservative settlers from one of the many illegal settlements on the outskirts of Nablus set fire to a Palestinian farmers flock lambs and a protester was killed by IDF forces at the weekly rally at Bil'n where the apartheid wall is being constructed. Hopefully this death and misery will not be in vain.