The name “West Bank” usually brings all sort of negative emotions to people: fear, confusion, questioning. And I get it as that’s what media do to us, showing only unfortunate events, taking sides etc. I might as well admit that my way of thinking was similar, confusion being the commanding one. I was a little bit reluctant when the opportunity of visiting West Bank appeared but the curiosity in me went for it. And, of course, I loved every minute I spent exploring West Bank and learning about the life there.

There’re so many issues with West Bank and Israeli – Palestine conflict that you can easily write a long book about it (I’ve just finished reading one). But I’m not gonna talk politics here, mainly because my knowledge of this is way too little to give any opinions. I tried to understand it when visiting West Bank but it was just overwhelming and confusing. Besides I was more interested in learning about the everyday life of people there, how difficult it is and how local people feel about the situation they happened to be in.

I visited only very small part of West Bank, cities of Ramallah, Jericho and Bethlehem (and Hebron but that deserved a separate post that can be found here) but they gave me an impression of how the situation there is. All of the places were busy, bustling cities with numerous local businesses, street sellers, packed with people and cars. The vibe, the scenes I observed, the street life reminded me much of Amman, Jordan. West Bank towns were just your typical Arab cities that you can find in the countries around. Even if I had come there with no expectations I was still surprised how these places really were. They might not be beautiful per se but definitely had a soul that I fall for. And now I wish I could have spent more time visiting Palestine.

---

Sorry to interupt but would you like to be the first one to read my posts (mostly) from off the path places in Eastern Europe, the Balkans and Middle East? Then sign up to my newsletter! I promise no spam, just new posts landing directly in your mailbox. Simply click on the picture below! Thanks!

---

All my conversations with local people lead to one conclusion – they were happy with their lives but just wanted to have a peaceful, stress-free everyday reality, without insane rules to follow, without permissions to travel around, without numerous check points. They weren’t radicals saying that having two separate countries, Israel and Palestine, is the only solution. They were well aware of the difficult position they are in, both politically and geographically (big part of West Bank lies on the harsh desert) and believed that it’s possible to work out the solution to their hopeless case, as soon as smart people on both sides are ready to talk. Their words were full of sorrow, but not hate. Most of well, they were just hoping for the better future.

Is West Bank on your bucket list?

I visited West Bank with Abraham Tours. It leaves from Jerusalem every Saturday and Tuesday. Best of West Bank Tour costs 360 NIS per person.

---

LIKED IT? PIN THIS POST!

     

---

If you think of visiting Israel or just want to read more about the country take a look what else I wrote about it!

Note: My trip to Israel was in partnership with Tourist Israel, Abraham Tours and Abraham Hostel. As always I’m keeping it real and all opinions are 100% mine.