What I've learnt

That though cultures may be different that people are essentially the same-
and that this makes the concept of human rights all the more important

That because of the last point school children are school children wherever they are in the world

That I'm pretty good at sign langauge when I'm trying to explain things

That the situation here is complex but I now have a much better understanding of it

That my previous 2weeks wasn't enough time to gain an insight into life here

That my attempts at Arabic are priceless but I need to learn much more

That 'people' and their 'governments' are not the same thing

That power and control are more important than people (to governments)

That what happens in the world often isn't what the majority want

That the reality of the world is different from my previously idealistic view but that doesn't mean we should stop trying to make it better. However little we can achieve we can still improve it.

That because people live under tough circumstances or in less developed countries it doesn't follow that their minds will reflect this

That the UK isn't the centre of the world

Much of this I knew before but being here has reinforced the ideas. To most intelligent people many of these truisms wil be self evident. To most people in the UK they won't be.

Also...

Fairuz in the morning, Um Kulthuum in the afternoon

That instant coffee isn't really coffee

That I should travel more

That I need to go to Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan...

and of course come back to Palestine.