June 26, 2002

Photos from Bethlehem

[Bethlehem, West Bank] Just a few assorted photos from the last two days in Bethlehem and Jaffa.

View of Tel Aviv from Jaffa. It's only an hour or so from Bethlehem, but for Palestinians it's a world away.

Crowded streets of Bethlehem during curfew lift.

This is the top of a tank passing on my street. These tanks are pretty darn close. They come by and shake the power lines together, resulting in loud snaps and showers of sparks. And who knows what all it does to our electrical system, but it looks like both my laptop surge-protector and uninterruptable power supply are now both blown.

Unfortunately some of the tanks pass so close that they damage the sidewalk. Here a tank passed within a few feet of my front door and ruptured the water line. Neighbors immediately broke curfew to shut off the water.

Lucky number tank 13 drops by for a visit.

It's remarkably difficult for tanks to make the turn and grind up the hill. Evidently asphalt roads do not provide much traction for these big guns (or maybe they just had trouble with the banana peel). It usually takes several minutes of twisting and turning for them to continue. Notice the tanks provide a much needed garbage compacting service. Previously they peformed a garbage-bin compaction service, so now our trash goes on the streets.