The Things That Can and Can’t Be Bought in Hebron, Palestine

For those coming to volunteer or intern with the Excellence Center in Hebron Palestine, most of these visitors’ needs and purchases will be available just like back home. Hebron is, afterall, the largest city in the West Bank as the universities, hospitals and municipal buildings will attest.

Beyond the basics, however, Hebron also offers access to products, the type or quality volunteers won’t be able to find back home. It will be well worth it for new arrivals to take advantage of these world-class offerings. Of course, there are other items that one is less likely to come by while here. Preparing for such omissions and adjustments in advance will help volunteers in their time with Excellence Center and in Hebron.

  • Olive Oil

Of course, olive oil is available from all the places volunteers call home. But the olive oil is renowned in and around Hebron. Volunteers will notice the quality in their cooking while here and will perhaps lament their return to Bertolli.

Palestinian olive oil is known around the world for its distinct flavor.  The olive trees grown near Hebron produce an oil that is darker with a stronger flavor. There are several spice and herb shops dotted along Ein Sarah near the Excellence Center. Go into any one of these and ask for some  Zayt Zaytun

  • Kanafeh

Known for its desserts and the culture surrounding such sharing, the West Bank in general and Hebron specifically will indeed be a place to satisfy a volunteer’s sweet tooth. Kanafeh is a traditional Palestinian dish made with thin fine semolina dough, soaked in sugar syrup, and layered with cheese.

While the tasty treat originated in Nablus to the North, Hebron is fast on its heels with exceptional versions. Volunteers who visit Al-Sahl Al-Akhder Sweets to indulge in their heralded kanafeh will partake in a unique Palestinian delicacy.

  • The Original Palestinian Keffiyeh

The Keffiyeh is the noted Palestinian Headdress both popularized by Palestinian political leader Yasser Arafat and noted as a political fashion piece for those pronouncing their stand for justice worldwide.

The Hirbawi Keffiyeh Factory – the original designer of Arafat’s Keffiyehs of choice, and the last remaining Keffiyeh producer in Palestine is situated in the hills overlooking Hebron. Volunteers can tour the factory and then purchase the authentic fashions at the tour’s end, opting for either the traditional or more colorful designs from the Hirbawi showroom.

  • Glass Glass Glass

Hebron glass is a noted art form and industry in the territory’s largest city and dates back to Roman times. The Hebron glass production tradition uses indigenous sand (originally from the village of Bani Na’i), sodium carbonate from the Dead Sea and iron & copper oxide for coloring effect.

Original glass items were thought to be more functional than decorative including dinnerware and oil lamp varieties. To see pieces blown before their purchase, volunteers can head the glass district in Hebron’s Old Town. Hebron Glass & Ceramics is a one-stop-shop for such exploration and purchasing.

  • Vegetables Sold from Horse Drawn Cart

While the food items may not be so unique, the method of purchase couldn’t be more distinct. Horse drawn vegetable carts are a daily sight in downtown Hebron. Volunteers need just watch themselves as the taxis honk and wizz around their braying vendor.

Of course, Hebron doesn’t have everything for sale, and a few items volunteers are accustomed to back home may not be readily available. 

  • Wide Cheese Varieties

While most western countries have a plethora of gourmet and pedestrian cheeses, including such very particular distinctions as Romano, Asiago and Parmesan, volunteers and visitors to EC won’t find the similar varieties in Hebron.

The choices will be mostly relegated to goat cheeses, cream cheese and mozzarella. But for the local fare, these varieties prove more than enough.

  • Amazon what Amazon?

While arrangements can be made with local shippers for a high cost, or back in Jerusalem for more receiving options, Hebron just doesn’t feature the same availability of online items and shipping options volunteers have grown accustomed to in the West.

Again, visitors should be prepared with what they bring and ready to pay a higher price locally, should the need for such Amazon-like items arise.

  • Feminine Products

As female volunteers have noted, the same choice and variety in such necessary products are not widely available in Hebron. Women visitors interns and volunteers should again come prepared. That, or be prepared to travel back to Al Quds (Jerusalem).

  • Chinese, Indian and Other Worldly Delights

While such international fare is more widely available in the more cosmopolitan Ramallah, such choices will be much harder to come by in the more traditional and conservative Hebron. That’s not all bad, of course. The culinary traditions offered here are themselves an authentic history of the region. Volunteers will most likely not miss their dim sum until their next trip up north.

While both a modern city and a historic locale dating back millennia, Hebron is a thriving place where volunteers will find most every convenience for sale along with some distinct treasures and a few glaring omissions.

Whatever the need, there is either an item to be purchased, an alternative to be substituted or a choice to be gone without. In any instance, the purchase hassles will be few while the purchase finds will be many for volunteers and visitors to Hebron.

Any Questions?

 Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact at Rafat@excellencenter.org

Whatsapp:+972599479880

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