Hostel Days

I've arrived! I was thrilled that at my request, a separate piece of paper and not my passport was stamped on my arrival. I hope to visit some of the neighboring countries before I leave and for those who don't know, most Arab countries other than Egypt and Jordan will not let you in if your passport has been stamped by Israel.
In the airport I could identify mostly Hebrew, Arabic and Russian. After picking up my bags I quickly went to currency exchange and then to purchase a local cell phone. After doing so I caught a bus to East Jerusalem via a sherut (or minibus) and was fortunate enough to share the fare with Jerrod, a student from Oxford who had traveled multiple times to the Middle East. He negotiated the price of the fare from 100 shekels to 70, so I was already fond of the kid. In addition to some very helpful tips about living in the area, we also had an insightful discussion about the culture and politics of the region. It had been less than a day and I already felt that in my short exposure was being saturated with new knowledge.
I met the director of my organization, Bassem Eid, in front of the Israeli Embassy in East Jerusalem. He seems like a very warm individual and I can't wait to begin working with him. He escorted me to Palm Hostel, just across from the old city in Jerusalem, and put me up for two nights. I will be meeting with him tomorrow to discuss more about my position and a more permanent living situation.
I'm reviewing my Arabic (I can't believe how much I've forgotten), but have been able to engage in some limited conversation with the local people. Khalil, a young boy (about 13 I would guess) who works at the hostel has been very interested in engaging with me. He's very outgoing and curious; he reminds me of my little brother Joe, who is about his age.
While the general population has no problem staring at me for uncomfortably long periods of time, children don't yet have full concept of the social norms here (I guess I'm in the same boat) and love to come up to me and try out their English skills. They always get a kick out of it when I answer in Arabic.
I'm sharing my room in the Palm Hostel with two other women, both graduate students from Sweden. One is also doing work concerning conflict resolution in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the other is focusing her research on women's rights. Both are very friendly and it's nice to be sharing my space with others who have similar goals.
I am so excited and overwhelmed to be here. So many new opportunities and experiences are presenting themselves and I can hardly wait to take full advantage of what this journey has to offer.