مركز التميز / انخرط في فلسطين

I have been in the center now for 4 times, to study Arabic. I had a very very good experience. My host family was amazing, they took care or me really good and they where so kind and hospitable. Also my experience in the center were good, I studied with a few different teachers and each of them where good in their own way, I learned a lot of them and I improved my Arabic so much. The center organized some trips, and I enjoyed these trips. I could see more or the Palestinian people and the way they live. I would defenitly recommend the excellence center.

Hello, I am Tim from Europe and I participated in the Human Rights programme for four weeks. This programme gives you the opportunity to join on average about two field trips to organisations that work in occupied Palestine. Those range from international organisations like the UN or the ICRC to local activist groups. Furthermore, we visited factories producing local goods and businesses, as Hebron is the commercial centre of Hebron. As part of the programme you participate in about a 3 hour Arabic lesson a week in a small group. While those lessons help to learn some basic Arabic don’t expect to get fluent… For that you should participate in the Intensive Arabic programme for at least two months and study hard! Don’t worry you will also have the opportunity to participate in some of the Human Rights activities. As there are many international students at the centre, it is great place to find friends and exchange the experiences you made in Palestine. The staff at the centre is very helpful, albeit you might have to drive your one programme. On the weekends you can go on self organised trips, with friends you made at centre or alone. Everything within Palestine is easily reachable and not too expensive. If you are here for a longer period, you can even go to Jordan and visit Petra and Wadi Rum. In Hebron, I shared a modern apartment with under students from the excellence centre. The apartment was great and had everything we needed. Also, as Hebron is the economic hub, you can get anything you need from local shops. Hebron and Palestine is extremely safe place to visit. While the idea of occasionally having to pass checkpoints might be frightening at first - it really isn’t. As a foreigner you most certainly will nicht face any problems. My time in Palestine was great, I met many interesting people, had some really good food and was able to travel throughout the country. I can recommend the centre to someone who wants to learn about the situation in Palestine or who wants to learn and improve his Arabic speaking skills.

I saw pictures of the rooms offered to the interns, they need a complete rejuvenation and renovation, they are very old and run down, the beds and mattresses need to be changed, the room should be painted, hot water need to be installed, the picture I saw does not reflect the Palestinian cleanliness and hospitality. I will not recommend the centre to anyone again. The teaching is ok, but the rooms are dreadful.

Hi I’m Victoria, I spent 2 weeks at the excellence centre studying Arabic. I had some basic Arabic before I arrived in Hebron- but just greetings, a few words and a basic understanding of the alphabet. My two weeks at the Excellence centre were fantastic; we went back to basics with the alphabet but progressed very quickly to greetings, vocabulary and verbs. The Centre itself is very well located off the main street- easy to locate because its next to the stadium. And very close to a very friendly coffee shop that does a great latte, for those rare times that an Arabic coffee is not exactly what you need. The staff at the centre are all lovely and very welcoming, particularly Marwa and her family. Eating breakfast together every day really helps you get to know the other participants at the excellence centre, and they tend to come from diverse and interesting backgrounds, which give you a new insight into Palestine and the Arabic language. The centre also arranged several visits to the old city, which were very informative, and the staff are comfortable to talk about day to day life in Palestine. Living in Hebron City was a great experience. The city feels safe, people are friendly and happy to talk but also very respectful of boundaries. I felt safer in Hebron than I have done in some British cities in the evening. And the food, of course, is superb. My host family were absolutely delightful; helpful, friendly, interesting and provided wonderful food. I feel I have made some friends for life, and I am very keen to return next year to Hebron next year. In summary, I am very pleased I chose Palestine and the Excellence Centre as my destination to learn more Arabic and experience the Palestinian Culture. Lovely people, great food and a fantastic experience. Just one word on the logistics, the Excellence centre website talks in a lot of detail about how to get to Hebron from Ben Gurion airport. The shared taxi from Damascus Gate in Jerusalem doesn’t run all the time- especially in the early morning, so I took the 231 bus to Bethlehem and got a shared taxi from there, or you can get a 234 to Bethlehem check point, go through the checkpoint and get a shared taxi from the other side. People are really happy to help you in Palestine :) Enjoy!

The Excellence Center organized a private tour for me of Hebron with a teacher from the school. The Center responded promptly to my email requesting a tour. The teacher who gave me the tour was knowledgeable about the history of Hebron and the current political situation. Everyone in Hebron knew him, which gave me the opportunity to interact with many Palestinians throughout the day. It was an interesting and eye-opening tour. Thank you Excellence Center!!