Enjoy =D
Jonas
Blood is streaming down from my forehead, at least it feels like it. In reality I know that it’s just water coming through my skin, as a result of my increased body temperature. I’ve biked across Jericho, mostly uphill, with the mount of temptation as my final destination (the place where Jesus was tempted). I buckle up my bicycle at the bus parking, and start to climb the last hill to the plateau. It’s burning in my legs from all the biking, but I barely feel it. I’m too excited.
When I reach the mount of temptation, 30 minutes after I left our house, my real reason for going is meeting me at his post. He’s a guard, and watches the cable car station and restaurant, during the night. I’ve met him once before, and he told me three times, but I don’t remember his name. Arabic names aren’t that easy to memorize.
He welcomes me, and prepares for making a fire. He’s tearing a bench apart, and uses the wood-parts to put in the fire. Looked like a decent bench to me, until he tore of the back and half of the seat!
This guy speaks a little bit English, enough to make sense out of it. His level is great compared to the people in Jericho, whom a lot of them only know “what is your name” and “welcome to Jericho”. Those are nice phrases, but you do get tired of it after I while, when you know that there’s nothing more beyond that.
It’s not lacking of hospitality. As soon as the fire is started he asks if I like Nescafe. I don’t think it through before saying yes, and then he insists on making me coffee. Even though I do not want it, and tells him that it’s not necessary. It’s too late. He is already on his way through the unlocked window into the restaurant to make a drink to his guest.
He wears a scarf on his head, has 3 or 4 teeth and he is able to put his hand in the fire when he adds wood. He is a true man.
He tells me about another visit that he had the other day; an American man with his Mexican wife. They are travelling through Saudi-Arabia, Yemen, Jordan and now Jericho, on their way to Egypt. Travelling for three months without a car sounds like a dream. And then sleep outdoors, like on the mount of temptation, with my friend on duty.
Our conversation turns into an Arabic/English lesson, as I keep on asking him “how do you say that in Arabic?” We’re both using a lot of body language and funny sentences to make the other one understand, with his weak English and my absent Arabic.
After 10 minutes trying to figure out how I can express the meaning “to learn” in Arabic, I get a word from him. He still doesn’t get what I mean by “learning”, but after a while and a lot of different ways of explaining, I might have the right word. I don’t know for sure, and probably won’t figure out in a while.
When he saw that I’d brought a notebook to write Arabic words, he was very eager to teach. So before I can finish writing, he already tells me two new words that I have to write. It’s going to be very interesting to see how these notes will look like when I’m done here!
This man is 60 years old, but I’m not bored for one second. Actually, this turned my day from ‘average minus’ to good! As mentioned, it takes heaps of patience, time, willingness and effort to communicate, but he is really giving his best, and digs deep in his head for English words he once learned, and suddenly now needs. He could’ve just sent me away, and relaxed with his fire, but instead he stumble himself through English to talk and treat me well. I think we both are having a great time! And I’m thinking, as I’m riding my bike back home at midnight; I wish Norwegians would learn from him. To pull out what they have, and try to talk and communicate instead of saying “no English”, when they actually knows ten times as many words as my 60 years old mountain mate. This great man that watches the cable cars 6 nights a week. No sleep, just napping and enjoying the beautiful view of Jericho by night.
Photos from Mt. of Temptation below.
Jonas
