What to Eat in Palestine: Typical Palestinian Food and Specialties
Palestinian Beer: Shepherds from the Birzeit Brewery
Shepherds is a Pilsner-style pale lager from the Birzeit microbrewery, one of the few breweries operating in Palestine. The authorities first rejected the label with the shepherd on it, because the figure supposedly looked too much like Jesus; they approved it only after three months. Brewing is the business of small Christian towns in Palestine, and yet Shepherds sells in Israel too and is exported overseas.
The Old Market in Bethlehem: A Morning Souk Under Stone Arches
The old market in Bethlehem's historic center starts at the end of Al Mdbasseh Street and winds through lanes under stone arches all the way to Manger Square. Every morning farmers from the surrounding villages bring in their produce - villages like Battir, whose terraces are on the UNESCO list. And at the food stalls a big metal tray sends up the smell of stewed beans called ful.
The Walled Off Hotel, Bethlehem
A few meters from the wall in Bethlehem stands a hotel opened by Banksy, one that boasts the worst view in the world. On the ground floor coffee is served among his originals, and upstairs there's a museum of the wall and a gallery of Palestinian artists. The piano bar is free to walk into - seeing the works costs you one coffee.