World-renowned chef, best-selling author
and Emmy-winning television personality Anthony Bourdain returns for
the second season of CNN's showcase for coverage of food and travel.
"Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown" is shot entirely on location and
premieres Sept 15 @ 9pm ET/PT. Follow the show on Twitter and Facebook. Bourdain's first stop: Israel, the West Bank and Gaza.
(CNN) -- The Holy Land makes for inspiring, fascinating, confusing travel.
To some, the chunk of territory between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea is all Israel.
To others, it's all Palestine.
For most -- as is true so often in this region of shifting truths and manipulated historical narratives -- it's a bit of both.
A child walks
through a gap in the concrete blocks of a security wall in the West Bank
village of Eizariya, east of Jerusalem, in a 2003 file photo. Take a
walking tour of East Jerusalem, or a pilgrimage to the Palestinian city
of Bethlehem and you'll run into Israel's infamous security barrier. CNN
"It's easily the most contentious piece of
real estate in the world, and there's no hope -- none -- of ever
talking about it without pissing somebody, if not everybody, off."
Ibex are just one attraction of the Negev Desert. CNN
In the season premiere of "Anthony
Bourdain Parts Unknown," the host and crew make their first trip to
Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. While the political situation is often
tense between the people living in these areas, Bourdain concentrates on
their rich history, food and culture, and spends time with local chefs,
home cooks, writers and amateur foodies.]
Something amazing happened on CNN last night. Palestinians were portrayed as human beings.
In his show “Parts Unknown,” Anthony Bourdain travels to exotic and
controversial locales to examine the intersection of food, politics, and
everyday life. Last night, he visited Jerusalem, the West Bank, and
Gaza.
He was immediately mesmerized by Palestine, which is a common
phenomenon. It is an amazing place, where the gravity of the history
and spirituality is heavy in the air. It feels majestic. But something
is a little off. Bourdain felt the splendor, but, as he said, “Then
you see the young draftees (teenage Israeli soldiers holding machine
guns) in the streets, and you start to get the idea.”
He began his journey with an Israeli chef and author, Yotam. They
started by tasting some falafel in Jerusalem’s Old City. Yotam told the
audience, in a stunning admission, “Israelis made falafel their own,
and everybody in the world thinks falafel is Israeli, but in actual
fact, it is as much Palestinian, even more so, because it’s been done
for generations here… The question of food appropriation is massive
here.”
Now if they could only say the same thing about the land, the houses, and the air, we might be able to get somewhere.
Bourdain then made his way into the West Bank. And on his way to
visit a settlement, he said something that Americans never hear on TV:
In 2003, Israel began construction on a wall along the green line
representing the Israeli-Palestinian border. The wall now stretches 450
miles. When completed, it will span 700 miles, 85% of it in Palestinian
territory… Since 1967, 500,000 Israeli settlers have moved into the West
Bank, all in contravention of international law, many in contravention
of Israeli law, though in effect it seems to make little difference,
they’re here and in ever larger numbers.
Anthony, you will be hearing from certain individuals and
organizations in the coming days. They will be upset. They’ve been
trying to keep this stuff a secret.
Before he got to the settlement, he noticed some Hebrew graffiti on a
Palestinian house in a neighboring village. His driver translated it
for him: “Death to Arabs.”
Anthony, you will be hearing from certain individuals and
organizations in the coming days. They will be upset. They’ve been
trying to keep this stuff a secret.
Bourdain finally made it to the settlement of Eli. Eli is located
north of Ramallah and in the heart of the West Bank. It is nowhere near
the 1967 borders. He asked its chief executive, Amiad, what
Palestinians might think of its existence. He told Bourdain, “Actually
they are happy we are here. We gave them prosperity for the past 45
years.” I was worried the show might go in a bad direction, but then
Bourdain said, “I’m guessing a lot of people would disagree with that
statement.” Wow, I think he’s getting it. Then Bourdain said, “So,
from the high ground, you can see anyone walking at night, you can see
pretty far out.” Wow, he is getting it!
Anthony, you will be hearing from certain individuals and
organizations in the coming days. They will be upset. They’ve been
trying to keep this stuff a secret.
As Bourdain prepared to leave Eli, he brought up the disturbing
graffiti he saw with Amiad. “Why not paint it over?” he asked
innocently. The response? “Good question. Maybe we should. You’re
right.” I’m sure Anthony knows he’s not the first person to suggest
such a thing. Now, Anthony, I am a bit more experienced with Israeli
talk than you are, so let me translate that. “Good question. Maybe we
should. You’re right,” really means, “Silly question, we definitely
won’t, get out of my face.”
Bourdain then made a quick visit with a now famous group of
Palestinian female drivers called “The Speed Sisters.” Now this visit
had nothing to do with food, but he was able to be in a car alone with
Betty Saadeh, a hot Palestinian woman. And you don’t turn down an
opportunity like that. He even looked like he caught a little case of
Palestinian fever. I can relate.
After visiting Jerusalem, Bourdain took the short but interesting
drive into Bethlehem, through a checkpoint, and past the infamous wall:
It’s right there for all to see. And it feels like something out
of a science fiction film. This is the wall. From the other side, from
inside this place, it doesn't feel like anything other than what it is. A
prison.
Anthony, you will be hearing from certain individuals and
organizations in the coming days. They will be upset. They’ve been
trying to keep this stuff a secret.
Bourdain visited Aida refugee camp, just north of Bethlehem. There
he met Abdelfattah Abusrour, my friend, and the founder of Ruwwad, a
group that uses theatre for young people to express their desires and
feelings. Abusrour sees Ruwwad as nonviolent resistance, a way for
young people to express themselves, creating what he calls “a peace from
within.”
The honest portrayal of the residents of the camp, from their squalor
to their own struggle to find productive channels of resistance, was
something I had never seen on American TV. Bourdain noted that these
Palestinian children do not have the luxury of idolizing pop stars and
athletes. They turn to politics early, sometimes idolizing martyrs and
politicians. And he’s right, there’s something wrong with that. We
Palestinians are normal in so many ways. And we’re so not normal in so
many others.
Then Bourdain went to Gaza:
Getting in and out of Gaza from Israel is truly one of the most
surreal travel experiences you could have on Earth. Over 1.5 million
people live in Gaza, most of them considered refugees, meaning they are
not from the place they are compelled to live now. In most cases, they
are either prohibited from or unable to leave. Israel decides who comes
and goes, what gets in and what stays out.
Anthony, you will be hearing from certain individuals and
organizations in the coming days. They will be upset. They’ve been
trying to keep this stuff a secret.
In Gaza, he met Laila Haddad, a well-known Palestinian author and
activist who has written books about Gaza life and cuisine. As she
explained that Gaza’s cuisine should include a lot of seafood, she noted
that fishermen can rarely get prize catches as the Israeli military
limits how far out they can sail. If they go too far, the Israeli navy
shoots at their boats and cuts their nets.
Bourdain and Haddad then visited the Sultan family, where they were
served a Palestinian staple, maqloobeh. That dish happens to be one of
my specialties (Yes, ladies, I can cook.) As they were eating, the man
of the house was worried about being rude. Why? The cameramen were not
eating. His wife asked Bourdain to open a restaurant for her. We
Palestinians are always looking for a hook-up. We need it. Her husband
continued to yell, but Leila assured Anthony. “This is a normal tone
of voice. He's not upset, by the way. This is how we talk. We yell.” I
can relate.
Before Bourdain left Gaza, he met and dined with one more group of
men. These men, like 75% of Gaza’s population, were refugees. As he
sat, laughing and eating, he told us:
Many of these guys are not too sympathetic to my country, or my
ethnicity I’m guessing. But, there’s that hospitality thing. Anywhere
you go in the Muslim world, it seems, no matter what, you feed your
guests, you do your best to make them feel at home.
It’s true. We Palestinians are overly hospitable when people visit our homeland. Sometimes too much.
The episode ended with Natan, the owner of a restaurant right outside
of Gaza in Israel. Natan’s daughter was killed by a mortar bomb in the
constant struggle between groups in Gaza and Israel. Since 2008, over
1,600 Palestinians in Gaza have also been killed in this conflict.
Natan spoke of the senseless deaths on both sides. He clearly
disliked settlements, and he believed it was possible for like-minded
people from both sides to get together and make peace. I would agree,
if just more people like Natan existed. But the people who are pointing
the guns at me aren’t named Natan… They’re named Netanyahu.
By the end, Bourdain did not seem too optimistic about the prospects
of peace. “One doesn’t even have to speak metaphorically because there
is an actual wall... or a fence, depending on who you’re talking to.”
Natan told him, “No. It is a big wall. It is ugly. It is really ugly.
You can see it, it’s not far away from here.” Unfortunately, it’s not
far away from anywhere.
Anthony, you will be hearing from certain individuals and
organizations in the coming days. They will be upset. They’ve been
trying to keep this stuff a secret.
Part of being Palestinian in America is getting really excited
whenever someone tells the truth about us on American TV. Kind of
depressing, right?
Anthony, in the beginning of this episode, you gave the following announcement:
By the end of this hour, I'll be seen by many as a terrorist
sympathizer, a Zionist tool, a self-hating Jew, an apologist for
American imperialism, an Orientalist, socialist, a fascist, CIA agent,
and worse.
I didn’t see any of that. I just saw what happens to anyone who
actually interacts with Palestinians. You fell in love with us, and we
fell in love with you.
