Tues. Aug. 26, 2014, we took a load of 40 chairs down to Sidreh Weaving in Lakia (Negev Dessert). The staff all came out and moved them into the building. The Bedouin women run the weaving business with a Bedouin woman named Khadra in charge.
Staff at Sidreh Weaving, Lakia, Israel
Khadra, the director of the organization is on the far left. The others work there.
This woman is sewing the final tassels on one of the woven rugs.
Khadra took us across the street to a Bedouin home where they were experimenting with different types of gardening. They use square foot gardening with a drip system, water gardens using PVC pipe, and a small fish farm
.
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Container gardening and a small fish farm
The hydroponic gardening uses only water with no soil. They place the plants in each of the holes. It is broken now so they are waiting to get it fixed.
They use containers to plant in.
Laundry day
The homes were grouped together all facing a common area. I think they were all children and grandchildren of one lady there. The adult women didn't want their pictures taken but they said we could take pictures of the children. The children were hesitant at first and ran in the house when we pointed the camera at them. After a few minutes of playing "cat and mouse" most of them came out and wanted their picture taken. Then they came up to Blaine and wanted to see the picture of themselves. He later printed the pictures and we hand delivered them.
At first they ran from the camera.
The boys were more daring.
Good looking Bedouin boy
and girls.
After a few minutes, they warmed up to us.
I think the children were brothers and sisters and cousins.
This is Khadra with me. She is really an ambitious, hard working, intelligent woman. She is going to Wash. DC, Boston, and New York City later this week to plead her case of the Bedouin situation to senators and other people who may have some influence. During this last Palestinian/ Israeli conflict, the Bedouins didn't have access to shelters or the Iron Dome and they are very close to Gaza. The need of the Bedouins are often overlooked. Their are 200,000 in the Negev. 100,000 are in incorporated areas and 100,000 live in their own settlements. Neither are really adequate. We stopped at the Bedouin Museum of the way home. We were the only ones there. The conflict has ruined their tourism. Below are explanations and pictures in the museum.
Displays showed the Bedouin lifestyle.
An old photo of Bedouin men on the Negev.
Inside their tent with the person that was running the museum, a Bedouin man.
Outside the Bedouin tent.
There is no furniture in a Bedouin tent, just mats to recline on.
From the Bedouin Museum, you can look out over a kibbutz. This one had a swimming pool and recreation area.
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