HOUSE OF PALESTINE EAGER TO SHARE CULTURE
After long wait, newly built house open among Balboa Park cottages
From the tiles on the floor, to the backlit mural on the ceiling, to the artifacts hanging on the walls, each and every aspect of the House of Palestine at Balboa Park tells the story of its people and culture.
It was in the summer of 2002 that a group of volunteers first submitted an application to the House of Pacific Relations so they could one day build a house at the park’s international cottages.
Two decades later, the House of Palestine now sits with 29 other national group cottages at the park, inviting the public in every weekend to learn more about its nation’s culture and traditions.
“It took many years of hard work, labor, volunteer hours and financial support to accomplish this monumental milestone,” said Palestinian Yousef Ghandour, president of the house.
Moreover, it’s the first physical house to represent the handful of the Arab countries included in the House of Pacific Relations, as a some still do not yet have their own cottages.
“The kinds of discrimination and history that Arab Americans have suffered from is one of invisibility — nobody knows; our voices aren’t heard; our stories aren’t told,” said Doris Bittar, California organizer for the American Arab Anti Discrimination Committee.
San Diego has one of the largest Arab American communities in the country, Bittar added, however, many people don’t feel represented.
Now, the House of Palestine can be a destination, where visitors can learn about those untold stories, Ghandour added.
“It’s not just about representing the Palestinians, it’s about representing every (Arab American) in our culture,” he said. “We want everybody to feel somehow part of it.”
From concept to creation
After the House of Palestine was officially accepted into the House of Pacific Relations in 2003, the Palestinian flag began to fly in Balboa Park, as volunteers began exposing San Diegans to their culture on weekends in the Hall of Nations.
Visitors were introduced to Palestinian cuisines — such as falafels, shwarma and mujadara — along with cultural dances and songs and traditional arts and crafts, such as Tatreez, a traditional Palestinian crossstitch embroidery.
Even so, the house dreamed of one day having its own cottage, and the first board of directors was established to work toward building a permanent home that would end up being constructed in the next phase of cottages.
However, things were not that simple, as they first had to garner enough funds — more than $500,000 — to make that possible.
The House of Palestine joined the New International Cottages Committee, a steering committee of nine cottages who all wanted to build homes of their own in the park. In December 2016, the House of Palestine was finally able to break ground, and after another series of setbacks, the cottages were able to begin construction in June 2019.
Palestinian Karem Elhams, a civil engineer who represented the committee, took the helm of construction and helped with not just the House of Palestine but all nine cottages.
“It was an experience I would not exchange for anything else,” Elhams said. “It was like giving back to the community with my engineering experience.”
Though they didn’t have a concrete structure, over the years the House of Palestine community continued to grow, and by the time the cottages finally celebrated their grand opening five years later, some 1,500 people came to celebrate with a flag-raising ceremony in September.
“It was an indescribable feeling to see such a large crowd coming together for Palestine,” said Palestinian Suzan Hamideh, the cultural and events director for House of Palestine. “It still brings tears to my eyes.”
Palestinians flew in from all over to attend the momentous event, Ghandour said, adding, “People wanted something like this that they could be proud to belong to, just to feel that they were part of their heritage.”
In April, the house officially debuted to the public and is now open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday.
Showcasing cultural traditions, histories
The tile arrangement in the house represents a floor pattern used in Jerusalem, the ceiling showcases a lit photo of the “Holy Land” in Jerusalem, and each artifact shares some of the area’s history.
“We wanted to use the space floor to ceiling ... harkening to culture,” said Bittar, who helped design the displays with Hamideh.
Some of the rich culture and heritage of the Palestinian territories are visible through handmade woodcarvings, mosaics and embroidery.
Each woman’s dress, for example, has a specific type of stitching that would tell onlookers what village they were from.
Among the artifacts is a photo of Widad Salah in Ramallah wearing a commemorative Palestinian dress when she was 19 years old in 1939.
“That picture has an unbelievable response — it keeps popping up in places all over the world,” said Salah’s daughter, Sylvia Khuri. “It’s been used as an expression of traditional Palestine.”
Though Salah died a year and a half ago at 100 years old while living in San Diego, Khuri says she knows her mother would be proud to see her photo as part of a local representation of the Palestinian territories.
“It is important to stay true to our roots. It is what shapes us and makes us unique in our own ways,” added Hamideh. “It’s also very important to me to be able to share the cultural heritage and history of Palestine with everyone who visits.”
Hamideh is developing cultural classes for visitors that will use art, literature, dance, music, cuisine, clothing and storytelling to help showcase the Palestinian identity.
Private classes are also available for schools and colleges.
“You’d be surprised, a lot of people don’t know where Palestine is,” Hamideh said.
“This house actually brings this community together, especially the younger generation that get this exposure and knowledge about the culture,” added Palestinian Hany el-Saidany.
That includes his 12year-old daughter, Yafa, who was born in the U.S. and has never been to the West Bank.
“It’s really cool to see the artifacts that represent Palestine ... and learn more about my origins,” Yafa added. “A lot of people don’t really know about Palestine ... and I think the house is a really cool representation of it.”
After the 1948 Palestinian exodus, known as al-Nakba, Palestinians left the area and scattered across the globe, Ghandour said.
Even so, the Palestinian diaspora, or scattered population, still share the same passion and profound connection to their homeland and culture.
“Little by little, we’re reconnecting,” Ghandour added. “And that’s where we thrive.”