The concept of selling a house in Beit Sahour is almost unheard of. Houses are inherited from one generation to the other in families. Families sharing a house is common as well. Weather it is a one story,or multiple stories, houses are generally big and practical, with plenty of room for big families to gather,eat and talk stories.
A typical house in Beit Sahour would have a spacious common area, a modern kitchen, bedrooms , bathrooms(western), and nice front and backyards. Many houses have balconies as well.
Common trees in people's yards include: Olive, fig, peach, apricot,chestnut, plums, apple, loquat ,lemon ,vines and many others. These are the ones that grow in my family's yard.Most people also grow tomatoes and herbs. Mint is a staple in almost everybody's yard, because it is used to flavor tea. To this day, my parents will only drink tea brewed with mint leaves.
A very common practice in Beit Sahour, is for sons to stack their houses on top of their parents' houses, thus forming large buildings. This is what my dad did, he built his house on top of my grandparent's house, who built their house on top of another unit, now used for rental. (People may rent a place, normally from relatives, while they are building their own house).
This is a photo of the family house in Beit Sahour, taken from one of our neighbors rooftop.
Can you tell the difference in stones used to build the lower and upper levels?My dad built his house twenty or more years later than the "original" building.
Rooftops are normally accessible, and all have solar panel systems(and satellite dishes). Air conditioners and heaters are not common, people use fans and little gas or electric heaters instead.Washers and dish washers are common, dryers are not. People just hang their clothes out to dry after washing them.
To most people there, a house is not just a roof over their heads, but also a family heritage, and their homes' sentimental values can not be priced.
Comments (10)
I'm glad you're writing about this. So where is Beit Sahour located?
Posted by Kim | March 9, 2009 4:55 AM
Posted on March 9, 2009 04:55
Hi Candi, this was a very interesting read. It's cool how the sons add their house on to their fathers, which allows the families through generations to remain close.
Thank you for sharing your photo and explanation of how family life is in Beit Sahour.
Posted by Kathy (Trekcapri) | March 9, 2009 6:48 AM
Posted on March 9, 2009 06:48
Very interesting! I can clearly see the difference in the stones on the two levels of the house. That's great that there's so much use of solar power.
Posted by Annie | March 9, 2009 8:38 AM
Posted on March 9, 2009 08:38
Kim, Beit Sahour is near Bethlehem. ( I see you found the information on it).
Posted by candi | March 9, 2009 3:28 PM
Posted on March 9, 2009 15:28
This is such a wonderful post full of valuable information on family structure as well as the architectural foundations. Love how you express the home as an integral part of the family and the importance it plays throughout the generations.
Posted by Barb Cabot | March 9, 2009 3:53 PM
Posted on March 9, 2009 15:53
Candi, this is such a fascinating post. I,too, can clearly see the difference in stones.
Posted by sheri | March 9, 2009 7:38 PM
Posted on March 9, 2009 19:38
Candi, I am learning so much from your posts about your native land! Thank you so much for sharing this with us!
Posted by nancyhol | March 9, 2009 9:48 PM
Posted on March 9, 2009 21:48
Interesting and fascinating post! It must be wonderful to have so many fruit trees in the backyard.
Posted by María I. | March 10, 2009 10:30 AM
Posted on March 10, 2009 10:30
Candi, your posts on Palestine are absolutely fascinating, thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and stories with us. I love the idea of building the houses on top of your parents, how cool is that?! I find multi-generational family homes very appealing, likely because my own family is small and spread out. Beit Sahour sounds wonderful.
Posted by Anne | March 10, 2009 7:21 PM
Posted on March 10, 2009 19:21
amazing! Really it's incredible to learn about your life... I've never read about someone who lived in the area..
Posted by expatraveler | July 3, 2009 10:13 PM
Posted on July 3, 2009 22:13