geography lesson

it's come to my attention that many aren't sure exactly where i am and some don't even know where this region is (shame!). and so again, since people are worried, here's another 'i'm ok' post, this time with a bit of chart-reading!

so i'm in the ramallah area. our village is just east of the city, on the road to jericho.
here's a general map of Palestine/Israel from maps.com. click to enlarge.

here's a map of the west bank that shows my village! click for a larger, clearer picture

and here's bbc's map of the current crisis. click for details from bbc.

so, yes, i'm less than a hundred miles from some pretty major violence (although it takes several hours to actually travel that distance). but at the moment, this whole area is ok.
my arabic professor is from gaza and his family is still there except for his wife and kids with him. he hasn't seen them in six years. when his mother died he still wasn't allowed to enter. a couple weeks ago he said in arabic that the life in ramallah is 'kitkat' (yep, the candybar). of course he's comparing it to what his family is going through under attack in gaza.
i think it's true. ramallah is as bustling as always with buyers and sellers, commuters and businesspeople. there was a protest-esque gathering on monday in the city center. notice the hizb-allah flags and the guy on shoulders with a microphone