Duma – Nihal Dawabsheh Homestay

Nihal-Em Shadi is a bright and smiley woman who spends a lot of her time on voluntary work. In the past, she served as a director for a Women’s Association in Duma. She strives to empower women in all her endeavors. Moreover, she served on the village’s council for around 6 years.

Dawabsheh family welcomes visitors to their house in Duma, a tranquil agricultural village in the vicinity of Nablus. They are a family of eight and Em Shadi is a proud mother of five daughters and a son who is the youngest of her children. The two oldest daughters have already pursued their higher education.

Em Shadi likes to host guests at her home and has done so for over eight years. She believes it is important that visitors experience a stay with a Palestinian family.

“I would like our visitors to get to know us – a truly simple family. They could learn about our habits and traditions. We also enjoy meeting people from different cultures and we like to connect with them.”

Besides enjoying having guests at her house, Em Shadi sees hosting as a way of financial support for her family. She is happy to speak English. As she says, “Knowing the language helps me a lot in communicating with the visitors”. She enjoys hosting groups of adults but she finds hosting families the most enriching for her children. “I am happy to see my children interacting and learning about others.” She recalls a teenage girl who came with her parents to stay at their place. The girl was curious about how to wear a headscarf (hijab) so she asked Em shadi to show her. It was a very nice cross-cultural experience for both of them.

A good meal is a part of the Palestinian hospitality. Maqloubeh (chicken and vegetable risotto) and musakhan (loaf of a flatbread and piece of chicken, covered with sauteed onions) are Em Shadi’s specialties. She likes to serve these meals to her guests as they are nutritious and representative of traditional Palestinian food.

Hosting conditions: – 2 rooms in Em Shadi’s house for 5 visitors (beds) – 2 bathrooms in the house – an empty apartment in addition to her house for bigger groups (sleeping on mattresses, bathrooms, kitchen)