{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-572d6a42.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-f4d0de30.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='Nativity trail to open in Palestine' data-url='/boclips/videos/5c54bda9d8eafeecae135b4a' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/5c54bda9d8eafeecae135b4a' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nNativity trail to open in Palestine\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=\"\u003e/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003eAP Television NewsBetween Jenin and Nablus, West Bank - 16 December 20081. Wide of biblical-looking field with sheep and goat2. Wide of biblical-looking field with shepherd and cattleAP Television NewsOutside Bethlehem, West Bank - 16...\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003eAP Television News\u003cbr/\u003eBetween Jenin and Nablus, West Bank - 16 December 2008\u003cbr/\u003e1. Wide of biblical-looking field with sheep and goat\u003cbr/\u003e2. Wide of biblical-looking field with shepherd and cattle\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television News\u003cbr/\u003eOutside Bethlehem, West Bank - 16 December, 2008\u003cbr/\u003e3. Medium shot of donkey with group of trail organisers and friends walking behind it\u003cbr/\u003e4. Group walks in desert among goat\u003cbr/\u003e5. Group walking in desert with view of desert\u003cbr/\u003e6. Group huddled around map of region\u003cbr/\u003e7. Close up on map, Michel Awad, who is one of the trail organisers, marks map with pen\u003cbr/\u003e8. Close up on Michel Awad, tilt down to GPS, pull out to medium \u003cbr/\u003e9. Group walks away with sun beating down\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television News\u003cbr/\u003eMar Saba monastery, east of Bethlehem, West Bank - 16 December 2008\u003cbr/\u003e10. Group arrives to Mar Saba monastery\u003cbr/\u003e11. Medium of group looking at monastery\u003cbr/\u003e12. Wide of monastery\u003cbr/\u003e13. Medium of monks' housing\u003cbr/\u003e14. Medium of monastery\u003cbr/\u003e15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Reverend Imad Haddad, of the Lutheran Church of Beit Sahour:\u003cbr/\u003e\"Joseph, Mary, when they came from Nazareth, they must have (fumbles his words) walked these lands. When I read the bible and hear about their walk, and see the Nativity Church, I can better understand what does this mean to me. I can relate much better when I see the land and walk it to the difficulties that they passed through, coming from Nazareth to Bethlehem.\"\u003cbr/\u003e16. Group walks up stairs near monastery\u003cbr/\u003e17. SOUNDBITE: (English) Reverend Imad Haddad, of the Lutheran Church of Beit Sahour:\u003cbr/\u003e\"The only way I can describe it is a difficult walk. Imagine a pregnant lady walking from Nazareth to Bethlehem, all this way without any good roads, only through the deserts into this place. How was it? How difficult was it, do you think?\"\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television News\u003cbr/\u003eOutside Bethlehem, West Bank - 16 December, 2008\u003cbr/\u003e18. Palestinian boy rides on donkey\u003cbr/\u003e19. Group walks past a herd of goats\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television News\u003cbr/\u003eMar Saba monastery, east of Bethlehem, West Bank - 16 December 2008\u003cbr/\u003e20. Group enters cave where monks used to gather to take the Eucharist\u003cbr/\u003e21. Interior of cave with group listening to guide's explanations\u003cbr/\u003e22. Close up on Imad Haddad listening to guide\u003cbr/\u003e22. Close up on Rami Kassis, who is promoting the trail to tourists\u003cbr/\u003e23. SOUNDBITE: (English) Ayman Abu Alzulos, who will guide tourists when the trail opens up to tourists:\u003cbr/\u003e\"Hundreds of monks used to live here in the 5th century, 6th century until our day. And this is very special to this place: that life has never stopped since the 5th century here. We've always had monks living here.\" \u003cbr/\u003e24. Group leaves the cave\u003cbr/\u003e25. Group walks away from monastery\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television News\u003cbr/\u003eOutside Bethlehem, West Bank - 16 December, 2008\u003cbr/\u003e26. Group walks part of the Nativity Trail, with Bethlehem in background\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television News\u003cbr/\u003eBeit Sahour, West Bank - 16 December, 2008\u003cbr/\u003e27. Group walks through a shepherd's field, with plaque in forefront \u003cbr/\u003e28. Group descends into shepherd's cave, like the one where Jesus is believed to have been born\u003cbr/\u003e29. SOUNDBITE: (English) Reverend Imad Haddad, of the Lutheran Church of Beit Sahour\u003cbr/\u003e\"The shepherds from this cave, from this place, came out to Bethlehem to announce the birth of Jesus. Just imagine how amazing it is to be here.\" \u003cbr/\u003e29. Group exits cave through staircase\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television News\u003cbr/\u003eBeit Sahour, West Bank - 16 December, 2008\u003cbr/\u003e30. Group walks through an olive grove\u003cbr/\u003e31. Wide of olive grove, with Israeli security barrier and Israeli settlement in background\u003cbr/\u003e32. Group approaches security barrier and stops\u003cbr/\u003e33. Close up on sign prohibiting people from crossing fence\u003cbr/\u003e34. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rami Kassis, Director, Alternative Tourism Group, who is promoting the trail for tourists.\u003cbr/\u003e\"In the year 2000, when the route started there was some segment in the route that was not accessible anymore nowadays when Israel started to build the wall in different places and the expansion of different settlements. So this is why we started to reroute the route again to fit and to be accessible for people to hike it from Nazareth until Bethlehem or mainly from Faqou'a in Jenin until Bethlehem.\"\u003cbr/\u003e35. Israeli border police approach security barrier\u003cbr/\u003e36. Wide of Arab village surrounded by security barrier\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television News, AP Clients Only\u003cbr/\u003eBethlehem, West Bank - 16 December 2008\u003cbr/\u003e37. Group arrives to Nativity Church in Bethlehem\u003cbr/\u003e38. Wide of Bethlehem Christmas tree\u003cbr/\u003e39. Nuns walk through Manger Square in front of Nativity Church\u003cbr/\u003e40. SOUNDBITE: (English) Reverend Imad Haddad, of the Lutheran Church of Beit Sahour:\u003cbr/\u003e\"Here ends the trail. Here we come to worship, here we come to see the born king, the new born king, the baby, humble Jesus. Let's go and worship.\"\u003cbr/\u003e41. Group enters church\u003cbr/\u003e42. End shot of group at final destination, inside the Nativity Church\u003cbr/\u003eA shepherd herds his cattle across a vast expanse of land, speckled with spindly olive trees. Men on donkeys strapped with various wares traverse the desert. \u003cbr/\u003eThat's the scene commonly described in the Bible of the land where Jesus was born. \u003cbr/\u003eFrom early next year tourists will be able to walk the road that Joseph and Mary took before the birth of Christ for themselves.\u003cbr/\u003eA trail from Jenin near Nazareth to Bethlehem will be opened to tourists.\u003cbr/\u003eMuch of it remains unchanged from the time of the New Testament.\u003cbr/\u003eRami Kassis and George Rishmawi are two Palestinian entrepreneurs looking to the story of Christmas to bring tourists to the West Bank despite the volatile security situation.\u003cbr/\u003eThey plan to open up the trail that Joseph and a heavily pregnant Mary took by donkey from Nazareth to Bethlehem before the birth of Christ. \u003cbr/\u003eWhile much of the desert landscape and shrubbery has remained unchanged since Mary and Joseph made their trek, the changing political situation in Israel has forced Kassis and Rishmawi to reroute the trail.\u003cbr/\u003eKassis explains that when they started planning the route in the year 2000 there were segments that were no longer accessible due to the expansion of Israeli settlements. \u003cbr/\u003eThe route was originally slated to open in 2000 and to follow that same way.\u003cbr/\u003eBut once the Palestinian uprising, or intifada, began, it was altered to fit the new realities on the ground - the Israeli security barrier and expanding settlements. \u003cbr/\u003eThe altered route begins near Jenin in the West Bank a few kilometres from Nazareth.  \u003cbr/\u003eThe original route walked by Mary and Joseph was about 160kms (99.4 miles) long. \u003cbr/\u003eSince the altered route hooks around settlements it's now about 200kms (124.3 miles) long. \u003cbr/\u003eThe Nativity Trail  leads tourists through the West Bank, across various Palestinian villages, through the ancient desert monastery of Mar Saba and finally to the Nativity Church in Bethlehem.\u003cbr/\u003eAyman Abu Alzulos, who will guide tourists on the trail, explains that monks have been living at the Mar Saba monastery since the 5th century.\u003cbr/\u003eThe trail takes 9 days to walk.  Tourists will spend the night in the homes of Palestinian villagers along the way.\u003cbr/\u003eReverend Imad Haddad, of the Lutheran Church of Beit Sahour reminds us that Mary walked the trail while heavily pregnant. \u003cbr/\u003eThe new route is set to welcome tourists from March of next year.\u003cbr/\u003eAccording to Rishmawi there has already been a lot of  interest in the hike.\u003cbr/\u003eOrganisers say the trail is not only intended for Christians - the challenging trek through the desert is open to anyone looking for a brisk walk through beautiful landscapes.\u003cbr/\u003eClients are reminded: \u003cbr/\u003e(i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: info@aparchive.com. \u003cbr/\u003e(ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service \u003cbr/\u003e(iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='action-container flex justify-between'\u003e\n\u003cbutton aria-expanded='false' aria-label='Read more description' class='rp-full-description' type='button'\u003e\n\u003ci class='fai fa-solid fa-align-left'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cspan id='read_more'\u003eRead More\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/button\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-report'\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-labelledby='resource-details-heading' class='rp-info-section'\u003e\n\u003ch2 class='title' id='resource-details-heading'\u003eResource Details\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-resource-details clearfix'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eCurator Rating\u003c/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003e\u003cspan class=\"star-rating\" aria-label=\" out of 5 stars\" role=\"img\"\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-regular fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-regular fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-regular fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-regular fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-regular fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt class=\"educator-rating-title\"\u003eEducator Rating\u003c/dt\u003e\u003cdd\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"educator-rating-details\" data-path=\"/educator_ratings/rrp_data?resourceable_id=757342\u0026amp;resourceable_type=Boclips%3A%3AVideoMetadata\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"not-yet-rated\"\u003eNot yet Rated\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eGrade\u003c/dt\u003e\u003cdd title=\"Grade\"\u003eAll Grades\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eSource:\u003c/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003e\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eDate\u003c/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003e2008\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-solid fa-language'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-labelledby='educator-ratings-heading' class='rp-info-section'\u003e\n\u003ch2 class='title sr-only' id='educator-ratings-heading'\u003eEducator Ratings\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"educator-ratings-root\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"all-educator-ratings-root\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"educator-rating-form-root\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-resource'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Show resource details' class='rp-show-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\n\u003ci class='fai fa-solid fa-align-left'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nShow resource details\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Video player' class='player' id='player-wrapper' role='region'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='relative container mx-auto' id='lp-boclips-visitor-thumbnail'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"block\" data-html=\"true\" data-placement=\"bottom\" data-trigger=\"click\" data-content=\"\u003cdiv class=\u0026quot;text-center py-2\u0026quot;\u003e\u003ca class=\u0026quot;bold\u0026quot; href=\u0026quot;/auth/users/sign_in\u0026quot;\u003eSign in\u003c/a\u003e or \u003ca class=\u0026quot;bold text-danger\u0026quot; data-posthog-event=\u0026quot;Signup: LP Signup Activity\u0026quot; data-posthog-location=\u0026quot;body_link_boclips\u0026quot; data-remote=\u0026quot;true\u0026quot; href=\u0026quot;/subscription/new\u0026quot;\u003eJoin Now\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\" data-title=\"Get Full Access\" data-container=\"body\" rel=\"popover\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-label=\"Play video: Nativity trail to open in Palestine\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cimg class=\"resource-img img-thumbnail img-responsive z-10 lp-boclips-thumbnail w-full h-full lozad\" alt=\"Nativity trail to open in Palestine\" title=\"Nativity trail to open in Palestine\" onError=\"handleImageNotLoadedError(this)\" data-default-image=\"https://static.lp.lexp.cloud/images/attachment_defaults/resource/large/missing.png\" data-src=\"https://static.lp.lexp.cloud/images/attachment_defaults/resource/large/missing.png\" width=\"315\" height=\"220\" src=\"data:image/png;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAD/ACwAAAAAAQABAAACADs\" /\u003e\n\u003cspan aria-hidden='true' class='flex justify-center items-center bg-white rounded-full w-16 h-16 absolute top-1/2 left-1/2 -mt-8 -ml-8 cursor-pointer z-0 border-2 border-primary drop-shadow-md lp-boclips-thumbnail-playBtn'\u003e\n\u003ci class='fa-solid fa-play text-primary text-3xl ml-1 drop-shadow-xl'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n"}