"It's not about the addressable market today, it is about building a future for my 8 year old daughter," says Mohammed A, a Ramallah-based consultant in information and communications technology. "The World Bank can provide a lot of great statistics about the state of telecommunications in Ramallah, but if my girl does not have the same access to eLearning and education as an Israeli girl, she won't have a chance."

Of course there are a lot of politics and cultural issues involved.  Ramallah and the entire territory of Palestine are under Israeli administration, which poses many challenges in receiving approvals for telecom services such as wireless, including frequencies not only for internet providers, but also the mobile phone industry.  WiMAX is not allowed (in Israel as well) due to military restrictions, and much of the telecom and computer equipment destined for Ramallah is held up on warehouses on the Israel side awaiting customs clearance and release.

In the education system less than 1/3 of university students have adequate access to basic Internet access or computers, and very few primary and high school students have Internet access or eLearning as part of the curriculum. Government officials admit they had some mistakes in prioritizing educational resources, further reinforcing the obvious issues resulting in education system shortfalls.

Walking along the streets in Ramallah at night is quite an experience.  A cross between dodging cars along tight mountain roads in Hong Kong, and avoiding open manhole covers on the sidewalks of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.  If you fall into the rhythm, and keep yourself out of harm's way, the sights, sounds, and climate of Ramallah in September make for a pleasant evening.

In Long Beach you can walk along the streets at night, but passing cars and passing police will reward you with stares or requests for identification.  You avoid looking directly into another person's eyes, particularly if they are of a different race or culture, for fear of confrontation. 

In Ramallah you are greeted by everybody you pass on the street, regardless of the fact you are obviously a foreigner, and there is a good probability you do not share their culture or ideology.  A smile, a nod of the head, and you pass by without fear.

A machine gun pointed at my head, a smug look of contempt from a guard, walls designed to keep me isolated from the outside and under control.  I am in prison.

From the outside, life is pretty normal. Citizens laughing in a sidewalk café, driving to the shopping mall, lining up to view a first-run movie.  On the trip from the city my driver talks of the outside. He talks of people with hopes, futures, and fulfilling their dreams.  At the prison checkpoint the mood changes, and we get a quick briefing on the rules of conduct while transferring to the "inside."

I am now entering Ramallah.  The line going into Ramallah is short - takes about 5 minutes.  The line waiting to go out is long, and the driver reveals you can expect to wait about 3 hours to re-enter Israel.  Cars with a Palestinian number plate are not allowed outside of the West Bank of Palestine, only Israeli tagged cars are allowed on the outside.