Hospitality, Peace and Conflict: 'Doing' Feildwork in Palestine.

The focus of this paper is the interconnections among in/hospitality, peace, conflict and tourism. Using excerpts from interview notes and a field diary, the paper presents and debates the complex and embodied connections between a Palestinian local host, some tourists and a tourism researcher. Analysis of the data reveals the emotional entanglements experienced within the empathetic space formed during interviews with the distressed local host in Bethlehem. Her tragic stories of living under occupation touched the heart of the researcher. Feelings of sorrow, helplessness, anger, discomfort and guilt were negotiated. In this light, the paper contributes discussions and thinking on the emotional, situated and reflexive implications of fieldwork interactions in an area of ongoing conflict.