Our final evening. Habib, who runs Shepherds' Tours, Lightline's partner in the Holy Land, and his wife Katya tell us something about life in the embattled city of Gaza.
Christians make up just 3000 of a population of 1.5 million. "It is like one drop of water," Katya says.
A 12 m wall surrounds Gaza; there are electric fences, and no one can enter or leave without a permit. "It is like a huge jail." The population is very young: 53% are under 18 and under pressure. They lack good role models, caught up in a cycle of violence that seems unending.
"Before 2000, 95% of kids went to school. But now there is no work, no money. There are the missles. And school doesn't put bread on the table. People have been killed, and so children have to provide."
One Christmas, God sent Katya and Habib a needy Christian family who turned up with nowhere to stay. A friendship blossomed: Katya heard their story, and determined to do something to help the children's education. They now attend a Christian school in Gaza. First, Katya and Habib supported one child; now they support 12. Soon it will be 15 - or maybe 17.
"Everyone forgets there are Christians in Gaza," she says. "I help these Christian families raise their children in a Christian environment. All these children have a story. But believe me, they want to go to school, even when the city was under bombardment. They didn't give up, even in 2009.
"All I am doing is telling people there are Christians in Gaza - the Sisters are doing the rest."
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