Sami prepares his famous tea infusion for tourists who pass by the stall he owns, at the end of one of the alleys in the suburbs of the city center.
The merchants in the old city stand in the doorway of the shops, begging the buyers.
After two years of Corona the business has still not recovered.
Tourism has not returned to the good old days either.
The daily worries of the residents of Bethlehem mainly concern the hardships of livelihood and economic uncertainty.
President Biden's visit does not arouse special interest here, there are even those who have not heard of the important event at all.
"American presidents come and go, and we stay put," Sami says, holding a tray of cups of tea.
"People have already stopped dreaming big dreams or believing in promises. We live our lives as they are. Reality has not changed, and there is no reason to think anything will move because of a visit from one head of state and president or another," he says.
Bethlehem seems more and more bustling as you approach the area of the Church of the Nativity and the arteries that lead to it.
The presence of Palestinian security personnel is felt in the commercial areas.
Families and children walk among the stalls set up in the center of the large plaza and march for their enjoyment with ice cream cones.
The corn seller offers passers-by "flavored corn" in cups of various sizes.
"Five shekels a medium cup," he says.
He doesn't have much to say about visiting Biden.
"Well, let's come," he filters indifferently.
Up the street are the souvenir sellers, whose main livelihood is from tourism.
"Politicians are just talking, everything is as if Fadi, the people do not see any of this in the end. We do not think of a Palestinian state and all this stuff related to the political process. What will President Biden do - after he leaves the situation here will be better?"
Says bitterly one of the sellers on the street.
"Biden came for the Israelis, not for us. He came to Bethlehem for a tourist courtesy visit," the seller states.
Residents say the meeting between Abu Mazen and Baidan will most likely take place at the "Convention Palace," located at the northern end of the city.
A sign saying "Mr. President, this is apartheid" has been hung at one of the city's intersections, and local protests by opposition figures to the Palestinian Authority - including Tanzim, Fatah and the Popular Front - are planned to prepare for and during the visit.
Adel, the yellow taxi driver standing next to him, may have heard of the US president visiting, but it is impossible not to get the impression that he is completely preoccupied with other things. The arrival of Biden is not one of them.
Everything is expensive.
The fuel has gone up, there are a lot of expenses, and everything is on our backs, "he says while waiting for potential customers.
Up the street, the souvenir sellers whose main livelihood relies on inbound tourism.
"All the time the politicians are just talking, the people do not see any of this in the end. We do not think of a Palestinian state and all this stuff related to a political process. People want peace and live with dignity, no one is looking for problems. What will President Biden do? will be better?
"Biden came for the Israelis, not for us. He goes to Israel for political matters, to Saudi Arabia because of the oil and interests of America, and to Bethlehem he comes for a tourist courtesy visit," he said.
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