the start

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I feel live, I feel in love. I wake up too early in the morning; I can hardly fall asleep at night.
If my brain had a temperature gauge it will be on the red… I do too much thinking & planning!

This is my third blog but the first one that is not about traveling. I hope I'll enjoy it as I did writing
the other two. I really like to get feedbacks so feel free to send me what ever you think

I got back from my 2004 world tour month and a half ago a different man then the one that started the tour.
I want to believe that I'm a better human being now but that will be too simple.
I came back to Israel with a list of 12 things that I can or want to do when I get over the jet lag.
I won't count them all here 'cause some are still confidential, but here are the one that aren't:

Cables Portal - Designing a TV Channel that would operate as Internet.
Joining my father in his greenhouse operation
Import toilets from Japan
Open REI (the biggest outdoor retail in the state) in Israel
Write a professional guide book for the INT.
Translate "Beyond Backpacking" to Hebrew.
Open a B&B + hostel in ruins that once where the summer palace of King Abdullah, Jordan
Doing some business related to Cibus, the company I work for before the WT
Coffee & Shave - A place where you can get shave and drink coffee, get head message and all what a man needs or want…
Open a Backpacker in Nazareth, Israel
Distributing Tarptent in Israel & Europe
It will take to long to explain how I got to this list but I had a lot of thinking in my WT so it wasn't
too difficult. If you want to know more about my state of mind in that time click here.

So you can see that I was very confused, and didn't know which direction to go… What I did know is that I don't
want to work for no one but myself and for the values that I believe in.
I was thinking to form a working group with 4-5 people that I trust and highly appreciate. All 5, people that
I would hire if I had my own company, So I thought, if we join forces now we will have more chances to actually
own our own company… It didn't work out.
Some people weren't as I remembered them, one said that he want to work solo and My sister said it's a great
idea…I think so too, but for now reality proved me that it can't work.

I started a meeting session with friends and family hoping to focus and find my way.
This Blog is going to be about that way, which I don't know where it will lead me; I do hope it will to be
adventures and interesting. I mean both: the way and the blog.

I must say that I'm the luckiest guy to have a supporting partner as one can only dream on. I'm talking about
S (Shlomit) of course. We decided that I will take few months to explore my ideas and options before looking
for an office job.

Few days before I got back home S met to American guys that wanted to hike the INT. The connection started
after they read my trail journal and we had some email corresponding. S met them in Tel Aviv and supplied
them with Maps & Tips. They will take a big part in my decision making process.

I'm still writing about staff that happened few weeks from now, and I want to get as soon as possible to
the now. I will do it now.

Nazareth Backpacker - Love & Peace in the Middle East

Yes, S and I are going to open the first New-Zealand style Backpacker in Israel.
I will quote now from my power point presentation, though it's much better with the picture:


The vision -
Nazareth as a Backpackers center
Center for co-existence and Arabic school
Center for the Israel National Trail hikers
Experience as a backpacker -
Manager of a Backpacker in New Zealand
More then 2,500 km of hiking last year
2004 - California, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina & New Zealand
2000 - Kenya
1998 - New Zealand, Australia & Nepal
Nazareth -
Mixed city with a rich culture that represents the life in Israel
Famous world wide and the birth place of Jesus
Many tourist attractions
Authentic atmosphere
On the INT route
Central location
The Backpacker -
Hostel for low budget travelers
Cozy and friendly atmosphere
In Nazareth old city
Common kitchen & living room
Meeting place for travelers
The hosts will live in the hostel
Who are the backpackers?
Low budget travelers
Independent and not committed to time or place
Long traveling time
Go to central cities
Looking for unique and first hand experience
Connected to information networks
Activities -
Stay at local families
Volunteer in the community
Learn Arabic
Hike the INT
Benefits to Nazareth -
The BP will stay longer
Employment and job opportunity
Satellite business
Open more BP
Internal Tourism -
Get to know the culture and life style of a mixed city
Co-existence activities
Economic
Central location
Arabic courses
Abroad close to home
How?
Renting 500 m² building
Conference and study room
Arabic classes
Library
11 guest rooms with 37 beds
Large kitchen and living room
As I said, it's better with the picture but I think the presentation is very clear and the message
is being delivered.

How did I get this idea of opening a BP in Nazareth?
It all started with hiking the INT in April 2004. S and I enjoyed the trail and the trail life very much.
Then we went to our WT and hiked 500 mile along the PCT. We enjoyed the trail life even more. We were also
sure that the INT is as good trail as any other and that it should be famous world wide.
The S. America tour, staying in hostel and BP's, made us think about open our own BP. We were highly inspired
by 2 places: The Black Sheep Inn (Ecuador) and the Way Inn (Peru). Both places are own and run by foreigners,
people that once were backpacking around S. America just as we were. It was obvious to see how much the owners
were dedicate to there business and to the environment and communities they chose to live in.
From here we started to talk about owning our own BP. We had few fundamental principals: It need to be on the
INT route and since we wanted the place to impact as many people as possible we figured that an Arab
village/town would be the place to do it.
There is more then one Arab town along the trail, but since we want it to attract as many as possible the
City of Nazareth stood high above all the other option. All this brainstorming happened back in S. America and
with out even being to Nazareth even once before.
We talk to some of you guys, those who know us from those days, but it was just a rough plan back then.

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