Nomadic Family - Is This The End?

What made your leave your lives in Israel & become The Nomadic Family?

The kids had a fairytale sort of life, but Kobi wasn’t a part of it. He was the breadwinner in a soul-draining, back-stabbing, hi-tech job. Somewhere after mild heart attack number two but before Breakdown Number 57, we decided that there must be another way. We read some inspirational books that changed our definition of success and made us realize that there were other options out there. We thought we’d last 6 months, and well, here we are, currently in the Philippines in month 29.

You share a lot of intimate & controversial stuff on your blog. Why? Why put your whole life out there?

I do shamelessly talk about all of those topics that you would never expect to find on a travel blog. Why? Because I believe that being raw and honest and open, that I can best inspire others to live in their truth. Life isn’t easy, travel isn’t easy, parenting isn’t easy & marriage is not easy. I want to show the neurotic, raw, dusty, teary, and sweaty sides of my soul and family life on the road too, and through that sharing, bring like-minded souls closer to the story-telling campfire. We’re all so normal it's funny. 

What has your family gained from your world travels?

Besides these unreal dreams come true, the greatest gift has been the time and space to discover ourselves, as a family and as individuals. We believe in unmodern parenting and thus highly treasure un-plugged, bored kids who have to figure out how to face themselves and fill those voids with meaning. We’ve learned how to create a meaningful existence out of total freedom, which I must say is much harder than it seems. We’ve also found family healing in its fullest glory on the road. We can’t escape to the office, school, the other room, or busy work so we simply have to face it. Not being able to avoid the normal pimples and hiccups of family life, has been maddening at times, but remarkably rewarding. We have become such a close, bonded unit of five souls who know, without a doubt, that this is our greatest gift from world travel.

So where have you been?

USA- 2 ½ months | Costa Rica- 1/ 12 months | Panama- 3 ½ months | Colombia- 1 ½ months | Ecuador- 2 ½ months | Peru- 3 ½ months | Thailand- 1 month | Cambodia- 8 months | Vietnam- 1 month | Malaysia- 3 ½ months 

And what's next, before the end?

Philippines- we’ll be here until mid-August = 2 ½ months

Malaysia- 2 weeks for visas, passports, and other errands before Nepal

Nepal- 2- 2 ½ months, Annapurna Circuit Hike and Volunteer Mission

India- 8 months, Kids attend Waldorf school in Goa

Israel- ????? – Welcome Home! (breathe, Gabi, breathe)

You clearly love travelling, why stop?

Kobi and I would do this forever, but our kids have different dreams. Though they love traveling, make great friends everywhere we go and still gush over the coolest things they’ve seen and done, they want a normal childhood. They dream of going to school, birthday parties, and hanging out with their cousins and grandparents. And because we deeply value those relationships and realize that all five of us need to lead fulfilling lives, we’re hanging up our backpacks next summer.

What would you say to a family who wants to travel?

Save, save, save. Easier said than done, I know. But, we both took second jobs, cut expenses to a bare minimum, and found creative solutions to get our finances in line. We got out of debt and then started shoving every shekel (Israeli dollar) we could into savings.

While we are here in your home town, where should we go that most don't know about?

My answer to your question is Nimrod's Fortress. It is one of the most magical and unknown spots in Israel. It is unreal. You can see photos of it in The Holy Land: Our Favorite Family Things To Do.