IN the morning of Sunday the 5th I was back to Italy from Israel. The evening my wife, that remained in Israel to enjoy her friends and her relatives, called me.

"I heard two explosions, I thought they were supersonic bangs, but It is not like that. THere have been some terror attack..."

"Where?" I asked.

"Tachanat otobus merchazit" (Central Bus Station)

"The new one or the old one?" I asked again.

"The old one..."

"Are you ok?"

"Yes yes... "

And we started to talk about something else. I knew where the new bus station is, but I didn't realize where it was the place of the terror attack until I opened the CNN.

The camera was following the crowd of policemen and ambulances coming and going in the place of the attack. One moment the camera shot the background of the place with the skyscrapers of Tel Aviv.
I startled. During my days in Israel I have been in BUL, to meet my Israeli friends and to shoot and test some of the BUL products. I realized that the place of the attack was on the path I used to go to reach the range in Tel Aviv!

I called in BUL, in Israel, and after various attempts I finally reached my Israeli friend in BUL. He was ok, but he told me that this time was really close: 160 meters from his office.

This time was so also so close to me...

I know, Paolo.

In summer 2001, I was planning on going to Israel.  But being a backpacker, I would be using buses as transportation (prime terrorist target), and spending a lot of time in Tel Aviv until I got onto the guarded kibbutzim which are relatively safe.

I was planning on entering Israel in Haifa, then taking a bus to Tel Aviv.  There were several attacks in thoze places which were on my route.

Instead of going to Israel, I decided to stay at home and apply for a job with a big brokerage firm.  I didn't get the job, but the girl who did went to New York City for her training at Morgan Stanley's main offices, in the World Trade Center.  She was doing her training on September 11, and was nearly a victim too.  But she made it out alive.

I really hate terrorists. They are ruining everything.