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This article forms part of a series of publications under MEDUSA project to promote less-known natural and cultural touristic assets in our partner territories Jordan, Lebanon, Tunisia, Puglia (Italy) and Catalonia (Spain).

Enjoy reading and hope to welcome you soon at one of the wonderful places you will get to know here.

Born in the small village of Kfar Nabrakh, Chouf district, Lebanon, Soha has had a strong relationship with mother nature since her childhood. Today she is establishing her promising culinary start up.

After having left for Beirut in the 1980’s, Soha has decided to come back to the green, peaceful village where she has many memoires, putting future goals on hold for the time being.

“I find bliss in nature,” Soha says. “Despite the beauty in the chaos, noise and hustle and bustle that one enjoys in the city, the only place where my soul finds serenity is amid the peaceful scenery of this village.”

The humble village’s location allows visitors to undergo unique adventures during stay.

Strolling through Lebanese heritage pathways, where travellers are granted the opportunity to become part of the community, and they can roam the town anytime of the day, as it is safe and the locals are friendly.

Despite Kfar Nabrakh’s extreme serenity, it is surrounded by adventure, with wild animals and agrestic plants just minutes away. Travellers’ adventures could start with a simple hike, and their level of their adventure amplified with by spending the night stargazing in a tent in the wild.

Soha’s start up is operational already, and it has enhanced the stays of adventurer travellers by providing them with an experience where they can take part in the cooking process from the very first stage- such as collecting ingredients from the wild to creating recipes together, before finishing the meal up all together and setting it on one big table of delicious dishes and good company. Travelers could also opt for local dishes being provided to them in the event that they decide to camp outdoors.

“Word of mouth” was her only marketing strategy for reaching a broader audience. However, today, an Instagram page (Saj Em Youssef) has been set up and has proven its effectiveness, bringing tourists from other Lebanese cities.

This star-up is not merely about adventure tourism; rather, its horizon has go beyond it, to a stronger, more significant mission.

“My aim of attaining independence, whether financial or emotional, has pushed me to pave my way throughout this project,” Soha says. “I have proved to my two daughters first, as well as my family and broader society, that an independent woman can achieve anything a man can.”

At first, she started the start-up all by herself. However, after being encouraged by tourists and locals, her sisters and other women have joined her in her mission to empower women in their rural communities.