Affilicon Israel and adventures in Tel Aviv, the city that makes me wish I was a lesbian

Only two years have passed since I was in Tel Aviv for a vacation, but for some reason, I had forgotten how unbelievably beautiful the women are in this city. In fact, it is pretty apparent that roughly 65% of Tel Aviv's population is female, 75% of the population is single, 95% of the population falls between 20 and 40 years of age, and 100% of the population is ridiculously good looking. Can you think of a better city for an affiliate marketing conference? Not a chance. Who needs to hire models for the booth in a city like this? No one! Not even Rome Partners. Ok, so the men are pretty good looking too. Aside from all the beautiful people, Affilicon Israel was a fantastic experience and I would like to send my praise to Itay and his team for putting together a very organized, educational, and networking friendly event. I had an amazing time, I learned a lot, I spent time with new people and with people I do not see enough, and I still want to marry a Jew.

Location, location, location, lunch and free booze, the absolute Affilicon highlights
Clearly I adore Tel Aviv and cannot think of a better location to have a conference. Gorgeous beaches and weather, gorgeous people, incredible nightlife, complete street safely, excellent food, and great shopping. Tel Aviv has it all. Half the battle of putting on a good show is picking the right city because as much as we may deny it, there are many affiliates who come just for the party. The only way to get these guys into the conference is to lure them with something, such as free booze and great food, two things that Affilicon absolutely nailed. Thank you Rome Partners for the free bar, and thank you Itay for the delicious lunch served at Affilicon- you just set a new industry standard and completely justified the conference entry fee. Rather than leave the exhibit hall in search for something edible and alcoholic, everyone stuck around for the feast and drinks while enjoying a perfect networking atmosphere. Well done Itay, I approve.

Sylvia Corfman makes her debut at Affilicon and Grant from Bingo Café has a twin
At long last, Sylvia Corfman, Michaels' wife and Co-owner of Casino City, made her first appearance at an online affiliate marketing event. Not only was she a huge hit with the conference attendees, but she was also a huge hit with me because we broke down the booth twice as fast in her presence. Another huge hit with me is the Betway Partner team, a trio that I met for the first time at Affilicon. Upon introduction, Dan from Betway immediately reminded me of someone...an online bingo old timer, Grant from Bingo Café, one of my all time favorites. Turns out Dan and Grant are best friends from childhood, can you believe it? I had no idea! I guess this resemblance automatically places Dan in my "all time favorites" category, even if he talks a big game and then bails out of the bar at 1am.

Many amazing meals with even more amazing people
Throughout my time in Israel, I enjoyed several dinners with Josh from Rome Partners, dinner with Ron from Desperate Housewives Bingo and David from Cuba Club Casino, dinner with Eran from 23Partners, breakfast with Ben from C-Planet, dinner with Franco from Redbet, lunch with Miko and Shai from 888.com, dinner with Shay from RummyRoyal, and many meals with the BetUS crew. How's that for keeping my expense report to a minimum? Over time, I have come to realize that this level of wining and dining is rather unusual and somewhat extravagant. Rest assured my friends, I appreciate it more than you can believe, and someday when I am rich and have a huge expense account, I will repay the favor to all of you. That's a promise.

Intro to Café Noir schnitzel and 888.com office visit take two
Something very exciting happened during my trip to Tel Aviv, something unexpected...I had my very first schnitzel experience with 888.com. What is schnitzel, and why are they serving it all over Tel Aviv? I didn't know either...until Michael and I received an enthusiastic description from schnitzel lovers and U-ffiliates leaders Shai and Miko, enough to convince us both to order it. This educational lunch with the boys was followed by a full 888.com office tour, complete with a peek at the roof deck pool, hot tub, spa and open bar, just like I remembered from my visit in 2007. Seriously!

Legendary adventures with Lucky18 Casino
Or should I say adventures with legendary Ace?! Have you met this guy? I know many of you have heard stories of VIP tables and very late nights at conferences involving the mysterious Lucky 18 guys, and let me tell you right now…every rumor you heard is true. Ace, or "Ah-say", as the Israelis like to say, has got to be the most fun, the most hospitable, the friendliest, the most entertaining, and one of the most connected individuals I have ever met. Who else can get you into any club in Tel Aviv at any time? Who else welcomes you into the VIP section of Galina to celebrate the birthday of Bar Refaeli, Leonardo DiCaprio's girlfriend? Who else rolls with former football player Itzik Zohar, the ultimate womanizer? Robert Goldman may be the CEO of Lucky 18 Casino, but Ace is the man behind the scenes, the man who showers affiliates with love and alcohol, and the man who promises, and I quote, to cover your rehab tab if you need it.

Dead Sea, Eilat and Petra excursion with the BetUS gang
It is not possible to express the love I have for the BetUS Partners team in words. After Affilicon finished, I took a road trip with Mike, Erin and Kat to the Dead Sea, Eilat and Petra, an experience I thoroughly enjoyed and will never forget. Floating in the Dead Sea is something that I highly recommend to all of you, but please don't forget your GPWA Times magazine- it's by far and away the best place to read it. Eilat is, well, interesting. Perhaps it was the "family oriented" hotel we chose? Or perhaps it was the swimming pool full of screaming children with water guns? Or perhaps it was the hotel's nightly entertainment of amateur stage performances? Regardless, it was an experience. Now Petra, that's another story. If you are ever provided with the opportunity to visit this "new wonder of the world" where Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade was filmed, please do not pass it up, and do try to ride a donkey or camel along the way.

Nothing beats Hebrew hospitality...and the Cinema Hotel staff
I don't know what it is about the people who live in Tel Aviv, but they have got to be the most accommodating in the world. Josh from Rome Partners met me and the Casino City boxes right at the arrival gate and drove us into the city. Eran from 23Partners used his Hebrew and funds to add minutes on my Israeli SIM card. Ben from C-Planet drove me all the way from our breakfast meeting in Tel Aviv to Affilicon at Airport City, even though he had no plans of attending. Sharon from Beyondpartners hosted me for my last night in Tel Aviv and drove me to the airport the next morning, bright and early. Alfonzo from Cinema Hotel treated me like family during my stay, looked after my bags until 3am, and sent me off with a huge hug when I left. Out of all my travels throughout the world, I have never experienced hospitality like this. Try leaving your bags at a hotel in America until 3am and see what happens, I dare you.

Encounters with Ben Gurion airport security take two
The first time around I yanked the security tags off my check on bags by accident, the second time around my laptop set off an alarm at the last security point. Great. Guess what happened next. I was escorted back to the beginning of the security points, my laptop was ripped out of my little hands and checked on board, and every single item from my carry on bag was removed and examined. I'm talking my wallet was completely emptied, all the contents of my makeup bag were removed, and every single pocket in my bag was cleaned out and all items were laid out on a table. After this fun process, I was escorted to a private room to be personally screened and searched behind a closed curtain. Eek. Hey, it wasn't so bad...at least the guy searching through my bags looked like a supermodel.