Preparing for the Balkan Shiatsu Summit: A Journey Begins Long Before Arrival
There’s something quietly transformative in setting out for a gathering like the Balkan Shiatsu Summit. It’s not just about crossing borders, catching planes, or booking a hotel — it’s about preparing your body, your mind, and your presence for an experience that invites you to meet yourself afresh. In Zagreb in April 2026, the summit will once again convene practitioners, students and teachers from across Europe to share, practice, and grow together. But how does one truly prepare for such a moment?
Arriving Open — The First Step Toward Transformation
Preparation for the summit begins not when you land at Zagreb’s airport, but much earlier — with intention. Before the suitcase is packed, the mind must already be gently turned toward openness and curiosity. The Balkan Shiatsu Summit is a place for connection and dialogue; not only with others, but with your own inner rhythms. It is a space where differences of style and experience are welcomed, where every Shiatsu tradition — whether rooted in classical Zen practices or in local European interpretations — finds room to breathe and evolve. balkans-shiatsu-summit.com+1
Packing your futon or yoga mat, choosing comfortable clothing, and bringing a tenugui or water bottle are practical steps — but it is the openness of heart that matters most. Sitting with your own practice, noticing your breath, and reminding yourself why you chose this path are the unseen but essential preparations.
Arriving in Zagreb — Practical Paths to Presence
Once practicalities come into view, Zagreb reveals itself as both a destination and a threshold to deeper engagement. The summit takes place at Dvorana Borovje, on the eastern side of the city, a setting easily reached by tram, bus, taxi or car from central points in the Croatian capital. balkans-shiatsu-summit.com
Whether you step off Tram Line 6, 7, or 8, or make your way from the main train station by bus, the journey through Zagreb’s streets becomes part of a larger preparation: each step a small shift from the routines of daily life toward the shared rhythm of the summit.
Once there, you will find spaces arranged not just for learning, but for listening — halls where hands will meet bodies, minds will meet questions, and all of us will meet the unspoken language of shiatsu touch.
Gathering Materials — Between Note-Taking and Presence
Among the recommended items to bring are pens and paper — tools for capturing insight, sketching diagrams of energetic flow, and noting practical nuances from workshops. A futon or mat will be your ground, the surface on which you will practice, witness and remember. Warm tea and fresh fruits will be offered, but bringing your own water and comfort items ensures that your practice space feels like your own.
More than logistics, however, is the practice of presence. Arriving with a notebook is helpful; arriving with a quiet mind and a willingness to absorb and integrate is transformative.
The Summit Rhythm — Flow Over Formality
The summit schedule itself mirrors the rhythms of deep learning: morning sessions that awaken body and mind, a pause at midday to rest and reflect, then afternoon sessions that weave threads of experience into understanding. The cadence is designed not for performance, but for integration — breathing space between moments of shared practice and conversation.
There are no hierarchies here, only practitioners gathered in a field of mutual respect and collective curiosity. Teachers offer guidance not as distant authorities, but as companions in exploration — each workshop an invitation, not a prescription.
Meeting Others — Toward a Community That Grows
Summit preparation is also a social act. It happens in email exchanges with fellow attendees, in shared planning and in the subtle expansion of your own network. It happens when you arrive early for coffee and find yourself in conversation with someone whose hands sense energy differently, whose questions widen your own field of inquiry.
Here, the community itself becomes part of the practice — a living weave of presence, experience, and compassion. To prepare is to remember that we do not travel alone.
Conclusion — The Summit Begins Within
To prepare for the Balkan Shiatsu Summit is not merely to organize travel and materials; it is to cultivate openness, curiosity, and an embodied readiness to learn. Beyond routes and packing lists lies the deeper invitation to show up — fully, attentively, and with quiet reverence for what this shared space makes possible.
The summit will open doors, yes — to new techniques, perspectives, and friendships — but it will challenge you most to meet the living conversation between your hands, your breath, and the collective pulse of the group.
And as this current edition unfolds, so too will the next — each summit reminding us that true preparation is ongoing, that learning never ends, and that the real journey always begins within. We look forward to welcoming you to Zagreb — and then to continuing this journey together, step by step, at every future Balkan Shiatsu Summit.
