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Caribbean passports are rapidly turning into pumpkins
First of all, let’s already recognize that we live in an extremely fickle world. True diversification is at least 3 different citizenships. Any state can go crazy, any bonus can be canceled
Secondly, the era of investment citizenships for donations to “cocoa fund” states is coming to an end. Bank accounts on Caribbean passports have long been out, now it’s the turn of visas. For any regulator, Caribbean = person got documents without international checks and obvious distrust of such schemes
How do investors diversify safely? Choose quiet stable stories with real business or real estate investments. The most accessible country for Russian passport holders is Paraguay
Stable +40 outside the window all year round, stable citizenship for those who really invest in the country’s economy, stable 0 questions at the border and in EU and US banks.
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🚘 Car guide to the north of Argentina
The provinces of Huhui and Salta are my favorite part of Argentina: the Martian Andes, salt lakes, fluffy llamas and flawless blue skies.
The most beautiful places are in the untamed mountains. Which means you need to plan three things: when you’ll refuel, where you’ll spend the night, and how to gain altitude so you don’t vomit from the highlands. Nature has figured out the rest for you: every road is beautiful. Multiply the road time from the navigator by two: you will want to stop often and take photos. And, of course, you should drive a tall four-wheel drive car – the roads are wild
⛰️Low-altitude routes to adapt:
San Miguel de Tucumán – Cafayate. Perfect slow climb to enter, forest of cacti all around and hotels in vineyards.
Cafayate – Salta. That Martian road among the red mountains. Devil’s throat canyons, amphitheater and other viewpoints. Stop at all of them!
Salta – Cachi. Cacti and a park with lagoons at Parque National Los Cardones.
Cachi – Cafayate. James Turrel Museum: Argentina’s best museum, 4 hours semi-highway from the nearest civilization. Wrote a separate post about it! Beautiful mountains in Quebrada de las Flechas.
🌋 Higher routes:
Careful – the altitude really feels it! My favorite way to combat mountain sickness is to have an oxygen tank with me or stop to breathe at the aid stations if the tank runs out. Much more effective than coca leaf tea and other folk methods.The planning is simple: there are hotels only in Purmamarca and Tilcara, you sleep here, fill up a full tank and drive out to see the beautiful:
14-color mountains. You can drive to the first viewpoint, but to the most beautiful view there is a half-hour trek up the hill.First you go down, it’s very easy, going back up is more difficult, calculate your strength.
Salinas Grandes – huge salt lakes, a must see.The most interesting thing about the lakes are the ojos (eyes), deep crevices with clear water.Blue sky, white salt going deep – incredibly beautiful! Near the eyes everything is very touristy and they will try to get a guide to come to you, all other sides are wild and empty, just the way we like it.
Route 40 above Salines to return to Cachi via the highest point of the legendary Route 40: Abra de Acay.For the brave: Cusi cusi. Cafayate – Salta.That Martian road among the red mountains.Devil’s throat canyons, amphitheater and other viewpoints.Stop at all of them!
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While you’re banning your kids from computer games and social networks, top youtuber MrBeast plans to raise $200 million in investment in his company
While you’re banning your kids from computer games and social networks, top youtuber MrBeast plans to raise $200 million in investment in his company at a $5 billion valuation and go public in two years.
MrBeast, aka Jimmy Donaldson, started his career on YouTube at the age of 13 in 2012: streamings of computer game walkthroughs.
But he gained real popularity in 2017, after publishing a video where he counted to 100,000.
After that, it started: handing out money and expensive gifts on the street, reality shows and competitions in YouTube, for example, a copy of the squid game.
Content for the masses and the masses love it.
Today MrBeast is the most popular youtuber in the world, 371 million subscribers on the main channel, 66 billion views.
The holding company, Beast Industries, made $500 million last year: half on content, half on murch chocolates.
The money for content is almost entirely re-invested in the production of new content – look, it’s cosmic. The Mr. Beast team has a cool upbeat approach to project management, their guide has recently appeared online, be sure to read it! I’ll post it in the next post.
By the way, Mr. Beast is only 26. According to the best entrepreneurial traditions, he didn’t finish university.
Who do your kids want to be like?
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Jeff Bezos convinced his siblings to invest $10,000 each in his online startup Amazon. Today, their stake is worth $1.3 billion.
In the mid-’90s, convincing someone to invest $10,000 in an online bookstore – at a time when most people were just getting to grips with dial-up modems – was about as difficult as launching a startup selling decorative stones during the tech boom. But Jeff Bezos succeeded. And not just among venture capitalists, but also among his family members: his brother Mark and sister Christina took a risk, and their investment turned into $1.55 billion each – provided they didn’t sell their shares.
In 1996, Bezos, armed with limitless vision and an Amazon website, offered his relatives a deal: for $10,000, each could get 30,000 shares of his then-tiny company.
In 2018, Bloomberg calculated that Mark and Christina’s shares were already worth $640 million each – a staggering return on the $10,000 invested. But Amazon’s stock hasn’t stopped rising. At an exchange rate of $221.30 per share as of December 31, 2024 (versus $91 in 2018), their stakes are now valued at about $1.55 billion each – representing a return of 15,499,900%.
Bezos’ pursuit of long-term growth has turned Amazon into a $2.33 trillion giant that has changed retail, logistics, cloud technology – and even how people buy toilet paper.
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On the first day after his inauguration, President Donald Trump
On the first day after his inauguration, President Donald Trump, with one stroke of a pen, abolished citizenship by right of soil, for children of illegal alien parents. That is, for anyone who came to the U.S. on a tourist or other short visa, including temporary work visas. Or somehow else magically flew over the wall and ended up in the country. Previously, all newborns were instantly granted citizenship and a bonus lifetime tax subscription to the U.S., regardless of the parents’ status.
Prosecutors in 22 states are already outraged, Mr. President, you can’t change the constitution in one day, and have sued, watch with popcorn for developments. Those who were going to be born in the U.S. this week are out of luck, I sympathize.
What’s my point? Our world is a set of windows of opportunity constantly opening and closing.
Two years ago you could get Argentine citizenship by birth very cheaply, now you can still get it, but the cost of living has skyrocketed above Europe, and all the other features of South America have remained as they were.
Last week you could get US citizenship, this week you can’t.
Spain’s golden visa for buying real estate worked a year ago – now rapidly closing.
Whatever your passport replacement plan is, don’t delay and go implement it now.
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Helicopter flight rankings: the best and worst routes in South America
I really love flying, and if there is an opportunity to see something beautiful, I definitely take it. Here’s my ranking of experiences:
🤮 Chile, lines in the Nazca Desert – 4/10
School textbooks say that geoglyphs in the desert are only visible from a bird’s eye view. That’s a lie! Near the highway there are metal towers from which everything is perfectly visible. Above the desert tourists are taken by a shaking corncob, the views are monotonous, you get seasick. I don’t recommend it.😎 Brazil, Rio de Janeiro – 10/10
The most beautiful helicopter tour on the continent! Ocean, beaches, impressive city in the hills, Jesus statue above the city. At the same time – the most careless security system at the airport. Bags are not checked, documents are not even asked. Apparently the aura of the city’s saint keeps everyone safe.😁 Brazil, Iguazu Falls – 8/10
The most powerful waterfall system in the world. The most famous part is the Devil’s Throat, a 270 degree circular space surrounded by waterfalls. Powerful and beautiful: a helicopter flies right up to the Throat itself! I took off two points, because from the bottom, from the boat, you can drive into the waterfall itself, and it is much cooler in impressions! Brazilians are leisurely, both the boat and the helicopter will take half a day. If you have to choose one thing, definitely the boat!😎 Argentina, Martina Garcia Island – 9/10
The exile island of a former president on the border with Uruguay. Perfect location for a date: beautiful flight over the La Plata river delta, interesting architecture of the island (even a theater building has been preserved!), lunch in a small authentic restaurant, crocodiles on the waterfront.😁 Argentina, Buenos Aires – 8/10
It’s just really nice to fly over your city and take a look at your favorite places.🥲 Peru, Machu Picchu – 0/10
A place that doesn’t have a helipad, but would really like one! The ancient Inca temple is protected on all sides by the high Andes Mountains. You can only get here by train, but it would be great to fly in. -
The sun shines brightly 300 days a year in Argentina
the sun shines brightly 300 days a year in Argentina?
In the world rating of people’s happiness by country Argentina has fallen from 30th to 49th place, the reasons for this are quite a lot, one rapid dive of the local currency – peso affects the mood of the natives.
However, the problems of Indians sheriffs (working for US dollars) do not bother. The shopping paradise for Europeans and Americans is obvious – every month you become 5-7% richer, without any of those bitcoin investments of yours.
A five-hour trip to the surfing mecca, with the clearest ocean – Mar del Plata will cost $16 (5,500 pesos) in a luxury coach with lie-flat seats with more room than an airplane’s business class.
Lunch for two with fresh fish/steak and wine is $15-20, a nice 5* spa hotel is $120.
A two-hour massage or a personalized tai chi class?
⁃ $15, señor.Promised land for all kinds of digital nomads and entrepreneurs with well-established remote management processes ♥️
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Argentina has a quick and easy legalization process, and the passport is the 11th strongest in the world
Argentina has a quick and easy legalization process, and the passport is the 11th strongest in the world, excellent affordable (including free) medicine, education – the University of Buenos Aires is among the 10 best in the world, locals love children and are tolerant of newcomers, a huge number of events, including art and music (Billie Eilish came in the summer, for example), unique purest nature – ocean, glaciers, volcanoes, mountains, whales, ski resorts, lakes, steppes and forests. Inclusiveness and 100% tolerance to minorities and any other social groups.
Excellent climate, cheap gasoline, fruits, vegetables, the best restaurants in the world for the price of McDonald’s in neighboring countries: a huge steak in the capital restaurant – $10, a kilo of strawberries $2, nanny/driver/gardener/chef – $2-3 per hour.
The capital itself – Buenos Aires – is buried in greenery, with convenient pedestrian and bicycle paths, parks and copybars, squirrels and hummingbirds right in the center of the city.
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How to pay less in Argentine hotels
Over the past year, I’ve driven over 40000 kilometers across Argentina and Latam and stayed overnight in all sorts of places, from small rooms in the ass-end of the world mountains of Huhuya to luxe boutique hotels. As you know, everything in Argentina is ambiguous with prices. Last time, for example, I paid 60% less than what I was first offered. How do you do that again? I’m going to tell you the best ways to do it!
- Compare prices. On booking, the official website, in Votsap and at the reception you will be told the different cost of the night. Most often in Votsap the cheapest, but it is not certain.
- Cash or card? Be sure to ask if there is a discount for cash. Tiene discuento para effectivo? Pro tip: right off the bat, ask if you can do a bank transfer. You’ll likely get a discount, but you won’t spend cash, which is not easy to withdraw far from civilization.
3- Juggle passports. The rules are that Argentines get added +20% IVA tax. Foreigners can pay with a foreign card tax-free, but often no one checks what card you have. Be sure to ask if they quote you a price with or without tax. - Juggle passports even more. In some places, prices for Argentines are lower than for foreigners simply because you want it that way.
As you can see, it’s very simple: 5 minutes of friendly conversation in Spanish and presto!
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A Car Guide to the Atacama Desert
The Atacama Desert in Chile is the driest place on earth. A fantastic land with a harsh climate and cosmic mountain scenery. I tell you about the coolest locations, get your four-wheel drive vehicles ready and hit the road!
👋Hand of desert: 8/10. Huge hand sculpture in the middle of nowhere, an elusive hello to Burnin’ Man. I drove to Atacama along the coast from Santiago and the hand was on the way, but I wouldn’t stop by on purpose.
All other points are conveniently accessible from San Pedro de Atacama, a small atmospheric oasis town with great vacation hotels.
🧂Laguna Cejar: 3/10. A popular salt lake for tourists to swim above the surface of the water alone, arrive at 9am for the very opening. If you’ve been swimming in the dead sea, there’s nothing to see.
🌖 Valley of the Moon: 7/10. Sunset near the town in case you’re too lazy to drive somewhere far away. Beautiful trekking trail for three hours: flew a drone to check it out, recommended 😎
🌈 Valle del Arcoiris (rainbow mountains): 9/10. My favorite genre – beautiful mountain scenery to admire from a car window.
🦩 Laguna Chaxa: 10/10. Huge salt lake. Arrive at sunset – incredibly beautiful and quiet, amazing light, flocks of flamingos and mountains.
Next points above 4000 meters, be careful of yourself.
💦 Geysers el Tatio: 1/10. The most hyped place in the Atacama, but it’s not worth it. First of all, the geysers are larks and spit spectacularly only at dawn. Secondly, there are no hotels nearby (and in vain!) and you will have to drive along the dark serpentine at 4 am. Third, you’ll be joined by a crowd of tourists from San Pedro. Fourth, you’ll get sick along with the geysers.
🗿 Monjes de La Pacana: 10/10. Have you seen Salvador Dali’s cartoon Destino? This surreal desert really exists! It’s unknown how the huge vertical stones ended up in the middle of nowhere, but it’s simply the best place to picnic and ponder the meaning of life: just you, the desert, and the cobblestone overhanging from above.