One Day in Istanbul

28 March, 2020 | | 20 seen

Istanbul has been on my travel map ever since I remember (Okay, I first were here back in 2009).

Time after time we like to take layover flight via Istanbul, and so did happen last time, at the end of February 2020 - we booked a connected flight Tbilisi - Istanbul - Riga with Turkish Airlines so we have a chance to spend at least a day in Istanbul

After taking a hammam in our centrally located Istanbul hotel (Best Point Hotel Old City Istanbul (Sultanahmet)), in the next morning after breakfast we took a little walk to nearby tourism objects

What to do and see in Istanbul in less than 24 hours

Turkish tea for sale near Blue Mosque

We went through a small market which was still closed and enjoyed a scenery like above - large clay pots filled with goodies ready to be sold

Inside Blue Mosque

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque has five main domes, six minarets, and eight secondary domes. The design is the culmination of two centuries of Ottoman mosque development. It incorporates some Byzantine Christian elements of the neighboring Hagia Sophia with traditional…

How To Transfer USD to GEL (and many other currencies) Using TransferWise

27 March, 2020 | Living in Georgia | 26 seen

In March 2020, GEL/USD exchange rates dropped to 1 USD = GEL 3.4 (I still remember days, when rates were 1 USD, equaled 1.74 GEL).

Most of the banks (if not all) act as market makers or they buy low and sell high. A normal business practice. If GEL/USD value drops to 3.4 GEL for 1 USD, there is no guarantee you are going to keep 340 GEL when exchanging 100 USD.

Today I decided to test - is it possible to use Transfer Wise to transfer funds inside Georgia and is it possible to transfer from USD to GEL. Spoiler alert: yes it is possible

Opening Bank Account in Georgia - Bank of Georgia

Currency exchange rates on Bank of Georgia March 27, 2020

As you can see the buy/seel spread is 10 tetri here and bank will make money if you will decide to sell or buy USD.  

So I decided to test two things:

• Is it possible to send USD to GEL inside Georgia using third party (Transfer Wise)
• Is it convenient

Here are my key findings:

• It's possible to move funds inside Georgia (from account to account) from USD account to GEL (…

Snowy day in Tbilisi

21 March, 2020 | Living in Georgia | 10 seen

On the morning of March 17, 2020, snow surprised us here in Tbilisi.

While sipping morning coffee I decided to grab a camera and take a few shots for the history.

 As it has been a while since my latest update from the Living in Georgia series I found this photo story a great way to illustrate how we spent a day, while in self-quarantine because of the Covid19 virus. 

Documenting winter in Georgia has been a tradition of this blog, see Tbilisi - Fairyland in Winter, Georgia in Winter (Photos from Tbilisi), Hiking trails near Turtle lake, Tbilisi in Winter

Snow in Tbilisi

Seeing snow in Tbilisi is quite rare, though possible, mostly at the end of January. From my almost 9 years living in Georgia, this is the first March with snow in Tbilisi. 

M. Tsinamdzgvrishvili Street in Tbilisi

Pretty unseen scenery from the balcony of our apartment, see Tbilisi by night (New apartment version) and Tbilisi by day (New Apartment Version)

White rooftops in Tbilisi

Let it snow!

Our Christmas decorations are still intact. Good…

Best Point Hotel Old City Istanbul (Sultanahmet)

20 March, 2020 | Hotel reviews | 21 seen

Located in the Old City of Istanbul, this hotel is within walking distance to Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque and Topkapi Palace. Best Point Hotel Old City offers air-conditioned rooms. Free WiFi is available throughout the hotel.

We booked here a one night stay at the end of February 2020, during a layover flight from Tbilisi via Istanbul to Riga. We booked a family room which included a really comfy bed (s) and even a private hammam (Turkish sauna).

Our price about $95 per one-night stay (additionally we paid about $90 for a transfer back and forth from Istanbul airport, transfer was organized with the help of hotel). 

We like travel to Turkey and Istanbul in particular, when we do we look for a stay in Sultanahmet area. Besides Best Point hotel I could also recomend Dosso Dossi Istanbul Old City Hotel  in which we have stayed in the past, or alternatively see Top 20 5-star hotels in Istanbul, Turkey

Family room at Best Point Hotel in Istanbul

Decorated with warm colors and Turkish-style décor, rooms at Best Point Hotel include a flat-screen TV, tea&coffee maker and…

National Library of Latvia

19 March, 2020 | Tourism objects | 25 seen

The National Library of Latvia, also known as Castle of Light is located on Mūkusalas iela 3, Riga - on the left side of river Daugava, opposite to Old Riga

The current building was designed in 1989 by noted Latvian-American architect Gunnar Birkerts (1925-2017), who emigrated to the United States and made his career there. It was constructed in the early 21st century and opened in 2014. Today the Library plays an important role in the development of Latvia's information society, providing Internet access to residents and supporting research and lifelong education.

I had a chance to visit the National Library of Latvia at the end of February 2020 and I must admit I was very impressed. There is no entrance fee (though the visitor card should be taken). We straight went to the Library's 7th floor- were the kids library is located. Our daughter was very excited. 

Children library

There is a playground with a spectacular view of Old Riga. Not to say zillions of great children book, even for toddlers.

view towards Old Riga

Besides the standard services and routine operations,…

Drunk Cherry Gudauri Restaurant

14 March, 2020 | Restaurant reviews | 47 seen

Drunk Cherry is a stylish restaurant located in Gudauri next to the GoodAura ski-left (New Gudauri ski resort)

Discovered during a weekend trip to Gudauri. And I should say I was really impressed. The food, service, and even the prices are as if you were in some of the best Tbilisi restaurants.

Warm and cosy even on the coldest days. We promise fast and friendly service and a unique atmosphere.

We order here some hot-wine, soup harcho, hummus salads, hamburgers, and even pancakes. I would call this cuisine pretty much European with a Georgian accent.

Salads served with hummus

I have noticed this is quite popular now in Georgia. Every chill place serves salads with hummus. It's delicious. 

Hamburger with French fries

I noticed most of the visitors were drinking draft beer here. Not wine. Beer. Seems this place serves good beer to. 

Pancakes

Mmm, delicous

Surviving Bear Market - Margin Call

12 March, 2020 | Options trading | 24 seen

I once read that an investor can call himself a pro after he/she has survived at least 3 bear markets. I just survived one. At least I hope so.

In fact, from my short active investor's career, I feel this is already my second bear market, with first happening back in December 2018

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March 2020 market was scared from Covid-19, Trump travel Ban for EU citizens, Russia- Saudi oil war. Panic, real panic. It took about 3 weeks from all-time highs at the end of February to a 20% drop in mid-March 2020. And nothing is over yet. 

Portfolio value as of March 12, 2020

By March 12, 2020, my total portfolio has lost in value by more than 30%. 30% in 12 days. What a speed.

If counted from my portfolios all-time high at the end of January the drop is even more bearish 37.95% drop. Now these drops are quite Okay for crypto investments but with the stock market, hell this asks a lot of nerves

Entering Negative Value For Ethereum Investment - Crypto Bear Market…

Condohotel 'GVC 217' New Gudauri

7 March, 2020 | Hotel reviews | 14 seen

GVC 217 is a condo/aparthotel located in the New Gudauri ski resort, some 120 km from the nation's capital Tbilisi.

We booked here a weekend (2-night stay) in January 2019 and paid $138 for that. Despite we booked via Booking.com they accepted only cash.

As I later learned owners of this condo have a travel company in Georgia, mostly specializing on incoming tours across Georgia for Russian speaking tourists - G-V-C or Georgian Voyage Company. Also, I learned that GVC owns/manages at least 14 condos here in Gudauri.

Alternatively see: Ultimate List With Top 10 Gudauri Hotels (Georgian Ski Resort) of my reviews with Gudauri hotels

GVC 217

There is an indoor pool, sauna and ski storage located inside the building. Free parking and ski storage. Pool and sauna was for additional 70 GEL (kids up to 2 years free)

I actually didn't make any indoor inferior photography. What can I say, the stay was OK, the mattress could be better and the shower didn't quite work this time, but as we were more traveling here to spend our time outdoors it didn't matter much - although I would recommend upgrading mattress…

Launching Semi-Passive Income Portfolio for my Mom

6 March, 2020 | Investments | 48 seen

For the last 3 years, I've been actively building my own,  my kid's and just recently I started my partner's fund, now there is one more people I care whose financial situation should be taken care of - my mom.

She just turned 60, there are still 5 years until her retirement age. It's neither much nor little. 5 years is a timeframe I'm looking to build a semi-sustainable "pension fund" to generate income in the level of average pension in Latvia (EUR 336 in 2020). I believe the average pension in 5 years from now (in 2025) should be around EUR 430 - EUR 500 per month.

I doubt we could get there using only income from dividends (even in the case with high yielding stocks at around 10% per annum it would ask to have a portfolio of about 50,000 EUR  - not that it's impossible in 5 years, but as I'm building several other portfolios for me this would be just too much to take.

That's why I've decided to use options or more precisely sell options on dividend stocks to boost income, the so-called wheel-strategy. 

For my mom's portfolio, I decided to start with writing puts on Wells Fargo (WFC). And more precisely 60-70 DTE puts…

February 2020 Dividend Income Report - $251.15

4 March, 2020 | Investments | 14 seen

Welcome to the thirty-fourth (#34) dividend income report, covering earnings I've made from dividend-paying stocks and peer to peer lending in February 2020.

Last February we spent both in Georgia and Latvia, with a small stop to Istanbul, Turkey (layover flight). Our daughter has started to visit English preschool in Tbilisi and now she is really fast picking up new things and words. Amazing. 

Latvian National Library in Riga

They have a great kid room on the 7-th floor with great views towards Old Riga.

From the perspective of the market, last February was a bloodbath, the Corona Virus dominated the news and all major indexes (S&P 500, Dow Jones) were down 10-15%. Our nest egg suffered a lot, but I'm not worried because dividends should provide a stable monthly income.

Speaking of them (dividends) - Last February was brilliant, and for the first time income in February cracked $100 milestone with a huge reserve, reaching pretty solid $251.15.  Compared to the previous February in 2019, that is an increase of +201.68% (+…

New Gudauri Ski Resort in Georgia

29 February, 2020 | Tourism objects | 32 seen

New Gudauri is a rapidly developing ski resort in Georgia developed by REDCO Real estate development company, the resort is located some 120km from the nation's capital Tbilisi in Gudauri.

Surrounded by some of Europe’s most dramatic peaks, Gudauri represents one of the most picturesque winter destinations for both experienced skiers and amateurs.  The resort offers fantastic skiing and snowboarding, as well as paragliding and heli-skiing facilities.

Gudauri - Georgian Winter Capital for skiing, snowboarding, paragliding and heli-skiing

New Gudauri

Ski Resort is both a great destination for holidaymakers as well for investors looking to expose their funds to condo investments. As a stock investor, I don't find such investment interesting, as I could go with a few click and buy some REIT (read - liquidity) - but the stock market is not for everyone and maybe some will find investing in New Gudauri a really lucrative. Before doing that I would recommend doing quality research

Active real estate development in New Gudauri​

Apartments can be purchased as a “white…

Lindt Factory Shop Induno Oluno

28 February, 2020 | Shopping Venues | 63 seen

This Lindt factory shop is located in the town of Induno Oluno (Varese), Italy on Largo Edoardo Bulgheroni street 1.

Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprüngli AG, more commonly known simply as Lindt, is a Swiss chocolatier and confectionery company founded in 1845 and known for its chocolate truffles and chocolate bars, among other sweets.

We visited this factory shop in mid-November 2019, during our about a week-long trip to Italy and Switzerland. As we had a hotel booked in Induno Oluno (Villa Porro Pirelli, Induno Oluno, Italy) after some Google search we found this shop, and that's how we ended here and bought a lot of candies. We spent here actually EUR 300 for A  LOT OF CANDIES. Our then 14-month old daughter was very excited about Lindt advent calendar (s)

Lindt factory shop in Induno Oluno

According to Wikipedia Lindt & Sprüngli has twelve factories: Kilchberg, Switzerland; Aachen, Germany; Oloron-Sainte-Marie, France; Induno Olona, Italy; Gloggnitz, Austria; and Stratham, New Hampshire, in the…

Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets

27 February, 2020 | Bookshelf | 15 seen

I was first introduced to the works of Nassim Nicholas Taleb from a fellow option trader when in a conversation I mentioned the term "Black Swan", my friend told me that Mr. Nassim Taleb is the author of this term and that he actually is quite active on Twitter.

I followed Nassim Taleb on Twitter, read a bit Wikipedia about him and basically forgot about him, when a couple of weeks later I was reading another trader's blog in which he mentions that has re-read all the books of Nassim Taleb. Now I decided - I should act, quickly googled which book I should read first - and Fooled by Randomness was pretty much recommended. I bought from Amazon the Kindle version and started to read. 

Everyone wants to succeed in life. But what causes some of us to be more successful than others? Is it really down to skill and strategy; or something altogether more unpredictable? This book is the word-of-mouth sensation that will change the way you think about business and the world. It is all about luck: more precisely, how we perceive luck in our personal and professional experiences. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the markets…

TOP 10 Laptops with NVIDIA GeForce MX230 Graphics Card (Entry Level Gaming)

24 February, 2020 | Laptop Reviews | 49 seen

The Nvidia GeForce MX230 is an entry-level dedicated laptop graphics card with DirectX 12 support (FL 12_1) based (most likely) on the Pascal architecture (and not Maxwell as the older MX130). Similar to the faster MX250, the MX230 is based on the GP108 chip.

Most of the new laptops with MX230 graphic card wear Dell or Lenovo brand name. As MX230 is a relatively new graphics card, it's not rare to find it together with the latest 10th generation Intel Core i7 processor laptop models

Keep reading to learn more about TOP 10 Laptops with NVIDIA GeForce MX230 Graphics Card

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links to Amazon.com, by clicking on links on this page and by making a purchase on the Amazon site, I will earn an affiliate income at no cost to you. Prices for laptops listed on this page are retrieved using Amazon Product Advertising API and is updated daily. For actual prices please refer on the product page on Amazon

Winter in Georgia: Gombori Pass

22 February, 2020 | | 27 seen

Some call Gombori pass - A Picturesque Road To Kakheti, here at  Piece of Life we can only agree. The road indeed is spectacular

If you don't have problems with endless turns or drastic changes of elevation and air pressure, then Gombori road is your road of choice to Kakheti. The pass itself peaks at 1620 meters above sea level.

Gombori road is spectacular at any time of year. Small idyllic villages, magnificent sceneries of Alazani valley and Caucasus Mountains, panoramic views, sheep flocks, ancient forests, beautiful meadows and sea of clouds are just a short list of what awaits you on this road.

At the start of January 2020, we left our cozy Tbilisi apartment to travel to Tsinandali, our road us via Gombori pass, and it started to snow.

Snow in Gombori pass

The Tsiv-Gombori is a mountain range in the Georgian section of Greater Caucasus mountains. It is located in the province of Kakheti, eastern Georgia, and stretches to the distance of 107 km, with the highest mountain being at 1,991 m above sea level.

The Gombori range serves as a watershed,…