Ducking in Dubai: Why the EU is more attractive, and harder to get in to than ever: We spring in to Festivals and laugh in Latvia
A personal comparison of Dubai and Europe highlights differences in lifestyle, freedom, and security, with Europe offering greater stability, cultural depth, and long-term opportunities for building a secure and fulfilling life.
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This weekend we celebrate Kaziukas (the scaring away of winter) with a huge Fair in Vilnius City centre
As I’ve said before, turns out since arriving in the Baltic region, I’ve become a closet pagan.
Though to be fair, the churches are pretty stunning, so taking the odd communion to cover your bases, doesn’t hurt either.
Two weeks ago we had close to a meter of snow around our backyard, now the spring buds are everywhere, and it’s warmed up at least 15° in the last seven days.
The sudden change in season is celebrated in the pagan calendar, and Lithuanians hold onto their tradition with both hands.
This weekend is my favourite time of the year, when the city comes alive with all manner of celebrations, food, and crafts to purchase on every street corner, singing and dancing in the streets. Some of it fully clothed.
For any of you that happen to be in Europe at the moment, I highly recommend stopping by Sunny Lithuania for this incredible festival or life!
For any of you that happen to be in Europe at the moment, I highly recommend stopping by Sunny Lithuania for this incredible festival of life this weekend!
Lets kick the winter out in style! My shout!
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Who’s Ducking in Dubai?
The Middle East Eh? – Who Knew..
Ever since I was first approached to give help to somebody wanting residency in Europe, I’ve been faced with a question, Dubai or the EU.
It’s a question I answered for myself in about three minutes, on my last trip to Dubai.
But for many people, especially those down under, Dubai holds an allure, a shiny new oasis, parked firmly on the beach (or a house of cards built on sand, depending on how you look on it). The streets are clean, luxury cars are everywhere, and if you do it right, there is no tax. What’s not to like?
Well, for me, it was simple. For a start, I’m European, not Arabian.
Europe feels like home to me, I’m indigenous you see, (though I’ve yet to put in my claim with the EU for being moved off a few years back by the vikings, or enslaved by the Romans). There are thousands of years of history in every cobbled street around here, most of which are still intact (unlike the Middle East), the people are great, the food amazing, and you can saunter through the continent with the weather patterns.
Better than that, EU residents get 27 countries for the price of one. Plus, of course a path to permanent residency or citizenship, again unlike Dubai, where there is no possibility to become a citizen for most people, or in fact to be treated as equal with the guys in the sheets. Personally I’ve never been a big fan of a culture, or place that still whips people (aside from some of those German clubs.. but each to their own) anyway.
Of course, there are also the horror stories that come out from time to time in British media about the next poor bugger that’s been arrested for sharing a hotel room with his girlfriend, forgetting to get married first. Or got a wee carried away a kissed too long on the beach.
The problem of course with these laws in Dubai is that they’re not universally applied. So just when you think everything’s going beautifully, things can go horribly wrong.
On my last trip a few months ago, as I sipped my 8th glass of Paradis, descending into Dubai, savoring the last few minutes of the pointy end of an A380, I reflected on the fact that it’s actually illegal to drink in most parts of the city. So of course bought extra duty free… Deserts are thirsty work.
It’s that weird dysphoria that frankly stresses me out. And now, of course, it’s raining missiles. There’s a certain amount of irony, given the war in Ukraine, and how many people have asked me in recent months or years whether or not I feel safe here, now that Dubai airport is closed because of airstrikes. It’s a volatile region, run by autocratic rulers following a religion, I can’t understand. Frankly, I can’t see why anyone would take a young family long term, or try and build a life there, if they had even the slightest chance to spend their time in Europe. But that’s ultimately the joy of having freedom, it’s their choice. And I’ve never regretted mine.
Lunching with NATO top brass at my local steak house, traveling around 27 European members state, enjoying low and reasonable taxes (6% in Lithuania), with hardly a dictator or autocratic monarch in sight, my family and I have never felt safer, or more privileged to be European. And business ain’t bad either, I’m getting dozens of emails and phone calls from former potential clients who thought Dubai was a really good idea. Last week.
“Europe feels like home to me, I’m indigenous you see, (though I’ve yet to put my claim in with the EU for being moved off a few years back by the vikings, then enslaved by the Romans).
This is one of the many reasons I chose to make Europe home. It IS home. Plus of course, I’ve never been a fan of a country, or culture that still whips people in the streets.
For some time now, I’ve been saying that the doors to Europe are closing. Last year seven or eight times, usually around the first of the month, there were announcements of one sort, or another, from one EU member state or another, that their migration laws were shifting. Or closing completely for some categories (like the “Golden Visa” in Spain, or “Passport by Investment” in Malta).
In recent years, Spain has been leading the charge in the EU away from welcoming foreigners to take up residence.
A recent article in the Telegraph, UK, is good reading for anybody contemplating still applying in Spain for some sort of residential Visa.
Anecdotally, I can say that many of the clients I have, who still have applications pending in Spain, (but now have Lithuanian residency which gives them full access to all 27 EU member states), have expressed to me personally that the wait times are excruciating, the bureaucracy seems broken, and there seems a general unwillingness to fix that, from a bureaucratic level.
At the higher levels, in parliament, proposed law changes, targeting foreigners, seem nothing short of draconian.
The workaround? If you don’t need to be employed in Spain, or work in a traditional job, or take anything from the state, you can use your Lithuanian residency, to pretty much stay and live as long as you want in any of the other 27 EU member states within Europe. borderless travel through Europe is kind of the point. Of course, we would never suggest anybody break any laws, but in all practical terms, as a European resident, you get to, well, enjoy Europe! Without that pesky 90 day rule yapping at your heels while you try to enjoy all the EU has to offer.
“For the past few years there has been a fierce backlash against tourists and short-term lets, particularly Airbnb. Protesters have soaked visitors with water pistols in Barcelona and marched through the streets of Palma in Mallorca to oppose rising numbers of holidaymakers and declining living standards for native Spaniards.
The anger has translated into a tax and regulatory squeeze. In April, the government axed Spain’s famous “golden visa” scheme, which offered non-EU citizens residency rights in exchange for a €500,000 (£437,000) investment, typically in property.
Spanish tax authorities have been accused of a crackdown on foreign residents making use of “Beckham Law” tax breaks that were designed to encourage the wealthy to move to Spain.”
A couple of days ago, I decided to turn a brief business trip in Latvia, to an overnight on the beach with my dear wife. And what a night!
We ended up staying in a boutique hotel, comprising 15 empty rooms, save our own. My wife looks skeptical when I told her that I had booked at the hotel, and it’s Michelin style restaurant, for her very pleasure. What made the evening magical, was that the hotel was nestled in Jurmala, around 20 minutes out from Riga, the capital of Latvia. A new EU highway and great train links make it extremely accessible, either from the airport in Riga, or from the central train/bus station.
Jurmala is an incredible place. It’s an enclave of wonderful architecture, boutiques, fine dining, and on one of the nicest beaches you will find in Europe. In fact, one of the largest! Miles of golden sand along the Baltic Sea.
Of course, on season, the water is constantly warm, and the beach busy, though never overcrowded, and crucially, unlike many of the more popular destinations on the Mediterranean, you don’t have to pay for a slice of sand, or book your spot days in advance.
What I enjoyed though, in the last week of winter, was the wonder of frozen surf. Each wave poised to tackle the one in front, white froth and ice locked in a natural still life.
I simply don’t have the talent to describe the scene in writing, and having downed a couple of bottles of wine over dinner, with my Beef Wellington, it didn’t occur to me to take a picture. If you ever get a chance to visit Latvia though, skip the night in Riga, and no matter what the season, take the trip and book your accommodation in Jurmala, ideally right on the beach.
Jurmala is an incredible place. It’s an enclave of wonderful architecture, boutiques, fine dining, and on one of the nicest beaches you will find in Europe.
In fact, one of the largest! Miles of golden sand along the Baltic Sea.
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Tomatoes and Tranquility – and only 15 Minutes to Vilnius!
FOR SALE:
Price: 77 000 Eur
A PEACEFUL GARDEN RETREAT, MINUTES FROM VILNIUS
Set in the green and community-oriented area of Rastinėnai, this warm and fully reconstructed garden house offers a balanced lifestyle – nature outside your window, Vilnius just a short drive away. Morning coffee on the covered terrace, home-grown vegetables from your own greenhouse, and birdsong instead of traffic noise – all without sacrificing access to the city.
If you’ve ever said, “I’d love a place in nature – but not that far from good coffee,” this might be it.
Tucked away on Pušyno alėja in Rastinėnai, (that’s in Vilnius) this garden house sits on a lovely plot – fenced, landscaped, and ready for someone who likes the idea of morning coffee on a terrace dodging birds, not traffic.
Fully insulated (walls and roof), double glazed windows, greenhouse, vegetable beds, swings, covered terrace – in short, someone has already done the hard yards properly. You just show up and pick the fruit.
It’s officially a “sodo namas,” (Garden Village) which means you can grow your own tomatoes, and feel slightly superior about it.
All this, just 15 minutes from Vilnius. Close enough for civilisation. Far enough for sanity.
Not flashy. Just functional. And sometimes that’s exactly the point!
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