Póker Cash - Casino Barcelona

Prince Rainier III (1923-2005)
Rainier’s mother, Princess Charlotte, was actually illegitimate. Her father Louis II, getting older and with no legitimate children, legitimized her and made her his heir. She never took the throne, and in fact renounced her rights to her son, Rainier, the day before his 21st birthday.
Rainier became the Sovereign Prince of Monaco upon the death of his grandfather in 1949.
During WW2, Rainier served in the Free French Army. During the 40s and 50s he was in a long term relationship with the French film actress Gisele Pascal. Rainier’s sister, Princess Antoinette, wanted her own son to ascend to the throne, and spread rumors that Pascal was infertile. The rumors along with her treatment by the press and public ended their relationship.
After the war Monaco, a country who made its money primarily as a gambling origin, was in crisis as wealthy Europeans found their funds diminished after the war. To restore Monaco’s treasury Rainier decided to promote Monaco as a tax haven, and he personally took control of SBM (the company who owns the Monte Carlo Casino, Opera, and Hostel de Paris) in 1964. Prince Albert still retains a large share of the company and profits from it today.
Marriage:
Everyone knows this one. Rainier married American film star Grace Kelly in 1956.
Their marriage is rumored to have been turbulent. It is said that Grace struggled with adjusting to royal life, regretted ending her film career, and that Rainier had extramarital affairs. Her children have stated that though she was a loving mother, they spent more time with nannies than with their parents.
Grace's dress is iconic, but here you go if you want to revisit some photos from that day.
Rainier smoked up to 60 cigarettes per day, and in the last years of his life his health steadily declined. On March 8th, 2005 he entered the hospital for a lung infection and by the end of the month he was on a ventilator suffering from renal and heart failure. On March 31st he officially announced his son Albert, as regent, and on April 6th he died.
The Constitution
Monaco’s constitution stated that Monaco is a constitutional monarchy ruled by the hereditary princes of the Grimaldi. If the reigning prince were to die without leaving a male heir, Monaco, according to the treaty, would be incorporated into France. In 2002, realizing he had a 43 year old bachelor son, Rainier amended the constitution to allow the crown to pass to his daughters should Albert not marry.
Grace, Princess of Monaco (1929-1982)
Grace was born in Philadelphia to an affluent and influential family. Her father was an Olympian and a Democratic nominee for Mayor of Philadelphia and was appointed by President Roosevelt as National Director of Physical Fitness. Her mother taught physical education at the University of Pennsylvania and coached women’s athletics at Penn.
Her Uncle, George Kelly, was a Pulitzer prize winning dramatist, screenwriter, and director and used his influence to gain Grace admission to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. Grace became one of the biggest movie stars of her generation.
In 1955 she was sent to the Cannes Film Festival and invited to appear in photos with Prince Rainier. After a year-long courtship, they were married in 1956.
Grace was not allowed to continue her acting career after her marriage. She instead devoted herself to her role as Princess, become heavily involved with the Red Cross of Monaco and the Rainbow Children Coalition.
On September 13, 1982, Kelly was driving back to Monaco after spending time at her country home. During the drive she had a stroke, lost control of her vehicle, and drove off the mountainside. She died a day later.
An article on their relationship
Prince Albert II (b. 1958)
Prince Albert is one of the wealthiest royals in the world with a net worth at more than $1B. He attended Amherst College in Massachusetts, studying political science, economics, music, and English literature, and completed his education with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science. He toured Europe in 1979 as part of the Amherst College Glee Club.
Albert competed in the bobsleigh for five consecutive Winter Olympics on behalf of Monaco, and was their flag bearer at the 1988, 1994, and 1998 Olympics. He is also a judo black belt.
He became Prince of Monaco when his father died in 2005.
Marriage:
Prior to his marriage his status as a bachelor was a hot topic of discussion. He was known to date well-known fashion models and actresses, however at age 53 had never married. It was rumored that Albert was gay, something he expressed great frustration with in the press. In 2006 he attended the opening ceremony of the Torino Olympics with South African swimmer Charlene Wittstock. They were engaged in 2010, and married in 2011.
There are rumors that Charlene tried to flee the country the day before their wedding. It is reported that the future bride, after discovering Albert may have fathered yet another child during their relationship, attempted to flee as many as three times before their wedding, however was always intercepted at the airport. It is also said she attempted to seek refuge at the South African embassy, and that officials in Monaco ended up hiding her passport so she could not leave the country.
Moreover, during their wedding, Charlene openly cried at parts, and Prince Albert was caught on camera begging her to kiss him. Honestly, she looked pretty miserable the whole time. The palace has denied all of these claims.
During their honeymoon, they stayed in separate hotels
Here's everything you ever needed to know about their wedding
Watch it
Prince Albert is passionate about the environment and an avid sportsman. Prince Albert speaks French, English, German, and Italian. He speaks English with basically no accent thanks to his American mother.
Illegitimate Children
In 2005, the day before Prince Rainier died, Albert publicly acknowledged he had fathered a son out of wedlock. In 2006, he confirmed he had also fathered a daughter. These children were barred from the line of inheritance because of a 2002 constitutional amendment requiring an heir’s parents to be married.
Alexandre (b. 2003)
Alexandre’s mother (Nicole Coste) was a flight attendant for Air France and met Prince Albert when he was a passenger on a flight. He asked for her number, the beginning of a years-long affair. The relationship ended at the insistence of Prince Rainier. Albert visited Alexandre and Nicole often, however when he refused to acknowledge Alexandre publicly, Nicole sold an interview and pictures to the media. Albert was in mourning for his father and made no public comment, but later did acknowledge paternity. Alexandre and Nicole live in France at an estate given to them by Albert.
Jazmin (b. 1992)
Jazmin’s mother, Tamara, met Albert while working as a waitress. Albert knew of Jazmin and visited her, however did not acknowledge her publicly until she was in high school to protect her identity. In 2006 the French magazine Voici published photographs of Jazmin and her mother on a visit to Monaco, outing her as Albert’s daughter. She has attended events with Albert and Charlene, and is listed as a sponsor for her father’s royal foundation.
An interview with Jazmin
Princess Charlene (b. 1978)
Born in Zimbabwe, Charlene’s family relocated to South Africa in 1989. She represented South Africa at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, finished fifth in the 4x100 meter relay.
Albert and Charlene met at the Mare Nostrum swimming competition in Monaco in 2000, however were not seen together until 2006.
Charlene converted to Roman Catholicism for her wedding, and has learned French and Monegasque after her move to Monaco. She is an ambassador for the Special Olympics, patron of the South African Red Cross, and is passionate about sport.
In recent news, she completed “the crossing” water bike challenge, a 180 kilometer water bike race for charity.
An interview with Charlene and Albert on the 1st birthday of their twins
Albert and Charlene have 2 children:
Hereditary Prince Jacques *twin* (b. 2014)
Princess Gabriella *twin* (b. 2014)
Gabriella was born 2 minutes before her brother, however because of the constitution her brother will inherit the throne. They are super sweet together and you see them at events often.
Princess Caroline of Hanover (b. 1957)
Caroline is the eldest child of Rainier and Grace Kelly, however because of the constitution her brother, Albert, sits on the throne of Monaco. She served as de facto first lady of Monaco until the marriage of Albert and Charlene.
Until the birth of her niece and nephew she was heir presumptive to the throne, although she had only held that title since 2005 after the change of the constitution to include female heirs.
Caroline received her French baccalaureat in 1974, and received a degree in Philosophy from Sorbonne University. She is fluent in French, English, Spanish, German, and Italian. Her hobbies include horseback riding, swimming, and skiing.
Marriages:

• Marriage 1: Philippe Junot

Married Phillippe, a Parisian banker, in 1978. The couple divorced in 1980 with no children.

• Marriage 2: Stefano Casiraghi

Married Stefano in 1983, the sportsman heir to an Italian industrial fortune. The two had to marry in a civil ceremony rather than a religious ceremony because Caroline, a Catholic, was divorced. Caroline was 3 months pregnant at the time of their wedding.
They have three children:

1. Andrea Casiraghi (1984)

• Married to Tatiana Santo Domingo and has 3 children

1. Charlotte Casiraghi (1986)

• Married to French producer Dimitri Rassam and has two children

1. Pierre Casiraghi (b. 1987)

• Married to Beatrice Borromeo and has 2 children

Note: The Casiraghi’s are all very beautiful and very fashionable but I don’t want to go much into them here because they are so far down the line of succession. They’re fun to follow for their fashion if you have the time to check them out.

• Marriage 3: Prince Ernst August of Hanover

Married Ernst August, a Prince, in 1999. They have one daughter, Princess Alexandra.
Caroline is thus a Princess twice-over, through her family and through her husband. She and Ernst August have been separated since 2009 however are still legally married, thus she retains the title of Princess Caroline of Hanover.
Read about all of her weddings here
See her speaking in English around 12:00 here
Princess Stephanie (b. 1965)
Stephanie was in the vehicle with her mother when Grace died. She suffered a fracture of the neck.
She has studied classical dance and piano, and competed in gymnastics and horse riding. She interned at Christian Dior and debuted as a model in 1984. She has a swimwear and perfume line, and owns cafes and stores in both Monaco and Barcelona. She also has sold more than 2 million copies of her song, Ouragan, and sold 1.5M copies of her album Besoin. She recorded “In the Closet” with Michael Jackson, however is listed as “mystery girl” in the credits.
Marriages/Relationships:

• Marriage 1: Daniel Ducruet

Stephanie married her former body guard, Daniel Ducruet, in 1995. When Rainier learned of their relationship Daniel was not only still his employee, but had a pregnant girlfriend too. Stephanie gave birth to their two children “out of wedlock” because Rainier refused to grant permission for them to marry, however eventually relented. The two divorced a year later after Ducruet was photographed naked with a stripper.
Read more
They have two children:

1. Louis (b. 1992)

• Married Marie Chevallier in 2019

1. Pauline (b. 1994)

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• Relationship 2: Jean Raymond Gottlieb

Stephanie and Jean never married, however have a child together. He was Rainier’s Head of Security. She did not identify him on the birth certificate and it was not confirmed that he was Camille’s father until she confirmed it herself on her Instagram.
More about Jean
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• Marriage 3: Franco Knie

Stephanie met elephant trainer (yeah, you read that right) when she presented him with the award for “best animal tamer” at the Monaco Circus Festival in 1997. Franco, a decade older than Stephanie, was married with two children at the time. Franco left his family for Stephanie, moving her and her three children into his circus caravan in Zurich. Marrying in 2001, their relationship lasted 18 months until their divorce.
An interview with Stephanie in English in 1990
Why is he a Prince and not a King?
From vogue:
It goes back deep into the history of Monaco. Monaco has always been a tiny nation, and, for protection, allied itself with (or, at some points, was flat-out annexed by) big powerful countries, with big powerful rulers—aka kingdoms, or, a nation ruled by a king or queen. So Monaco’s rulers styled themselves as prince and princess. That, by definition, made the nation a principality, or one ruled by prince or princess.
Regardless, Albert actually plays a bigger role in the day to day operations of the country than most of his European peers. Legislative power is divided between the Prince who initiates the laws, and the National Council who votes on them. Executive power is retained by the Prince, and he has full judiciary powers.
Jewels
See their tiara collection
I think the Ocean Tiara, gifted to Charlene for her wedding, is particularly interesting. You either love it or you hate it.
The Grimaldi Curse
What do you think?

Out of boredom I was scrolling through my photos and remembered a trip I took with my family to Barcelona and then remembered a story I thought I should share with you guys.
One night, my father and I were leaving a casino. Both us were tipsy and were pretty pissed since we lost a good amount of money. It was a Friday night and we were in a pretty random area. Then all of a sudden I hear a group of drunks shouting “What do you think of Tottenham?”. I thought I misheard since I was pretty tipsy then I hear this other group at the other side of the square shouting “Shit!”. And then saying “What do you think of shit?” “Tottenham!” “Thank you” “That’s alright” then everyone started jumping around and singing “We hate Tottenham we hate Tottenham we hate Tottenham we hate Tottenham!” My father and I couldn’t believe what we were hearing and eventually found ourselves joining in singing and jumping with them from the opposite side of the square!
I’m not from the UK so I don’t know if this is usually common in the British bar scene or whatever but it was so funny and random for me, especially since it was like 2 am and since we were in the middle of Barcelona. I wasn’t even pissed anymore that night. It was definitely a night to remember for me and thought it was a nice story to share in this crappy period of no football. Anyways, thank you and fuck Tottenham!

Hi all,
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My fiancé and I are currently booked on the seven night European sailing on Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas (April 19, 2020) as a honeymoon cruise (with a fully refundable deposit). I just got an email from Carnival with an incredible promo and now I'm second guessing our original itinerary -- we'd love to hear your thoughts!
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	Royal Caribbean Jewel of the Seas	Carnival Victory
Day 1	Depart Barcelona	Depart Barcelona
Day 2	Nice, France	At Sea
Day 3	Portofino, Italy	Florence/Pisa, Italy
Day 4	Florence/Pisa, Italy	Rome, Italy
Day 5	Rome, Italy	Naples, Italy
Day 6	Naples, Italy	Sicily, Italy
Day 7	At Sea	At Sea
Day 8	Return Barcelona	Marseille, France
Day 9	N/A	Palma de Mallorca, Spain
Day 10	N/A	Return Barcelona
Fare	$1729.84	$1712.00
OBC	$225	$500
Extra Perk	N/A	Free drinks while playing in casino

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The new sailing we're looking at is a nine night European sailing on the Carnival Radiance (May 21, 2020). To summarize, both itineraries include stops at Florence/Pisa, Rome, and Naples. The Royal Caribbean sailing also visits Nice and Portofino plus has one day at sea while the Carnival Victory also stops in Sicily, Marseille, and Palma de Mallorca plus has two days at sea. The fares are within $12 of each other (total, not per person or per night). The Royal Caribbean sailing has a $225 OBC while the Carnival sailing has a $500 OBC plus free drinks while in the casino (OBC and drinks are part of the promo email I received from the players club).
For us, the pros of saying on the Royal Carnival sailing include sailing closer to our wedding (~3 weeks after the wedding) and having the time to spend a few days in Barcelona before embarking. Pros of the Carnival ship include an extra $275 in OBC, free drinks while playing in the casino, getting an extra day in port and an extra sea day, and sailing on a recently refurbished ship.
I posted this on Cruise Critic's RCCL and Carnival message boards -- the answers I got were pretty one-sided (leaning in favor of whichever line's forum I posted in). So I'm posting here, too, to see what y'all have to think.
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Thanks in advance!

For the gameplay of FIFA 20. It is people that are playing the game that ruin it. It’s not the games fault. It’s the people that play the negative Mouriño style that destroy it (imo it is because they are incapable of manual defending so they have to defend this way bc learning is too hard lol). The only gameplay issues I see are headers being non existent, passes not going to correct players at times, and near post being way too effective. Oh and btw what are they gonna do take away custom tactics? Make AI defenders completely useless? That wouldn’t just affect the negative sit back players, it would effect the people that play press too. Bc even if you are press player you have to rely on AI controlled defenders at times.
If you are one of the ones that defends people that play 4231 and sit back you are an idiot and probably hypocrite. My solution when I come against these players is to hold possession and swing it back and forth till I find an obvious scoring opportunity. Apparently that is considered TOXIC and that the 4231 players are just doing what works for them (or playing “smart”). That holding up play is toxic. Mannnn wtf. First of all, Many of them don’t play defense at all. It doesn’t take any damn skill to stand a player in front of a striker and wait. These people make the game boring, they are the reason the gameplay is boring and repetitive and why no one enjoys playing anymore (yet they also complain about it). You can easily beat them but the goals you would score are just boring. If they want to play “smart” and boring asf on defence I’m going to do the same shit to them on offense. It is not TOXIC. I am literally doing what they are doing on defense but on offense you morons. I sit there and stand my player and waste their time just like they are doing to me. Also I’m playing SmARt bc holding the possession limits the amount of times that they can counter attack which over the course time you are bound to score from a 3v3 or 3v4 without being that good at the game. So wtf is wrong with me using scummy tactics on attack if you do it on defence. And if you really think about it. YALL fucking praise Barcelona when they do the exact same shit irl (atleast a few years ago they did I don’t watch much anymore). All they did was pass around the back in the midfield bc everyone dropped back in fear of MSN. You are a fucking hypocrite if you think holding possession is toxic and you don’t even press in your own damn half. And most of y’all are hypocrites bc when it comes down to playing a game y’all are so afraid of losing y’all do it too so wtf. I can only understand if you are like up by 2 goals or something
*also just an added note if you say that it is a game not real life. GAMES should have a skill gap and the 4231 bs literally destroys it and allows a trash player be able to compete with some one way better then them with no learning curve. Games should have a skill gap and not have one form of playing the game be so dominant.
All we ever wanted just a few FIFAs ago was the ability to get high rated squads without putting money into the game. Now that we have them all I hear is that you want a reason to play with worse/other players (from nepenthez video) What? Why? Shouldn’t you just try out different players bc Idk YOU want to. Because the game allows you to play with your favorite players. It’s not all about winning if you don’t want it to be. Why tf do you want an incentive to play with a player you don’t care for in the first place. Although I do agree milestones is a good way to do (giving incentives) that and that section needs additions. Like if you get 100 goals with a player you can increase his shooting by 1 or some ish like that
As for the game only attracting sweats nowadays. I feel that every game is getting sweatier since the emergence of esports and cash tournaments like when fornite was a big deal. So the increase in sweaty try hard players abusing the game mechanics was bound to happen anyway. You come across sweats in any sports game not just FIFA.
As for division rivals being sweaty. The reason for it being sweaty is the rewards YALL asked for. I remember years ago YALL asked for a reason to play divisions bc the rewards were not worth it. Now you have a reason play for decent rewards and you still complain. I don’t see why you are mad about 90+ players being there. And for the people that say they are bad rewards bc you can easily have better players on your team for 30k. WTF,THAT IS WHAT IS GREAT. Back in the old FIFAs we would be happy with a gold squad and few informs. The only way i see EA can make those rewards seem more valuable is to make it so that it is not easy to make a mega team next year. Which would be reverting back to the old FIFAs difficulty to make a team able to compete (against Pay to play players). That’s was impossible back in the day. Now it’s honestly not. You can beat players with 99 rated cards. BTW the reason you could run with a silver squad back in the day IS BC NOBODY HAD SHIT. PLEASE go watch the opponents you came up against in those FIFA 16 videos. If the revert were to happen it would repel casual players and many grinders.
Also I heard Nepenthez say that objectives should be removed from division rivals. This is coming from the SAME guy that asked for them in the first place. If those objectives were not there he would be asking for something to play for without a doubt. That if there isn’t a reward for playing division rivals he would not play. Not to mention he also asks for a reason to play with different players (which objectives accomplishes) I wouldn’t have tried out Vardy if the objectives were not out.
Also the game didn’t need the ultimate team of the season pack. That’s just players wanting to pack one of the 97+ players. You want one of those players just handed to you let’s just be honest here. Those players are the chase. Those players are the reason you should continue to play. You want to get enough coins to obtain them. I feel like that is the POV that EA sees it from anyways. Which honestly is not that horrendous. Because it gives you a reason to play the game. Which is what y’all keep asking for some damn reason. Also I mean it is a business so keeping those 99s out of reach is what EA will continue to do. And it fucking makes sense. Let me put it in simple terms you might understand. People that put hard earned money into the game deserve the top tier players. They are spending REAL money (and it’s still a gamble when they do it highkey). Also not everyone needs to get those players. That’s like saying everyone deserves a lambo bc everyone works. Like nooooo that is not how it should work bc then the people that actually pay with hard earned money will feel like they got bullshited out of what they paid for. Again it is a business and it makes sense. And y’all know y’all would be complaining if you were running into the same tots players every game if y’all did have the ability to get them. No one is gonna play ocampos if Messi is obtainable. Lowkey the whole idea of y’all wanting the best possible players seems like some communist type stuff to me. Y’all all want the same stuff as the people that put money into the game and support Ultimate team financially when y’all don’t want to help. As I probably said before you are not entitled to it. Some people just deserve it more. Also I don’t put money into the game and I sure as well know my 190 team can compete against bought teams
The FIFA community will find a way to complain no matter what and it’s starting to piss me off. It’s complaint after complaint and then when they get what they want they complain about that. I hate that this community only knows bitching and moaning.
(This sections is in regards of how people quit rivals when they don’t get their objectives done this section may not be important) I don’t knock youtubers grind they are great and really helpful. I grew up watching them. But a lot of the reasons the game is the way it is due to them. Youtubers teach people how to use 4231 to cover for how bad they are. They teach people to quit out of games early when things get to tough to save time. Honestly A lot of players wouldn’t know to do that if they had to think for themselves, they just follow what YouTubers tell them to. (Btw some people are just gonna quit anyway bc that’s just how they are and we have all done it in rage when we get unlucky but sometimes rebound goals happen it’s whatever)
Another thing, for people that say this game is a cash grab. WHAT IN THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU. You can literally have a team full of great high rated players with a week or 2 of work. Showcased by nepenthez in his new rtg series. All you have to do is be smart and don’t mess with the obviously bad SBCs. Like if you choose to waste your coins on horrible SBCs that is your fault wtf. Y’all clearly don’t know how it was in FIFA before where it was just about impossible to build a good end game team at the end of the year if you didn’t trade or were really good at the game. Even then, I would be in the top divisions with a below average team in today’s standards in the final months in FIFA.
Most of the SBCs are set up as a gamble. It’s like trying you luck at a casino. Just don’t do it if you are not prepared to lose those coins. Since when was the purpose of FIFA to just sit in those damn menus for hours on end. Play the game. It should be about the gameplay but the community of players that play it ruined it.
The community itself ruined this game. It really wasn’t that bad. With all the negative players and the ones dropping divisions in division rivals. We made it a mess not EA. Btw I’m pretty sure we asked for a lower barrier of entry for fut champs which is letting this happen. It used to be only if you were in a top division if my memory is correct.
My problems with the game and solutions 1. The drag back is way to effective and any player can do it clean. I think the solution is to make it so that you have to be slowed all the way down in order to do it and the overall the execution should be a tad bit slower since it honestly is difficult to pull off (irl) 2. I think for the objectives they just need to make them a bit easier to achieve. So don’t make it so that you have do complete them in rivals WINS. Make it so that you can work for them even during a loss so that people don’t quit as much. 3. Obviously just bring occasional headers back lol tall physical strikers lost a lot of value because what they should be used for isn’t relevant in the game anymore. 4. The draft should include every player included the ones we missed out on. It shouldn’t pull out the same players all the time. 5. As for the 4231 bs, I think it’s a hard fix. I think one thing that could help is increasing the intelligence of attackers to find the open spots more consistently. Also I don’t think the AI that presses the attacker should be that good. 6. As for long shots not being effective I actually don’t have many issues with them. I score them ever one in a while and they arnt that hard. I think the real issue y’all might be having is the outrageous autoblocks which yeah need a nerf. Players blocking shots not coming at them is a problem.
Oh and if you argue that the game should not have allowed people to use the 4231 bs in the first place bc it was there to abuse. This community chooses to abuse it. You are not being held at gunpoint being forced to use it. Y’all just want to win at all cost then complain that you can’t have a casual gane of fut anymore. Also let’s be honest, for some of y’all the definition of casual=easy. Y’all just want to win without effort. Because as soon as you go down you will start sweating.
There is probably more problems I can add and fixes but I honestly believe no one will read this so I’m over it. Lol also I was gonna look over what I wrote again but I can’t be bothered to. Just to sum it all up I hate the player base of this game bc all they do is complain about stuff get what they want then complain about that. There are obvious problems with the gameplay this FIFA but I feel like a lot of the time is spent complaining on other stuff. Also a lot of the player base complains about the 4231 but they are they same people that use it (and stick to it even against something like a 433) so wtf. Y’all are sitting there with your high rated competitive squads (without spending a dime) and still want EA to give you more. Like bruh just think about it. Not everyone should have the best tots because then you would just come up against the same top tier players every game. Man do I love to ramble on lol byeeeee

[5 min read] 1st time trying to write a comprehensive bio from all I've read! Enjoy!
One of the most renowned and well known composers of classical guitar is Francisco Tárrega, a Spanish composer and classical guitarist in the romantic period. He is considered as one of the fathers of classical guitar.
Tárrega was born on 21st November 1852 in Villarreal, Castellon, Spain.
His father, Francisco Tárrega Tirado, was a classical guitarist. He played various styles including flamenco. He worked as a watchman at a convent. His mother, Antonia Eixea Broch. Some sources state that both his parents worked as housekeepers.
During childhood, Tárrega liked to run around a lot, and later on he would run away from home many times. When his father was away working, Tárrega would take his father’s guitar and attempt to make beautiful sounds he heard. Francisco’s nickname as a child was “Quiquet”. As a child, he ran away from home (possibly running away from the nanny) and accidentally fell into an irrigation canal, injuring his eyes. This was very unfortunate as he partially lost his eyesight due to infection. Fearing that Francisco will lose his sight completely, his father moved his family to Castellón de la Plana to attend music lessons under the guidance of Manuel González and Eugeni Ruiz who were both blind. His father must have thought: If he ever lost his eyesight, he would still be able to play guitar and earn a living because he will learn from these two teachers that are blind.
Tárrega not only learnt to play the guitar, he was also very accomplished in piano at an early age (read on for explanation). In 1862, concert guitarist Julian Arcas, on tour in Castellón, heard young Francisco play and was very enamoured by him. Julian advised Tárrega’s father to allow Francisco to come to Barcelona to study with him for higher musical education. Tárrega’s father agreed, but insisted that he take piano lessons as well. His father was well aware that the guitar, as a solo instrument, was in decline, coming increasingly to be viewed as an instrument to accompany singers, while the piano was all the rage throughout Europe.
10-year-old Tárrega went with Julian Arcas to study in Barcelona. However, lessons stopped shortly after beginning, as Arcas left for another concert tour abroad. Tárrega stayed at a relative’s place before running away. He tried to start a music career on his own by playing in coffee houses and restaurants in Barcelona. At only 10 years old! He also joined a group of young musicians, and played at pubs and cafeterias to earn some money instead of attending a music school. His father was furious and went to Barcelona to bring him home.
In 1865, 3 years later, Tárrega ran away again! He ran away to Valencia, where he joined a group of gypsies. His father sought him and brought him back, but once again he ran back to Valencia. Though he kept running away, Tárrega was proficient at playing both guitar and piano by his teenage years.
His family was in a bad financial state, thus for a time, he played with other musicians at local engagements to earn money. He eventually returned home to help his family. He performed at a number of concerts at different villages before being accepted as a pianist at Burriana’s Casino. He alternated between guitar and piano during those years.
In 1874, at 22 years old, Tárrega was sponsored by Antonio Canesa, a wealthy merchant, to enrol at the Spanish Music Conservatory, Madrid. Before enrolling at the conservatory, Tárrega acquired an extraordinary loud and resonate guitar, made by the Seville luthier Antonio de Torres. The guitar’s sonic output was so brilliant that it strongly inspired Tárrega in his music. The Torres design of guitar, became a universal standard in the years to come, and established the spring-board for its subsequent acceptance by the listening public and academia alike, as an instrument competitive with the major instruments of the era.
Tárrega’s student years were tough, as the guitar had lost its former glory when compared to the piano. Since Tárrega was primarily a guitar specialist, he was not allowed to play at concerts. At the conservatory, He received a thorough instruction in theory of music, harmony, the piano, and composition. Tárrega studied composition under Emilio Arrieta.
When Arrieta heard Tárrega’s great quality perform in a guitar concert, Arrieta convinced Tárrega to pursue a career in the guitar rather than the piano. By the late 1870’s, Tárrega worked as a music and guitar teacher, where he taught Daniel Fortea, Emilio Pujol and Miguel Llobet, amongst other students, while also performing at concerts regularly.
In 1876, Tárrega began teaching and giving regular guitar concerts. He typically received much acclaim for his playing and began traveling to other areas of Spain to perform. By this time, he was composing his first works for guitar, which he played in addition to works of other composers.
In 1880, Luis de Soria, a guitarist who could not play at a concert due to illness, requested for his friend Tárrega to stand in for him at his concert in Novelda, Alicante, Spain. After the concert, an important townsman asked Tárrega to come listen to his daughter, Maria José Rizo (who was also a guitarist). Romance bloomed between the two musicians.
Concert tours in 1880 to Paris and London followed, where he was hailed as the "Sarasate (Pablo de Sarasate (1844-1908) a famous Spanish violinist) of the guitar".
In 1881, Tárrega performed at Lyon’s Opera Theatre followed by the Paris Odeon, in dedication to Pedro Calderón de la. He also played in London – full of successful performances, but he completely disliked the weather and the language. After his concert, some people noticed that Tárrega was in low spirits. There is a legend that after one of his performances, he was asked by admirers what made him sad and if he missed his family. This prompted him to pen Lágrima (circa 1889), one of his most memorable works, as a way to demonstrate his sadness at the time.
After playing in London he came back to Novelda for his wedding. On Christmas 1882, Tárrega married María José Rizo. Tárrega was 30.
To enlarge his repertory, Tárrega used his extensive knowledge of piano music, to transcribe piano works by Beethoven, Chopin, Louis Moreau Gottshcalk (an American pianist), Sigismond Thalberg (A Swiss pianist), Mendelssohn and others.
Tárrega and his wife moved to Madrid, earning a living by teaching privately and playing concerts. But after the death of their infant daughter in winter, Maria Josefa, they settled permanently in Barcelona in 1885. Among his friends in Barcelona were Isaac Albéniz, Enrique Granados, Joaquín Turina and Pablo Casals.
Francisco Tárrega and María José Rizo had three more children: Paquito (Francisco), Marieta and Concepción.
On a concert tour in Valencia, Tárrega met a wealthy widow, Conxa Martinez, who became a valuable patron to him. She allowed him and his family the use of a house in Barcelona, where he would write the bulk of his most popular works. A visit to Granada with Martinez, spawned Francisco Tárrega's famous Recuerdos de la Alhambra solo guitar composition, which he wrote after experiencing the 14th century Moor-built palace in Andalucia: Alhambra.
From the late 1880s to 1903, Tárrega continued composing, but limited his concerts to Spain. In 1900, Tárrega visited Algiers, where he heard a repetitive rhythm played on an Arabian drum. The following morning he composed Danza Mora based on that rhythm, a famous solo guitar piece.
Breaking with his past technique, Tárrega cut his fingernails in 1902, the resulting effect being a more mellow tone which was associated with guitarists of the Tárrega school of guitar playing. His concert playing career continued with much success, including a tour of Italy where he played in Rome, Naples and Milan.
In 1902, he also composed Gran Vals, which is used now used as a popular Nokia ringtone, albeit a small part only.
In January 1906, Age 54, Tárrega was at the height of his fame. However he became afflicted with paralysis on his right side (stroke), and though he would eventually return to the concert stage, he never completely recovered. He finished his last work, Oremus, on December 2, 1909. He died in Barcelona 13 days later, at the age of 57.
Francisco Tárrega was undoubtedly a conservative musician, in both style and performance, with strong similarities to the latter half of the 19th century. An absolute authority on the guitar, he is widely accepted as the one who built the foundation of classical guitar today. His moniker of “father of classical guitar” is, therefore, rightful in every way as Tárrega devoted his life to his art and to the uplifting of the guitar as a venerable musical instrument in the 20th century. There have been many piano and violin masters who had followed trends of the 19th century but Tárrega himself was one who went against the tide, despite odds stacked against him, and persevered with the guitar.
Tárrega is regarded as having laid the foundations for the 20th century's wide-spread acceptance of the guitar as a concert-recital instrument. The Maestro himself preferred small intimate performances, which particularly suited the lower-volume generated by his lack of fingernails. He composed in a variety of styles and forms including Valses, mazurkas, preludes, tangos.
However, with 78 original works, and 120 transcriptions he clearly appreciated the work of other composers, and used their works to further the reputations and esteem of his chosen instrument, as well as his own as a performer. Through his pupil Miguel Llobet, Tárrega passed on the traditions of the instrument to that other notable Maestro of the guitar, a pupil of Llobet, Andres Segovia. Tárrega's list of works include Sherzo's, preludes, estudios, danzas, fantasias, minuets, mazurkas, tangos and more.

Seeing as the NY underground poker posts have been so popular, I figure I can give a bit of a different perspective on the underground scene of the mid 2000s. The Boston scene wasn't nearly as big as the NY scene, but there were still some big games and wild characters involved. I started off in small college games, so if you're only interested in the big mob associated games and stuff like that, this first part will probably bore you. I'm not going to bother changing names in the story. If you knew me from that time, it'll be obvious pretty early on who I am.
Back in 2005 I headed out from California to Boston for college. I'm still not sure why I was so set on going to school in Boston over the beautiful California schools that I had been accepted to, but there I was. Facebook was a really new thing at the time, and you needed a college email address to sign up. As soon as I got my college email in about April, I signed up for Facebook and added every cute girl who was living in the same dorm as me. I also signed up for a bunch of Facebook groups, several about poker games around the campus.
The Moneymaker effect was in full swing at this point, and I had an edge. My best friend at the time's dad had taught us poker when we were 14 or so. We got started playing mixed games, I loved 7 stud variants, but over time we transitioned to NLH. When I left for college I had been a regular in a $0.50/1 NLH game at a house in a rich area that played pretty big, and I had been winning regularly. Between that game and playing online, I had turned $200 I had made from my after school job into a $1500 bankroll.
So I arrive in Boston in August and start going to various games. One was in a nook in the school library, a weekly $50 tournament with no rake, unlimited rebuys and insane players. One was in a frat house with a bunch of drunk bros. Then I found Stevo's game. I think Stevo was a senior at that point, he lived in off campus housing, and he had a professional quality poker table in a side room of his apartment. Besides the nice table and personalized "Stevo's Card Room" chips, what set the game apart for me was that it was the first private game I had played in with a dealer, Erik.
I introduced myself to the other players by my real name, but as became my trademark, people knew me better by my card protector. Bubbles She came from a cake my friends had gotten me for my 17th birthday as a joke, and since her base was perfect for sitting on cards, she became my card protector. I knew some of the guys in the Boston scene for 3 years, and many never knew my real name, they simply knew me as Bubbles.
Stevo's was $1/2 NLH with 75% stack match if I remember correctly. So if the big stack on the table had $1600, you could buy in $1200. The game played pretty deep, and with the same players most nights. Many of them had been playing together for a couple of years, so they knew each other well. The first night I went, me and this other guy Chris were the only freshmen there. It turned out we lived 1 floor apart in our dorm, and we became fast friends.
I bought in for the $300 I had brought with me (lolbankroll) and played my normal, pretty tight style. There were a few crazy bluffers on the table, but one guy Phil really stood out for how often he'd try to steal pots. I played some small pots and was up to around $400 when I looked down at AA. Phil raised $8 from EP, I 3b from late position up to $25 and Phil called. The flop came unsuited low cards and Phil bet $30, I raised to $90 and Phil called. The turn came an 8s which brought a flush draw and Phil checked, I shoved and Phil went into the tank. He flipped up KJss and said he thought I had TT or 99 and so he had lots of outs with his 2 overs and flush draw. He asked me if I wanted him to call and I said absolutely. He eventually called and nailed his flush on the river. I headed to the nearest ATM and bought back into the game. I eventually left with about $500 for a $100 loss on the night, but I was hooked. The action was crazy, I had gotten it in great for an $800 pot and lost, and still only lost $100? I was going to make so much money!
The game ran twice a week, and I was always there. I still played in some random other games, but Stevo's was my main hangout. I became pretty good friends with some of the guys, including Stevo and Chris. Chris and I would regularly skip classes to play on Full Tilt all day. Often on Sundays about 5 of us would go to Stevo's place and grind Party Poker, especially when they had their monthly Party Millions tournament. One Sunday I was playing in a huge $50 online tourney on Party, and ended up going all the way and winning it for $22k. Suddenly I had a great big bankroll! I was consistently winning at Stevo's game, and I had picked up a crazy tell on Phil, the big bluffer. When I left Boston for good 3 years later, I'd finally explain to Phil how I had made so much money off of him, picking off so many of his bluffs he'd made against me. Whenever Phil would make a big bluff with nothing, he'd ask his bet as a question. "300?" He'd say, as if asking "is 300 enough to buy this pot?". I made thousands off of this tell.
As time went on, I wanted more than just 2 nights a week of poker at Stevo's and the crappy other games around campus. Phil had mentioned that they would sometimes go to a game in Chinatown, so one day I asked if he'd take me along.
The Chinatown game ran in an apartment unit above, what else, a Chinese restaurant. It was run by a guy named Jay, who seemed pretty nice, but had a temper at times, and people said was connected to the Triad. Apparently Jay knew the game would eventually get broken up by the cops, but he figured he'd get a few years in prison, but the $500k he planned on making from the game before then would be worth it.
The Chinatown game had 5 tables if I remember correctly. They'd have a tournament at 6pm on most nights, and then a cash game would start around 7 from the people busting the tourney as well as others who came just for cash. At first you could just walk in as long as someone went and introduced you to Jay and vouched for you. They had big screen TVs all over the walls, constantly playing High Stakes Poker, they had food delivered in for the players, fridges full of beer and soft drinks, it was great. Eventually the game would get robbed (although some claimed they thought it was a setup by Jay), and a steel door with an electronic bolt and a security camera would be added.
The game itself was a $1/3nl game with $500 max buyin. It played extremely loose, and I started coming by nearly every night. The players were a mix from all walks of life. Since it was an underground room, there was no age restriction, so some rich high school kids were even in the games. There were tons of college students of course. The Harvard kids always thought they were hot shit, but they always seemed to want to be the table bullies, and I'd pick off their bluffs. The MIT kids were another story, they were nothing short of geniuses, and I tried to stay out of their way usually.
I got a reputation for hitting and running the game, because my goal was to make $1000 and then quit for the night. Often when I'd quit early, me, Jay and some of the others guys would play board games for cash or weird random poker variants. I was making a killing in this game. I went out and bought myself a BMW, I was taking girls from the dorms out to $100 a plate dinners, I thought I was the man. It was 2nd semester, early 2006, and I was also failing out of school. I managed to scrape by first semester with a 2.5, already putting me on probation for my academic scholarship, but I didn't care. I called my mom and told her I was going to make more money than her in 2006.
2nd semester, Chris and I had signed up for many of the same classes with the idea that we'd force each other to go, but instead we enabled each other to skip. One Wednesday morning we were supposed to be going to class, and I don't remember who suggested it, but we ended up instead driving up to Montreal for a 5 day weekend. I got a speeding ticket going 95 MPH through Vermont on the way there, Chris got a ticket driving back through Vermont on the way home, but overall it was a great trip. We played some poker at the casino up there, and I made a few hundred bucks which we blew at the bars and clubs.
A few months after the robbery, the Chinatown game got raided by Boston Vice Squad. Apparently having regular cops there didn't help us out any, they had their money taken along with anyone else there. Jay was arrested, but all of the dealers and players were let go after a bit of harassment. Luckily for me, despite being there about 6 nights a week, I wasn't there for the robbery or the bust. However, unluckily my favorite game and my cash cow was gone.
Now I was back to just 2 days a week at Stevo's. I had met a guy named Rich through the Chinatown game, he was often a dealer there but would also play sometimes. Rich hit me up one day and asked if I was looking for another regular game. I told him I was, and got an invite to a game called The Loft. The Loft was a game outside of Boston in Chelsea. It was in an upscale loft and run by a guy named Moon. Moon was a total character. He was probably around 30, had been an engineer for GE, but quit because he rejected the idea of paying taxes. Moon was a conspiracy nut, and as we became friends he'd tell me all kinds of crazy theories, often involving Jews. As a Jew myself, I told him I was sure upset that all of these fun Jewish conspiracies were happening without me!
The Loft was a good game, but not as juicy as the Chinatown game. There were 2 tables, but usually just 1 ran, and it was often the same people every day. Many of them sucked at poker, so I was still making a bunch of money, but some of the shine had worn off. I completely stopped going to classes around this time, but was still living in the dorms and joined a fraternity. This frat was famous for crazy parties, and we'd sell cups for $5 at the door as admission. Eventually a party got busted up by the cops, and the frat president and a few other guys got arrested for selling alcohol to minors. The mayor of Boston went on TV and made an example out of us, calling us the negative Animal House version of a fraternity and calling for harsher regulations for serving alcohol to minors. The national fraternity revoked our charter, and that was the end of that.
The school year was coming to a close, and I was supposed to go home for the summer. I was done at the university, and didn't really know what I was going to do the next year. I drove the BMW all the way home to California and then went with a bunch of friends to Europe for the World Cup. We spent 5 weeks there, went to the 3 US games, and had a great time. I played some PLO in Barcelona despite not really knowing how to play (that was the only game they had there at the time), and I won $1200 by playing no hands for hours until I hit a full house, then getting paid off by the maniac players. When we stopped in Paris I played at the Aviation Club, the swanky poker club a few blocks from the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Elysees. They told me I couldn't come in wearing tennis shoes, so I went across the street and bought $200 loafers at Lacoste, then proceeded to win $5000 over the course of a crazy 24 hour session. My total expenses for the trip were $5500, and I had made $6200 in poker during the trip, life was amazing!
I ended up deciding to sign up for a program where you spend a year in Israel, get some college credits and volunteer. I ended up doing more drinking and partying than volunteering and studying, and got kicked out of the program halfway through.
I came back to California and went to community college for the semester, before deciding I missed the grind and that I was going to move back to Boston for the 2007-2008 school year and go to community college there (yeah right) but mostly get back to the underground poker grind. I had just turned 20, had about $80k and the BMW, and I was ready to jump back in. I talked to Rich, the guy who had gotten me into the Loft game, and he was still dealing poker around town and was looking for a roommate. I told him I was driving out to Boston the next week from California, and that he should find a 2 bedroom for us near campus. Little did I know, Rich was not to be trusted, and I was in for a shitshow of a year...
Part 2: https://www.reddit.com/pokecomments/bfvdp3/inside_boston_underground_poker_part_2/?

Hi all,
This is my first post on this subreddit. I apologise if it is very long, I wanted to try and include all the facts. I am a huge fan of Unresolved Mysteries and I hope to leave more posts in the future. I wanted to start with this one because I find cruise disappearances very interesting and I couldn't find anything on this case. Do you think it is a straight forward accidental overboard or could it have been a murder? Let me know your thoughts and also any general feedback you have. For more info see links below
Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_George_Smith
News Articles: https://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/05/nyregion/bride-recounts-disappearance-of-husband-during-cruise.html https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fbi-closes-probe-into-vanished-cruise-ship-honeymoone
Premise: George Alan Smith IV was a 26 year old Connecticut man who went missing under mysterious circumstances while on a 12-day cruise with his new bride, Jennifer Hagel Smith. Although it is assumed he went overboard at some point during the early morning hours of July 5th 2005, how that happened remains a mystery.
Background: George Smith came from the upper-crust Connecticut town of Cos Cob, near Greenwich. His family owns a popular liquor store there, and he was the store's General Manager. He had been married to his wife, Jennifer, for 10 days. She was a teacher, who was to begin a new job teaching third-graders upon their return. The newlyweds were honeymooning on a Royal Caribbean International cruise of the Mediterranean, which departed from Barcelona on Wednesday 29th June 2005 and was due to stop in Greece, France, Turkey and Italy, among other locations. The cruise ship the couple were staying on was the MS Brilliance of the Seas and they had booked Stateroom 9062, a cabin with a balcony situated on Deck 9. By all accounts, George and Jennifer appeared to be having a wonderful time those first few days of their honeymoon. Photographs show them embracing by the pool and on the second night, after a day spent exploring Villefranche-sur-Mer in France, the Smiths’ decided to have a get-together in their room, the noise of which kept their neighbour awake until almost 3:30am. The next morning this neighbour reported the incident to the guest-relations desk and asked what could be done. If it happened again, he was told, call the desk, and they would handle it.
The Disappearance: On Monday 4th July 2005, the Smiths were half-way through their cruise and had spent the afternoon exploring Mykonos, a popular Greek island. Jennifer had reported that they had been on a high as they returned to the ship that evening, because they had spotted the actress Tara Reid, who was filming her show "Taradice" on the island. The couple had planned a romantic dinner on the ship for that night, which seemingly occurred without incident. After dinner they spent some time at the casino and all reports said they were in good spirits and seemed to be acting normally, albeit a little rowdy. As is common on most cruises, the Smiths had become friendly acquaintances with a number of other guests on the ship, mostly other couples, but also a 20-year old Californian student named Josh Askin and another group of four boisterous young Russian-American men. The four were traveling with relatives; their group, numbering eight people in all, consisted of two families, both with the surname Rozenberg. One family hailed from South Florida and the second are believed to be from Brighton Beach, a Russian section of Brooklyn. Between them the families had three sons aboard, all said to be in their teens or early 20s: Jeffrey, Zachary, and Greg. Also in the group was a 20-year-old named Rostislav “Rusty” Kofman.
Following some time spent at the casino, the Smiths met up with another newlywed couple who they had befriended and who had gotten married on the same day in June as the Smiths had. They then headed to the on-board disco, where the Smiths and their friends were joined by Josh Askin, two of the Rozenberg boys and Rusty Kofman (it is not clear whether they had all socialised prior to this night). They all sat around a table drinking absinthe, which the cruise staff reported is not sold on the ship and must have been smuggled on-board.
It was at this stage that Jennifer Smith's behaviour is called into question. Josh Askin reported that Jennifer had been very flirtatious with one of the croupiers at the casino, a South African man named Lloyd Botah. When the group left the casino to go to the disco, Botah accompanied them, staying close to Jennifer the entire time. At the disco, Jennifer continued to flirt with Lloyd and also attempted to drape herself over other men. At this point, George noticed his wife's behaviour and attempted to intervene. An argument between the couple ensued, culminating in Jennifer kicking her new husband in the groin and storming out of the disco, with Botah following after her (although this detail is refuted by others, who say he remained behind). Shortly after the Smiths’ disagreement, at about 3:30am, the disco closed, and Askin, the two Rozenbergs and Rusty Kofman became aware that George was highly intoxicated and was too drunk to walk unaided, and so they helped him to his cabin. When they arrived at Stateroom 9062, Jennifer wasn’t there and George stated he wanted to find her. George changed his shirt and then, with Askin and the three Russian boys, headed to the solarium, where the cruise ship’s younger crowd would congregate after the disco ended each night. Jennifer wasn’t there either and so the group then helped George back to his room, arriving at 4:02am—a time verified by a computerized monitoring system that tracks when key cards are used to open stateroom doors. This was the last time anyone reported seeing George Smith.
It was after this time that noises coming from the Smiths room, described by one neighbour as “loud cheering—what sounded like a college drinking game...as well as high pitched yelling”, were first reported to crew members. At one point this neighbour believes he might have heard at least one person leaving the Smiths' cabin and talking in the corridor. After this, an argument with "at least three voices" was reported coming from the Smiths' balcony. At around 4:15am, the neighbour reports hearing voices ushering people out of the room, and distinctly heard the words "Goodnight, Goodnight" repeatedly, followed by the cabin door closing. The neighbour says he then waited about 10 seconds before opening his door and looking out, where he states he saw three men, whose identities have never been released publicly. Other neighbours reported hearing three male subjects talking in the corridor at around this same time, and they stated two of the men had "accents" (the Rozenbergs?). This is where questions start to arise, it is reported that 4 men accompanied George back to his room, but only three are seen and heard leaving, so who remained behind? Maybe the group misremembered and only three men went back to the cabin, or maybe one left earlier? Either way it is unclear who is in the room after 4:15am.
It was after 4:15am that the same neighbour claims to have heard a single voice speaking in a conversational tone, followed by furniture being moved around, and he speculated the Smiths may have been cleaning up after the party. He says this "clean up" lasted around 10 minutes before the sounds moved to the balcony, and he states he heard one of the metal balcony chairs being moved. All was quiet for around a minute, and then he describes a very loud thud, which was so loud it made his bed vibrate. He states it was not the sound of someone falling off the balcony, but instead it sounded more like someone falling on the balcony, except it was so loud he didn't believe a single person falling could have created it. He thought it could have been furniture, such as a couch, falling or being thrown on the floor. He said no screams or voices followed the thud, and all was quiet after that. So presumably despite what this neighbour states, the sound he heard was George falling off the balcony and hitting the canopy below. But did he fall or was he pushed? The neighbour said he always heard the Smiths coming and going from their cabin because he could clearly hear their door opening and closing, but on this occasion he didn't hear anything. So if someone was still in the room with George, did they manage to leave silently? The neighbour says the next thing he heard were the crew members arriving at the cabin to respond to the noise complaints from the passengers. However they only knocked and didn't enter the room, as the noises had stopped.
When question by authorities, Askin indicated that he, Kofman, and the two Rozenbergs stayed with George for 10 or 15 minutes in his cabin after returning from the solarium. During this time Askin stated he used the bathroom. He says that everyone departed by 4:15am, leaving no one inside but George. Kofman disputes this, saying everything happened 15 minutes earlier, and they all left and were back in their rooms by 4am. He states he has a timestamped photo proving this. Whatever the timing, Kofman insists the last he saw of George Smith was when the boys left him on his bed; George thanked them for looking after him, kissed one of the boys and promised to buy them a round of drinks the next day. According to Askin, he went to Kofman’s room with the others and was back in his own stateroom by 5:15am.
During this entire incident, Jennifer Smith was nowhere to be seen. According to several witnesses, she was seen leaving the disco at about 3:15am—just minutes before George and his friends left. It should have taken her less than five minutes to return to her stateroom, and if she did return, might she have been there for some of the party and then left? Evidently, she was not in her room all night. From the disco it appeared she took the elevator down to Deck 9, but she must have been so drunk she became disoriented. Instead of turning right, into the long port corridor that led to their stateroom, she turned left, into the starboard corridor. From there she walked until the corridor ended in an alcove with a maintenance door. It was here Jennifer passed out and was found by crew. She claims she believes she may have been drugged and led to this alcove by someone who left her there.
Jennifer Smith was found passed out at approximately 4:30 a.m. on the floor of a lounge area on Deck 9. The crew members who found her went to look for her husband back at their cabin, but entered and could not find him, and so they put Mrs Smith in a wheelchair and she was taken back to her seemingly empty cabin just before 5am, where she was placed on the bed. The staff reported that while they did not search the room at the time, nothing looked amiss, and so they left Mrs Smith to sleep. Jennifer says she remembers nothing from that night after the group left the casino, but says she slept for around three hours and then awoke as the ship docked and let people off at Kusadasi, Turkey. She said although her husband was nowhere to be seen when she woke up, nothing else seemed amiss in the cabin and she quickly remembered a 10am couples massage she had booked earlier in the week, and so got dressed and headed two floors up, hoping George would meet her there. When he did not arrive at the spa, she presumed he was passed out himself in a friend's cabin and would return to their room when he regained consciousness. She stated he had passed out outside their cabin on two prior occasions during their trip (seems like this couple know how to party to excess!) and so she was not immediately worried.
However Royal Caribbean officials said that Mrs Smith actually arrived about an hour and a half early for her massage and was in the treatment room when crew members came looking for her. They approached Jennifer to say that the cruise ship staff had received calls that morning from passengers who, in the daylight, had noticed blood on the awning outside their cabin, and indeed blood had been found outside the cabin and on a lifeboat canopy below their balcony. They said they suspected her husband had fallen overboard in a tragic, alcohol fuelled accident. A member of the crew was allowed inside the cabin to retrieve Mrs Smith's belongings, and she reports that she was escorted from the boat along with Mr Askin (who had come forward after hearing pages for George across the intercom) and the two were questioned by Turkish authorities. She then reports that she was left behind in Turkey to make her own way home, however staff from the ship strongly dispute this, saying she insisted on leaving on her own accord. The cruise staff have also been criticised for washing away the blood found inside and outside the cabin, although they claim they washed the area only after Turkish authorities had given them permission to do so. Police also boarded the ship, photographed the bloodstained canopy, and searched the Smiths’ stateroom. They reportedly found small droplets of blood on a bedsheet and a towel inside the cabin.
The aftermath and investigation: The family reported that little was done by Royal Caribbean International or the Turkish authorities to investigate George's disappearance, instead they insisted he had been extremely intoxicated and had fallen overboard, however no body has ever been located. The FBI were soon involved and once home in Cromwell, Jennifer reported that within a week, she met with the FBI and agreed to give blood and hair samples to their agents and to take a polygraph test that she said she passed. The investigation soon seemed to focused on the group of four Russians and Josh Askin, who the Smiths had befriended.
There was a lot of reluctance on the part of the media to identify these young men, which seems very odd in itself. What was also odd was the Russian boys' behaviour throughout the cruise, which gained a lot of attention and was described as outlandish, arrogant and rude. For example, when asked by a crew member to put out a cigarette in a non-smoking section of the ship, one of the boys cursed the employee and continued smoking. Their parents were warned numerous times about their sons' behaviour, however it seems little was done to control them. After the boat left Turkey on 5th July without Mrs Smith, the Rozenbergs and Mr Kofman continued to cause trouble. Two more incidents involving them allegedly occurred over the next 48 hours, one involving arguments between the Rozenbergs and staff over the age of their son Greg and whether he should be allowed enter the disco and another involving the four boys cursing at staff members. The parents were summoned and were told that if another incident occurred, they would all be asked to leave the ship.
On Thursday July 7th, a young girl reported being raped by Rusty Kofman and the three Rozenberg boys and the incident was videotaped. Kofman was the only one identified on tape, and claimed the sex was consensual. However rumors were spreading and 13 people in total were escorted from the ship, including the Rozenberg group and the Askin family. Perhaps the most damning piece of evidence pointing to their potential involvement in Georges disappearance is a videotape found on one of the Rozenberg boys' phone that appears to show three of the four men commenting on George's presumed death in a very callous way. The Smith family attorney stated "the most incriminating statement (from the video) comes when one of them stands up at the end of the tape and sort of hunches his shoulders and flashes gang signs and says, 'Told ya I was gangsta' and in the context of the discussion about George's death, almost as if he's bragging about having done something to George."
Since then the FBI have investigated both the rape allegations and the disappearance of George Smith, but so far, no arrests have been made. There has been a lot of controversy over the Royal Caribbean's supposed handling of the crime scene and Mrs Smith in the aftermath of the disappearance, with conflicting statements coming from both sides. George Smith's family and his wife insist he was murdered and the cruise staff covered it up to avoid a media frenzy. They state they believe the FBI will make arrests in the future. But why would someone want to kill George? There’s been speculation that he spoke of having a large amount of cash in his stateroom, but no one involved in the case says any money was missing.
Alternatively a less nefarious theory is that George could have gone out to the balcony for a cigar and somehow fell overboard. Or in his drunken state he could have tried to sit up on the railings and fell overboard. I'm inclined to believe one of the latter theories, although the disputes over how many men entered George's cabin on the 5th July versus how many were seen and heard leaving does make me question the accident theory, plus the small amount of blood found inside the cabin and the statements about George made on the video.
What are your theories?

Hello, I'm on vacation through Barcelona and will soon be backpacking through Europe. Was looking to see any good 1/2 € games in Barcelona. Which casinos to go, and how much money should I enter with. Thanks in advance!

Below are my general recommendations for someone going in the summer. I have been three times for a total of about a month and a half. Any suggestions (for the next time I visit)?
Hello!
There's so much to say so I will try and start at a high level and then zoom in.
While staying in Montevideo, I suggest finding an Airbnb (or a higher ranked hotel) in Villa Biarritz/Punta Carretas/Pocitos.
This area is nice because it is walking distance to the Rambla (similar to the Barcelona Rambla) and has a ton of cute, boutique restaurants in the area. It is also close to the Punta Carretas shopping mall which was a prison from the dictatorship days that was converted to a high class shopping mall.
Montevideo is super safe, but downtown, and especially the "Old City" are much more likely to have homeless people and beggars just because of all the tourist traffic.
For super luxury, check out http://www.sofitel.com/gb/hotel-7969-sofitel-montevideo-casino-carrasco-and-spa/index.shtml It is in the nicest neighborhood in Montevideo, but its a bit far from everything else.
As for places to eat, I highly suggest Mercado de Peurto (http://www.mercadodelpuerto.com/). This website is HORRIBLE but it is a pretty authentic Uruguayan experience. Lots of Asados, grilled meat, and its a cool atmosphere. Definitely worth it. Another really nice, small place is El Viejoy http://www.elviejoyquerido.com.uy/. It's small, and everything is for sale. So the plates are all different, the food is good. Also, wine at places is SUPER cheap so bottles all the time in Uruguay. These are the two places that come to mind, but please feel free to ask about any specific food. Fish, pizzas, pizzetas, chivito, beef, griled chicken, pastas are the main food you'll see.
Also, before I forget, there is a built in discount for when you use a Visa or other Debit Card. Its like 11-20% so its pretty substantial. It is meant to encourage tourists to spend money, so it only occurs at "touristy" things like restaurants and cafes. So use a Visa card.
Flea markets are a huge thing in Uruguay because there are many, many artisans. Here is a list of the top markets-- https://theculturetrip.com/south-america/uruguay/articles/the-best-markets-in-uruguay/ -- the first one is huge. You can get anything at the market. Anything. A live chicken? Yes. A dog? Yes. Fresh fruit? Yes. There are miles of this thing.
Other touristy things you can look up yourself because a top 10 list will do a better job than me, but the above suggestions made everything enjoyable for us. Here is a website with that stuff: https://theculturetrip.com/south-america/uruguay/articles/the-top-10-things-to-do-and-see-in-montevideo-uruguay/
The NYT also recently did an article: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/16/travel/montevideo-uruguay-millennial-entrepreneurs-design-fashion-restaurants.html
ON TO THE COAST
First of all, rent a car. They aren't super expensive. Get a fun cheap little Chinese car. Really, cause gas is expensive and you don't need much more than that. Start to head west up the coast. There are a ton of small beach towns, but I am going to point out a few that are worth it. Also, beware! Try and drive this during times when tourists won't be. Up toward the coast is the main tourist attraction of most of South America, so you don't want to hit traffic. In approximate order of hitting the towns...
Pirapolis --cool spot with a fantastic view up the large mountain (driveable). Theres a restaurant up there too. It was really cool when we drive through at night, but we haven't spent that much time there.
Las Cumbres isnt a town but its a hotel on the way and its BEAUTIFUL. Have never stayed there but have just gotten tea and its literally stunning (https://www.cumbres.com.uy/ingles/index.html)
Punta Del Este-- I am sure you have heard of this place. Book a hotel early as it is likely going to be very busy when you go. It is the most upscale and you will see the richest families in South America here, and possibly Ricky Martin. I can't recommend a single restaurant because they are all fantastic. Bars START to get hopping at 2am (this is typical of all Uruguay) and this strip of bars will look like something out of a movie by 3 or 4. It's worth it to see. Random note: when you park, you usually give a small tip to people who "watch" you car, before or after. You'll see them. Its a real thing and protected from govt even though its scammy. I can go off about it but not here lol. Otherwise, do the touristy things here!
After Punta there's also a belgian hotel that's gorgeous called L'Auberge. (http://www.laubergehotel.com/) if you're interested in that.
La Barra is the next town, right after Punta. This is a party town, and theres a big, party beach with live DJs called Bikini. Also check out the shops. There's this amazing candle store called Vellas de Ballena that is great for souvenirs to give to people.
Next up is Jose Igancio. Super upscale little old fishing village that now gorgeous. There is a restaurant called Parador La Huella that we have never been to but has been in NYT and is really nice. We usually just pass through here, go to beach for an hour or two (there are surfing lessons here) and get a bite to eat. Wouldn't suggest staying here just because its so expensive and there isn't much nightlife in this area. There is sometimes a pop up restaurant here that has their sister restaurant in Brooklyn that if you go to both they treat you really well (because so few people do).
After Jose you have La Paloma (which is the next biggest city (after Punta and Pirapolis) but I don't suggest it, but then right after that is La Pedrera which is SO cute, and worth a stay. This place is also centrally located so if you stay in Punta for a few nights this might be your second home base. This is like hipsteartist central, with cool restaurants down the strip and a cool beach. Definitely an airbnb place, though--have no concept of what the hotels might be like cause its smaller. Not a party place but so cool and relaxing. Its a nice contrast. One restaurant I really enjoyed was Petisco (https://www.facebook.com/PetiscoRestoPubLaPedrera/). I highly suggest spending a night here. You won't find it on tourist destinations.
Next up...Cabo Polonia. This place is AMAZING. It is only accessible via these all terrain vehicles and its absolutely beautiful. We made a day out of it (I think its like 40 min from La Pedrera, so we stay two nights in La Pedrera and spent one day here). Here is a NYtimes article on it: http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/30/the-coast-of-utopia/ --I highly suggest it for a day, at least. We didn't stay so I don't know nightlife (they don't really have electricity or running water?) so don't know what its like, but there are hotels and is one of the top tourist destinations.
Finally, you have Punta Del Diablo, its one of my favorites. beautiful beach, cool atmosphere, and overall chill AF. We made a day trip out of this place (every year), but I assume you could stay longer. Think surfers, and surf huts, and beautiful beach.
Finally, not a beach town but possibly worth a visit, there is a winery and a town called Garzon. http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/05/13/travel/20120513-SURFACING.html Very hard to find, but worth a good dinner at the restaurant listed. The winery is evidently amazing as well, but I have never been.
COMING OVER FROM BA (East):
It might be worth it to take the ferry to Colonia instead of directly Montevideo. Spend a day here and then take a bus to Uruguay (probably cheaper too). This place is a super small Portuguese town from like the 1600s or something that has been preserved. Cute cafes, artisans, and great views.
For five nights, I would suggest spending:
1-2 nights in Montevideo. See the tourist things in the link above and experience the flea markets. Drive through Pirapolis if you can on the way to Punta from Montevideo, maybe grab lunch there.
1 night (preferably a weekend, but not necessary) in Punta. It's really the most famous destination. Go out and have fun all night long. On the way to La Pedrera stop in La Barra and Jose Ignacio to walk around, grab an ice cream, and sit on the beach for a bit.
2 nights in La Pedrera. You can use this as a destination point-- spend 1 day in Cabo Polonia, 1 day in La Pedrera (or just come back for dinnedrinks at the end of the day). You could even make it to Punta Del Diablo.
1 night in Punta Del Diablo or back to Montevideo (where you will probably have your flight from).
Note that driving up and down the coast takes like 2 hours from Monte to Punta and like 2-3 hour to Punta Del Diablo, which is the furthest point. It's not that far.

I am in Austin. What must I see/taste/touch/smell/hear and otherwise experience? What do babies like to do here aside from looking at bats? Also where's the good beer?
Edit: Thanks! I didn't even have enough meal times to try all these places, but it was super helpful, especially with the heat and a baby to know where I wanted to go next. And, seeing places I'd heard you all mention made Austin feel smaller and more accessible. Here is a somewhat poorly formatted list of the things mentioned for the next visitor to Austin to use (also if I'd had another day I would have spent it on South Congress and South 1st gluttonous and happy):
Edit2: Bullets
Where is the awesome in Austin according to Reddit, “um what else is there to do besides beer and food and swimming” :
Entertainment:

• Toy Joy
• Alamo Draft House (esp, Master Pancake Theatre ??!!) They might have “Baby Day” before 4 pm on Fridays. but no kids under 6 years old.)
  
• Barton Springs
  
• The Greenbelt
  
• Zilker Park
  
• Mt. Bonnell or The Oasis for sunset
  
• Umlauf Sculpture Gardens
  
• Amy's Ice Cream
  
• Esters Folly (improv)
  
• Coldtowne theatre (improv)
  
• the Hideout (improv)
  
• Deep Eddy Pool
  
• Arcade UFO! -- www.arcadeufo.com
  
• UT Campus, its awesome
  
• Find Zach Anner
  
• Mozart's Coffee shop - Coffee shop by the lake. Beautiful view
  
• The Blanton Museum (The modern art section had some fun pieces. ‘Pluses Reversed’ was interesting because it hurts your eyes to look at it. Even though you know the painting exists there is a biological limitation in your ability to process it, and it’s just some paint on a canvas.)
  
• Mayfield park!
  
• bodies exhibit at UT Austin
  
• Bob Bullock
  
• Texas State History Museum,
  
• AMoA
  
• The Cathedral of Junk
  
• Tapestry tap dance company
  
• Sculpture Falls
  
• Dart Bowl
  
• big bite
  
• Kifaru Exotics
  
• Uncommon objects (South Congress)
  
• “Go down to New Braunfels and check out Schlitterbahn, the #1 rated water park in the entire world. I would pay money to see Napoleon running around in THAT place.”
  

Food:

• Tamale House
• Taqueria Los Jaliscienses
• Thai Kitchen
• Phara's
• Jack Allen's Kitchen
• Uchi
• Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse
• Kerbey Lane Cafe
• Magnolia Cafe
• The Catfish Parlour
• Torchy's (Holy fucking green chile pork goodness. I closed my eyes during each bite. It was that good. The democrat was good, but a bit sweet in an non-endorphin producing way.)
• Tamale House on 51st and Airport
• Hot Dog King
• Chez Nous
• Good Knight for food from the kitchen of Chez Nous
• Mighty Cone
• Omlettry (Fun neighborhood diner with lemon sour cream in a lot of their omelets and gingerbread pancakes. I could have spent a morning there. Everyone was delighted by my smiling baby. He loves attention.)
• Hut's Hamburger's
• P Terry's
• HillBert's
• the Screaming Goat
• Whole Foods HQ
• Taco Shack
• la caneria
• Jalapeno Joe's!
• Amy's Ice Cream (Nice presentation, fun, usual ice cream selection)
• Gourdoughs (bacon doughnut!) (didn’t make it :( But I know where I can get a maple bacon bar around home.)
• Dirty's Burgers
• Homeslice Pizza
• Casino El Camino (They had a better beer selction than most of the bars on the 6th St drunk walk. The backyard patio was cozy. I could lose an evening there.)
• Saltlick BBQ
• Hula Hut
• Trudy's
• Mozart's Coffee shop - Coffee shop by the lake. Beautiful view
• Maudie's Tex-Mex
• G'raj Mahal
• Taco Deli
• Curra's
• Continental Club
• Stubbs
• juan in a million
• the Korean BBQ taco truck: Chi’lantro
• Gueros
• RO's outpost
• Artz Rib House
• Peche
• Korean House
• Leaf
• County Line Bbq
• Imperia
• OH and DK sushi
• Texadelphia
• Johnny T's
• House Pizzeria
• Uchi Sushi
• Your Mom's Burger Bar
• Katz's Deli
• Townhouse
• Kebabalicious

Good Beer and/or Good Bars::

• The Gingerman
• Lovejoy's (Just off the college drunk walk, the beer selection was great. This is a great dive bar. I wish I could take it home with me. The beer they make wasn’t great, but they make it and that’s great.)
• Draught House (cross post from food) Alamo Draft House (esp, Master Pancake Theatre ??!!) They have “Baby Day” before 4 pm on Fridays
• 512 (local) (the IPA was all orangey and floral, loved it.)
• Live Oak (local)
• Real Ale (local) (The Rio Blanco and the Full Moon were very malty and floral. Not bad but I like 512 more)
• Independence Brewery (the IPA was less malty than Real Ale, it had simple floral hops going on)
• Dog and Duck Pub
• The Flying Saucer
• Rain
• 6th street is apparently for the hipsters (It appears that way. I like that the Driskill is at the top of 6th St and the Hilton is, almost, at the bottom. The Hilton is down at bottom with the dry humping bars and the tattoo parlours.The Driskill is at the top with its ancient bakery and classy shit. It’s kind of like a map of the changes in the rich folk of Austin across time. The cattle barons to the panty flashers and dry humpers. I am aware that that is a serious overgeneralization. There were so many opinions on 6th street, and I was staying so close, that I had to go there. )
• Go to Red river district for some real culture and music
• Broken Spoke
• Cheer Up Charlie's
• The Liberty.
• Mohawk
• Shangri La's (your best opportunity to run into Bill Murray, or whatever celebrity's in town that week.)
• Top Notch
• Barcelona
• The Elephant Room

The expectations couldn't possibly be higher for the European Poker Tour and the Barcelona stop was by far the most anticipated event. This was the 100th stop for the prestigious European competition and the fact that it all began with the €50,000 Super High Roller meant a great deal. Regular poker players had no option but to sit back and watch some of the best poker pros in the world compete among themselves, in a dazzling display of skill. There are plenty of side events to participate and qualifiers still run live at Unibet Poker for the main event, so even those who don't have a lot of money could find themselves playing at the live tables in Barcelona. For the time being, Olivier Busquet is the one celebrating, because he became the first player to win a tournament in Barcelona this season, after outshining a total of 77 players. This means that a new record has been set, because last year only 64 players participated and as a result the prize pool grew significantly. The winner was guaranteed an amount of more than €1 million, but players were given the option of reaching an agreement at any time during the final table. This is something that usually happens in major tournaments, because when the stakes are as high as they get, even poker professionals prefer not to let luck decide the outcome. Plenty of pros participated, but only the nine who made the final table finished in the money, with Dan Shak being one of the lucky few. He survived with his dwindling stack long enough to claim a consolation prize of €130,000, with Morten Klein being the next to be sent to the rail. It took a while for the field to be reduced to just three players, but when three handed play began, it was obvious that Olivier Busquet and Daniel Colman were the ones to compete for the trophy. Immediately after Vladimir Troyanovskiy was eliminated in the third place, the two remaining players decided to split the money according to their stacks. Olivier Busquet was ahead and won more, but just as important is the fact that he was also the last man standing after the final hand was dealt. Check out the final table results below: 1 Olivier Busquet €896,4342 Daniel Colman €843,0663 Vladimir Troyanovskiy €473,2004 Scott Seiver €364,2005 Sam Trickett €288,4006 Sven Reichardt €225,5007 Morten Klein €177,5008 Dan Shak €138,600
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Now that the World Series of Poker 2014 has come to an end, it is time for poker professionals to look elsewhere for nonstop action. The first major tournament scheduled for the upcoming months goes by the name of European Poker Tour and stars in Barcelona, in August. It can provide poker fans with another opportunity to put their skills to the test at live tables, after honing them over the Internet. Betfair Poker has announced that this year, it plans on sending a couple of successful members to the EPT tournaments, with qualifiers already running live. Obviously, this is not the only way to book a seat for the European poker tour, as the most obvious solution is to earn the money yourself. The flagship tournaments, such as the main event will set players back a five digit amount, but there are smaller competitions to choose from. The least expensive only cost $1000, with the winner expected to take home in excess of 100,000 but guaranteed prize pool are always exceeded. As the enthusiasm for the upcoming competition is growing, the name of the official sponsor has been unveiled. It is hardly a surprise that Slyde decided to team up with the tour and become the official watch sponsor for the third year in a row. Such partnerships represent a win-win situation for both parties involved, as they are provided with a chance to maximize their exposure, while being a part of something truly important. The watch manufacturer is not the only one to have jumped on the bandwagon, with audio and chocolate companies tagging along. Skullcandy and Suesswaren will be an integrated part of the EPT and in their case, this is the first time that they participate. As for the watch manufacturer, the contribution to the cause is diverse but what players need to know is that winners will receive custom-made watches. The price tag for these works of art range from €5000-€9000 and the ones who emerge victorious, will get to display their poker prowess by wearing a beautiful 'Black and Steel' or a 'Black and Rose' Slyde. It is only fair to assume that the partnership between the European Poker Tour and the watch manufacturer will not come to an end the 2014. Players are thrilled at the prospect of receiving these great watches on top of a significant payout, with the piece of jewelry being an excellent incentive to excel at the tables. Slyde will expand its contribution to all EPT events not only the opening event in Barcelona which is scheduled to begin on August 16th.
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Winning the first prize in the European Poker Tour Barcelona was a great deal and the same can be said about those who prevailed in the highrollers tournament. Even making the final table resulted in a huge paycheck, which explains why these events are nowadays regarded as more important than the main events. A new stop of the celebrated EPT is going to bring players on the old continent this month, but meanwhile, action was every bit as intense on the other side of the Atlantic. While regular players are choosing tournaments and cash games over the Internet at Winner Poker, those who prefer to play on big money in land-based casinos were at the Aria Resort & Casino Las Vegas. The reason for why this place became the focal point of attraction for these poker professionals is that it was the gracious host for the $100,000 super highrollers tournament. The size of the buy-in guaranteed a huge paycheck and the fact that only 3 players would make the money didn't have a deterring effect on them. It was obvious that the winner will take home a seven digit amount, with the only thing that could change that was a potential deal. Sometimes when the players make the final tables of tournaments of such magnitude, they agree to split the money evenly or according to their stacks. In this case, no deal was made and as a result Tom Marchese took all the spoilers and the honor of winning the highrollers event. Once the final table was set, the remaining players knew that suffering an untimely elimination was not the worst thing that could happen. With Jake Schindler, Doug Polk, Joseph Cheong, David Sands, Igor Kurganov, Philipp Gruissem and Andrew Robl being already out of the picture, anything could happen. The last three players were decided after Rast caused the elimination of one opponent, but his victory was short-lived, because he ran into Marchese's suited A-10. His weaker hand didn't stand a chance and the heads-up began fast and furious, with Tom riding a bigger stack and playing aggressive poker. He pushed his opponent around, until Katz finally succumbed under pressure and went all in in what proved to be a rather lopsided coin flip. Once again, the better hand held all the way to the River and it was Tom Marchese who celebrated his victory and a paycheck of more than $1.3 million. The last man standing took home almost twice as much as the runner-up.
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For more than a month, the United States was the cornerstone of live poker, but action has subsided and professionals are leaving Las Vegas. Europe will become the new gambling hub later in August, as the European Poker Tour will resume in August with the Barcelona tournament. Meanwhile, many poker players have traveled to Asia, for the PokerStars 2014 Beijing Millions and Chen Qin can brag about winning the opening event. PokerStars is playing a significant role in this part of the world when it comes to promoting poker and has established a permanent position in Macau. This year, the prizes for the PokerStars.net 2014 Beijing Millions exceeded expectations, with the winner taking home ¥675,000. A quick glance at the standings will reveal the fact that the runner-up won a bit more and the difference between the winner and the one finishing in the third place was just as wide. The reason for why this happened is that the remaining four players decided not to play until the final hand was dealt, but instead chopped the pot right away. This is common practice at both live and online poker tournaments, as the finalists frequently prefer not to allow luck decide the outcome of the game. There is a protocol and players are usually getting a share that is indissolubly linked to the chips in front of them, but then again they have unlimited freedom to proposing alternate deals. In this particular case, an agreement was reached fairly quickly and the top four players claimed the paycheck right away, leaving them to fight for glory alone. Chen Qin persevered and after the deal was made, he shifted into a more aggressive gear, knowing that there is nothing to lose. Yang Zhang proved to be the most difficult competitor, but even though he won more money at the end of the tournament, he was deprived of the honor of winning the event. The Beijing Star Poker Club was the gracious host for the PokerStars tournament, which was the largest outside United States. More than 200 players participated, but only these nine made the final table, not surprisingly all of them being from China. Check out their placement below and the corresponding prizes: 1 Chen Qin China ¥675,0002 Yang Zhang China ¥700,0003 Tong Shen China ¥650,0004 Feng Bai China ¥587,5005 Jing Liu China ¥312,5006 Chen Hao China ¥250,0007 Qiang Liu China ¥205,0008 Hui Xu China ¥162,6509 Yuanye Chen China ¥125,000
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Poker doesn't take a break, not even after a massive tournament such as the World Series of Poker has ended, with action continuing nonstop. In the next couple of months, major events are scheduled and they will take place in different parts of the world, with many held by US casinos. It all begins with the WPT Legends of Poker, a tournament that starts on July 28 and last for more than a month. Players are expected to sit down at the tables of the Bicycle Club in Bell Gardens, California and play in various competitions, highlighted by the $3,700 Main Event. This is scheduled for August 23, so there is plenty of time to boost your bankroll by playing live or online poker. Arguably the best thing one can do is to gear up for live action while playing over the Internet and PKR, one of the few poker rooms that focuse on the social nature of the game. Poker players who reside in Europe and have no intention in crossing the Atlantic for live action, will have plenty on their hands by simply attending the GUKPT Reading. This is just the first of the numerous events hosted by the circuit and the flagship tournament is the £550 No-Limit Hold'em Main Event. Action continues in August with the Macau Poker Cup which is of course sponsored by PokerStars and players from all walks of life are expected to attend. Perhaps the most interesting tournament is the HKD$11,000 Main Event, in fierce competition with the HKD$80,000 High Roller that will begin on August 8. There is plenty of money on the table and some of the best highrollers in the world will be here. From August 8, two big tournaments start in Europe, first being the UK & Ireland Poker Tour London which will be hosted by the Hippodrome Casino. The main event will play over three days and players will need to pay a buy-in of £275 to compete for the main prize. A similar amount is expected to be invested by those who plan on attending the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour event between August 10th and 17th in Coventry. One of the most anticipated tournaments of the year is the main event of the European Poker Tour Barcelona and as always, it all begins on poker 16th. For 10 full days, some of the best poker players and plenty of amateurs will be swarming this beautiful city in Catalunya, but only a handful will emerge victorious. Autumn begins with the GUKPT Leeds tournament which starts on August 31 and concludes on September 1, when the winner of the £550 No-Limit Hold'em will be crowned.
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The European Poker Tour is keeping players at the edge of their seats and most poker professionals have traveled to Barcelona. The first tournament has already ended, with players spending a lot of money to participate in the highrollers event and everyone is anxiously waiting for the main event. There are plenty of American players who chose to cross the ocean for this competition, but a handful remained at home, to play in the Arizona State Poker Championship. This is by far the most important event held within the state borders this month and the fact that players only had to pay $1100, added to its popularity. A total of 1460 players tagged along and with many of them deciding to rebuy after suffering an untimely elimination, the winner was guaranteed to take home in excess of one quarter of $1 million. Making the final table was lavishly rewarded, with the one to be sent to the rail first, collecting $18,000. Robert Tanita was the one who emerged victorious at the expense of Jerry Sanchez, two years after playing in the same tournament. Back in 2012, he made the money but he had to settle for less than $700 which represents half of the buy-in. Robert played far more aggressively this time and constantly built his stack, cruising to a career-best paycheck of $257,000. This is how the final table looked like at the Arizona State Poker Championship and the name of the 10 players who got this far. Those who finished on the podium received a six digit amount, but the spoils go to the winner, Robert Tanita. Check out the final table results below: 1 Robert Tanita $257,6902 Jerry "Wolf" Sanchez $175,2003 Brayden Quackenbush $131,4004 Steve Buell $98,5505 Matt Affleck $83,9506 Mark Atanovich $69,3507 Huy "Spike" Le $54,7508 David Williams $40,1509 Kenna James $25,55010 Pierce McKellar $18,250 US-based players have a hard time playing poker over the Internet, but back in Europe, players are competing over the Internet while watching the live action from Barcelona. Betfair Poker has sent a couple of players to this European Poker Tour stop and it usually organizes qualifiers for future events held under the EPT umbrella.
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Films I watched for the first time in 2014
2nd Jan Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind (2004) [Dir. Michel Gondry]
4th Jan Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012) [Dir. Lorene Scafaria]
5th Jan Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) [Dir. Woody Allen]
6th Jan Friends With Benefits (2011) [Dir. Will Gluck]
7th Jan The Place Beyond the Pines] (2012) [Dir. Derek Cianfrance]
8th Jan The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) [Dir. Stephen Chbosky]
9th Jan The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013) [Dir. Ben Stiller]
10th Jan Submarine (2010) [Dir. Richard Ayoade]
11th Jan In Time (2011) [Dir. Andrew Niccol]
13th Jan Manhattan (1979) [Dir. Woody Allen]
14th Jan Lost in Translation (2003) [Dir. Sofia Coppola]
15th Jan Husbands and Wives (1992) [Dir. Woody Allen]
16th Jan Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) [Dir. Colin Trevorrow]
17th Jan Rapture-Palooza (2013) [Dir. Paul Middleditch]
18th Jan The Change-Up (2011) [Dir. David Dobkin]
19th Jan Eddie Murphy: Raw (1987) [Dir. Robert Townsend]
20th Jan Our Idiot Brother (2011) [Dir. Jesse Peretz]
21st Jan Prince Avalanche (2013) [Dir. David Gordon Green]
23rd Jan Pumping Iron (1977) [Dir. George Butler & Robert Fiore]
25th Jan Play It Again, Sam (1972) [Dir. Woody Allen]
26th Jan Spring Breakers (2012) [Dir. Harmony Korine]
31st Jan Wreck-It Ralph (2012) [Dir. Rich Moore]
23rd Feb Another Earth (2011) [Dir. Mike Cahill]
27th Feb What's Up, Tiger Lily? (1966) [Dir. Woody Allen]
6th Mar Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) [Dir. Woody Allen]
13th Mar Rushmore (1998) [Dir. Wes Anderson]
14th Mar Zombieland (2009) [Dir. Ruben Fleischer]
19th Mar The Godfather Part 2 (1974) [Dir. Francis Ford Coppola]
20th Mar Fight Club (1999) [Dir. David Fincher]
21st Mar Being John Malkovich (1999) [Dir. Spike Jonze]
22nd Mar Youth In Revolt (2009) [Dir. Miguel Arteta]
26nd Mar The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) [Dir. Wes Anderson]
27th Mar Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008) [Dir. Kevin Smith]
28th Mar Death at a Funeral (2010) [Dir. Niel LaBute]
29th Mar How I Live Now (2013) [Dir. Kevin Macdonald]
30th Mar The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) [Dir. Wes Anderson]
4th Apr The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) [Dir. Wes Anderson]
5th Apr Inception (2010) [Dir. Chistopher Nolan]
6th Apr Little Miss Sunshine (2006) [Dir. Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris]
8th Apr The Hurt Locker (2008) [Dir. Kathryn Bigelow]
9th Apr The Godfather Part 3 (1990) [Dir. Francis Ford Coppola]
20th Apr Fargo (1996) [Dir. Joel & Ethan Coen] 22nd Apr Drinking Buddies (2013) [Dir. Joe Swanberg]
23rd Apr Don Jon (2013) [Dir. Joseph Gordon-Levitt]
24th Apr Batman Begins (2005) [Dir. Christopher Nolan]
25th Apr The Dark Knight (2008) [Dir. Christopher Nolan]
26th Apr The Dark Knight Rises (2012) [Dir. Christopher Nolan]
27th Apr The Book of Eli (2010) [Dir. The Hughes Brothers]
28th Apr This Is The End (2013) [Dir. Evan Goldberg & Seth Rogan]
29th Apr The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) [Dir. Martin Scorsese]
30th Apr The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013) [Dir. Francis Lawrence]
1st May Inglourious Bastereds (2009) [Dir. Quentin Tarantino]
3rd May American Hustle (2013) [Dir. David O. Russell]
4th May The Inbetweeners Movie (2011) [Dir. Ben Palmer]
11th May Anchorman (2004) [Dir. Adam McKay]
13th May Anchorman 2 (2013) [Dir. Adam McKay]
18th May American Pie 2 (2001) [Dir. J.B. Rogers]
18th May American Pie: The Wedding (2003) [Dir. Jesse Dylan]
23rd May Moonrise Kingdom (2012) [Dir. Wes Anderson]
25th May Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2011) [Dir. David Gelb]
26th May Ghostbusters (1984) [Dir. Ivan Reitman]
27th May Goodfellas (1990) [Dir. Martin Scorsese]
28th May Godzilla (2014) [Dir. Gareth Edwards]
29th May The Big Lebowski (1998) [Dir. Joel & Ethan Coen]
31st May Alien (1979) [Dir. Ridley Scott]
1st Jun The Darjeeling Limited (2007) [Dir. Wes Anderson]
2nd Jun Whatever Works (2009) [Dir. Woody Allen]
3rd Jun 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) [Dir. Stanley Kubrick]
4th Jun A Million Ways to Die in the West (2014) [Dir. Seth MacFarlane]
5th Jun Mean Streets (1973) [Dir. Martin Scorsese]
9th Jun Sleeper (1973) [Dir. Woody Allen]
10th Jun Casino (1995) [Dir. Martin Scorsese]
12th Jun The Amazing Spiderman (2012) [Dir. Marc Webb]
13th Jun Taxi Driver (1976) [Dir. Martin Scorsese]
15th Jun World War Z (2013) [Dir. Marc Foster]
17th Jun Midnight in Paris (2011) [Dir. Woody Allen]
18th Jun To Rome With Love (2012) [Dir. Woody Allen]
19th Jun Blue Jasmin (2013) [Dir. Woody Allen
19th Jun The Bling Ring (2013) [Dir. Sofia Coppola]
20th Jun Deconstructing Harry (1997) [Dir. Woody Allen]
22nd Jun The Watch (2012) [Dir. Akiva Schaffer]
24th Jun The Goonies (1985) [Dir. Richard Donner]
25th Jun Frances Ha (2012) [Dir. Noah Baumbach]
6th Jul Johnny English Reborn (2011) [Dir. Oliver Parker]
11th Jul A Hard Day’s Night (1964) [Dir. Richard Lester]
20th Jul Hugo (2011) [Dir. Martin Scorsese]
26th Jul Blades of Glory (2007) [Dir. Josh Gordon & Will Speck]
6th Sep O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) [Dir. Joel & Ethan Coen]
7th Sep The Unbelievers (2013) [Dir. Gus Holwerda]
7th Sep Primer (2004) [Dir. Shane Carruth]
8th Sep Filth (2013) [Dir. Jon S. Baird]
9th Sep Swingers (1996) [Dir. Doug Liman]
11th Sep The Ides of March (2011) [Dir. George Clooney]
11th Sep Shutter Island (2010) [Dir. Martin Scorsese]
12th Sep Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) [Dir. Stephen Herek]
15th Sep Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) [Dir. Joel & Ethan Coen]
17th Sep Mighty Aphrodite (1995) [Dir. Woody Allen]
18th Sep The Usual Suspects (1995) [Dir. Bryan Singer]
19th Sep Oldboy (2003) [Dir. Chan-wook Park]
20th Sep Stripes (1981) [Dir. Ivan Reitman]
21st Sep Carrie (2013) [Dir. Kimberly Peirce]
26th Sep The Double (2013) [Dir. Richard Ayoade]
30th Sep Life After Beth (2014) [Dir. Jeff Baena]
2nd Oct True Grit (2010) [Dir. Joel & Ethan Coen]
13th Oct Zelig (1983) [Dir. Woody Allen]
14th Oct Bananas (1971) [Dir. Woody Allen]
15th Oct Love and Death (1975) [Dir. Woody Allen]
16th Oct Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* But Were Afraid to Ask (1972) [Dir. Woody Allen]
26th Oct The Shinig (1980) [Dir. Stanley Kubrick]
2nd Nov Say When (2014) [Dir. Lynn Shelton]
2nd Nov Shame (2011) [Dir. Steve McQueen]
15th Nov Blackfish (2013) [Dir. Gabriela Cowperthwaite]
15th Nov Zodiac (2007) [Dir. David Fincher]
16th Nov Interstellar (2014) [Dir. Christopher Nolan]
22nd Nov Horrible Bosses (2011) [Dir. Seth Gordon]
24th Nov Horrible Bosses 2 (2014) [Dir. Sean Anders]
29th Nov Scarface (1983) [Dir. Brian De Palma]
12th Dec American History X (1998) [Dir. Tony Kaye]
14th Dec Melancholia (2011) [Dir. Lars von Trier]
18th Dec The Great Gatsby (2013) [Dir. Baz Luhrmann]
21st Dec Men in Black 3 (2012) [Dir. Barry Sonnenfeld]
24th Dec It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) [Dir. Frank Capra]
26th Dec On the Town (1949) [Dir. Stanley Donen & Gene Kelly]
27th Dec Mission: Impossible 2 (2000) [Dir. John Woo]
28th Dec 22 Jump Street (2014) [Dir. Phil Lord & Christopher Miller]
31st Dec Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) [Dir. Wes Anderson]
As is probably clear by the list I really enjoyed the films of a lot of the big directors: Allen, Anderson, Coen, Kubrick, Coppola (Both Sofia & Francis), Ayoade, Fincher, Scorsese. I enjoyed every film I saw from these directors. Woody Allen is my favourite writer, I find myself really relating to some of his characters in terms of their anxiety and traits. I thought every frame in Wes Anderson's films were like a well composed image.
Some highlights:

• The Godfather trilogy is fantastic, I thought the final film was like an opera tragedy.
  
• Frances Ha ~ great writing, very well shot and acted
  
• The Place Beyond the Pines ~ felt like a very 'epic' story, liked how it spanned generations
  
• How I Live Now ~ good realistic portrayal of a WW3 scenario, though the cousin/cousin relationship was odd and unquestioned
  
• The Grand Budapest Hotel
  
• Don Jon ~ great directorial debut from Gordon-Levitt
  
• Goodfellas
  
• The Wolf of Wall Street
  
• Fight Club ~ best ending song
  
• Filth ~ Brilliantly acted by James McAvoy
  
• Swingers ~ money!
  
• Oldboy ~ crazy, amazing, disturbing
  
• Interstellar ~ great on the big screen , awe inspiring, great attempts to visualise space events
  
• Midnight in Paris ~ key word = lovely
  

Some lowlights:

• The Book of Eli
  
• Melancholia ~ might be great cinema but was too real for me, I felt panicked
  Let it be known that I spent a long time formatting this, linking every film to its imdb page, to be told by reddit it was too long. I then had to go back through reformatting.^help...
  

Liverpool was on the verge of winning the domestic championship but was defeated in the final round by Manchester City. It was a painful failure for the team who waited for almost 2 decades to lift the trophy and it didn't bode well for some of the key players. Some players departed for other teams, while new transfers came in hoping to restore Liverpool's glory and make it a competitive side for 2014. Things are definitely moving into the right direction and as always, sponsorship agreements are sought after by the football club. After intense negotiations, it looks like a deal was reached, with Scandinavian online casino operator ComeOn to sponsor them until the end of 2016. Both parties have a lot of benefit from this agreement, with the online casino trying to establish a dominant position in the United Kingdom, while Liverpool can definitely put the money to good use. There is no guarantee that ComeOn will take the UK market by storm, given the fact that there are plenty of strong operators here. Among those who are equally competent in running land-based and Internet venues is William Hill Casino who is favored by many local punters and casino enthusiasts. The competition will be every bit as intense among online casino operators as it is among teams playing in the Premier League and virtually anything can happen. For the time being, the partnership between the football club and the casino can produce some effects, with ComeOn! being allowed to advertise its association with Liverpool. These guys have plenty of clients in the Scandinavian countries, with Norway, Denmark and Sweden providing the vast majority of existing customers. The problem is that there are not many major football teams in either of these countries and they needed to expand beyond borders to promote the brand. Even when Liverpool lacks results its fans stand firmly behind the team, which is in complete accord with their slogan and it is what makes this football family great. Those who decide to play online with the aforesaid casino operator will be eligible for tickets to big games at Anfield stadium. It is only fair to assume that many promotions will revolve around this new deal as ComeOn! will try to capitalize on the sponsorship agreement. Football wise, Liverpool is once again the underdog against formidable English teams, with many of them strengthening their squad over the season break. Manchester United and their city rivals are in good position to make another attempt at the title, while Chelsea can't be underestimated. The fact that Luis Suarez has departed for Barcelona leaves a big void to be filled, but Liverpool hopes that young and promising players such as Adam Lallana and Rickie Lambert will rise to the occasion.
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The vast majority of poker professionals who prefer to compete in live competitions are in Barcelona right now, because this is where the European Poker Tour takes place. This is where the big money will be made and over the next couple of days, the best will compete for money, trophies and glory. This doesn't mean that nothing happens beyond the English Channel, where the 2014 GUKPT Goliath Main Event attracted a massive field of 3394 players. The buy-in for this tournament consisted of £100+£20 which is not a prohibitive amount even for those who compete exclusively over the Internet. In fact, there were many online poker players who spend most of their time at the cash games and tournaments offered by Ladbrokes Poker, who chose to participate. There were a total of six starting flights, which presented players with plenty of time to buy in and even those who were busy elsewhere, found it worthwhile to take a jab at the GUKPT Goliath Main Event. More than 500 players participated in the first day and Mark Adams was by far the most successful one, taking almost 500,000 chips to Day 2. Even more players bought in in the following days and the chip leader changed several times, with Hamed Nikjeh being the temporary winner. Unfortunately for him, he failed to put the full weight of his stack behind his actions in the next few days and didn't even make the final table. His fate was shared by several players who were for a brief period of time the chip leaders and others came strongly from behind. Ryan Foster was one of those who closed the gap separating them from the leading pack and he had high expectations for the final table. He was among the better placed of those 26 who returned on Sunday for the last day of 2014 GUKPT Goliath Main Event and three hours later, the final table was decided. Mark Adams was once again in the spotlights and he did a fine job at the final table, causing several eliminations en route to a heads-up against Ryan Foster. The two players battle the through for a while but in the end Ryan emerged victorious and claimed the first prize of £62,120. 2014 GUKPT Goliath Main Event Final Table Results1 Ryan Foster £62,1202 Mark Adams £40,7003 Neville Price £27,1404 Arjun Ruparel £18,9905 Rodrigo Hernandez £13,5706 Mihaly Jancso £8,8207 Adam Nice £5,4308 Phil Stein £3,3909 Liam Horton £2,710
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For an entire week, the European Poker Tour in Barcelona was the focal point of attention for poker professionals and amateurs alike. Those who couldn't afford to participate, watched the live action over the Internet, hoping to learn a thing or two about how highrollers play. At the opposite end of the spectrum, we have those who spend their time in Barcelona playing at several side events, the highrollers' tournament and the main event. Some were more successful than the other, with Andre Lettau winning the main event, but regardless of their performance in Spain, many started packing for Cyprus. Just a few days after actions subsided in Barcelona, a new tournament begins and the Party Poker WPT Merit Classic North Cyprus promises to be just as exciting. The tournament starts on September 1 and will last for 10 days, with the Merit Cristal Cove Hotel and Casino being the gracious host for the event. As always, the main event is the tournament that everyone hopes to win, despite the fact that it will set players back $4400 just to participate. It has a guaranteed prize pool of $1 million, but more money can be won and those who finish on one of the paid places might be tempted to participate in the $10,500 High-Roller event as well. There is more than meets the eye about the series and some of those who play over the Internet could attend the $125,000 guarantee $1,100 WPT buy-in Merit Poker Cup. The reason for why this tournament is so popular among online players is that qualifiers run live at Party Poker and the winners will get the chance to play for free here. Plenty of poker professionals have announced their intention to participate and some of them have already paid the buy-in, such as Sam Trickett, James Dempsey and Toby Lewis. As kickoff draws near, the field will only grow larger and it is fair to assume that by the time the main events begin, the guaranteed prize pool will be exceeded. On top of that, the weather is always lovely in Cyprus this time of the year, so those who happen to suffer an untimely elimination from the competition will have plenty of things to do outdoors. Satellites run throughout the day at PartyPoker and players can buy-in for as little as one dollar, but time is quickly running out and for many, the direct buy-in remains the only option.
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The European Poker Tour Barcelona came to an end and there were plenty of players who made the money, while those who reached the final table were generously rewarded. Contrary to popular belief, the highlight of the tournament was not the main event, but the European Poker Tour Barcelona €10,300 High Roller. It was the last one scheduled and attracted a field of 393 players, which is a record given the fact that each of them had to pay a five digit number. PKR ran qualifiers prior to the beginning of the EPT and even offered a couple of packages to those who were particularly successful online. It goes without saying that these players were presented with the chance to compete in side events, with those aspiring to win the highroller competition having to pay €10,000 out-of-pocket. Unlike regular tournaments, only those who make a very deep run can expect to offset their investment, which explains why everyone was extremely cautious around the bubble stage. Poker professionals and amateurs alike were eliminated over the first two days and only 21 of them made Day 3, with Ihar Soika being among the ones who the stacks. There were plenty of pros left in the competition when the final day of the EPT Barcelona High Roller Event began and action slowed to a crawl when only 15 players were left. In the end, the final table was reached, not before Maxim Panyak was sent home in the ninth place with a consolation prize of €73,000. Soika took advantage of the last couple of hours of play and when the remaining 8 players took their seats at the official final table, he was clearly ahead. With almost a third of all the money in front of him, he had no reason to play it safe and wait for his opponents to eliminate each other. He sent three players to the rail en route to a heads-up that saw him compete with one of the most dangerous poker pros. It was obvious that Jason Mercier will give him a run for his money, but he had the smaller stack and despite his best efforts, the Team PokerStars Pro failed to stage a remarkable comeback. He had to settle for the second place, while the winner took home in excess of €747,000. 1 Ihar Soika €747,2002 Jason Mercier €473,5003 Ismail Erkenov €342,4004 Ami Barer €276,9005 Benjamin Pollak €219,0006 Marc-Andre Ladouceur €168,6007 Stephen Chidwick €125,6008 Carlos Chadha €90,900
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