Carol asks…
Who wants to sell their virginity?
Natalie Dylan, who recently received her bachelor’s degree in Women’s Studies from Sacramento State, went on Howard Stern earlier this month to sell her virginity for a cool mil to pay off her tuition bills. Um, last time we checked, state schools weren’t that out of reach, but we can’t blame the girl for upping her ante. Since Dylan’s sister is one of the working girls at Nevada’s most infamous brothel, and subject of HBO show Cathouse, she worked out a deal with proprietor, Dennis Hof, and her hymen is up for bidding at BunnyRanch.com. But Natalie is picking who will pluck her and all interested parties must first pass her interview process. In addition to deep pockets, the gent must have chemistry with the young businesswoman. “We’ll take bids until I find a suitor I’m happy with,” Natalie concedes. [NY Daily News]
Raffella Fico, a beautiful bikini model and reality show star, won’t give up her v-card for less than fame and fortune. At 20, Raffella might still be a chaste Catholic, but she’s a total whore for cash and publicity. Despite her seductive men’s mag spreads and bunking up as a co-ed for a season of Italian Big Brother, she swears she’s never had a boyfriend. So after all these lonely years, Fico promises to drop her panties for 1 million Euros or $1.8 million dollars. Whew, the conversion rate makes this selection even steeper! But unlike her American counterpart, Raffella is more egalitarian about her offer. “If I don’t like him, I’ll just have a glass of wine and forget about it,” she promises. After all, Fico wants to learn how to fake it and intends to use the money for acting lessons and a home in Rome. [The Telegraph]
Graciella Yataco is the smart seductress who started it all. The 18-year-old Peruvian model was barely squeaking by in 2005. She was responsible for her mother’s medical bills and also had to support her younger brother. So she decided, in an unprecedented move, to sell her virginity to the highest bidder. While a Canadian man offered her $1.5 million, mostly what she got from her religious countrymen was a lot of hate mail and public humiliation. Despite her sob story, no one offered to simply make a charitable contribution. So, after the desperate debacle, Gracia was somehow still hopeful she could better her situation on her own and at the last minute, she backed out of the deal. [BBC]
Angus Brown answers:
That’s really sad that she had to do that 
i mean, the graciella yataco person.
Your virginity is a beautiful gift, and shouldn’t be degraded like that.
Richard asks…
Before Greece started using the euro, how were the exchange rates?
Was the conversion between U.S. dollars and drachmas outrageous? Could one have lost money through this conversion? I’ve been able to find some information, specifically numbers such as that 30 GRD were originally set at equal to 1 USD, but that this rate reached 400 GRD to 1 USD by the time it was replaced. However, it’s hard to put numbers like that into perspective, so what I’m specifically looking for is if you are able to share personal experience or memories to help me understand.
I ask because I think (though I’m not certain) that exchange rates had something to do with why my grandparents eventually decided to sell the properties they owned in Greece (passed down from my yiayia’s mother). Is this possible?
Angus Brown answers:
Well, it definitely made it more difficult financially for Greek Americans to visit the country, at least for the ones that i have spoken with. Until the adoption of Euro there was a big inflation here and a constant devalue of the drachma. Nevertheless with some statistics that i checked the American tourists haven’t dropped much since the adoption of Euro, and they were never really that many (just a small portion of the total tourists visiting Greece). And if you discount the Greek Americans from that number, the rest are really few.
Sandy asks…
Is there any way for an international student to get a loan in the Netherlands?
I’m American, but I would like to study at UvA. I know I can get funds through FAFSA, but the conversion rate is very high (the loan takes dollars and converts them to Euros). Plus, I would like to work in Europe when I’m done which means I can’t start paying back my Federal loans (since I would need dollars to do so).
Is there any way for me to get a student loan in Euros in the Netherlands?
Angus Brown answers:
I think you are not going to be lucky.
First of all, FAFSA will only pay for selected schools/universities, all of which are in the USA. They might be able to loan you the money for an exchange, but not for a full study abroad. As far as I understand they do not even pay for a one year abroad.
And to get a student visa abroad, in most or all countries you have to proof that you have the money for the whole year or even whole study before you get your visa. And that is going to be a lot more for a study abroad than for one in your home country, as the gouvernment is not going to subsidize you, neither your own nor the one in the country you want to study.
Your best option would be a commercial bank, and I am sure that no European bank will loan money to a prospective American student, nor will banks in the USA be happy to send money abroad where you will be out of reach in case you fail to pay back.
The conversion rate is against you at this time, but not in the way you explain. It is that for $800 you can live a month as student in the USA, but when you come to the Netherlands, that money is going to get you €550, while you need €800 to live from.
Which means that you will need to borrow €1200 for each month instead of $800, that is besides the higher cost for tuition.
If you had been studying 20 years back your dollar would have been worth more than our currencies, which made studying abroad not much more expensive than studying at home. But you live now and the exchange rates makes studying here almost twice as expensive as studying at home. And while you stand a better chance of getting a job in Europe when you have studies here, it is by no means certain that you will, and even if you find a job, you will still have to apply for a work permit and those are often denied. In that case you will have to go back to the USA and find a job there, which might be much harder with a degree from an unknown or almost unknown European university.
Better study in the USA, where FAFSA can get you loans, where you might be able to win scholarships and apply for an exchange.
If you are serious about wanting to work in the Netherlands in the future, start learning Dutch as soon as possible. You will need it and it is not an easy language to learn.
PS, if you get a loan offer as answer to your question, on the site or as mail, be very suspicious, there are scammers that react on questions like yours, offering you the best loans with the least costs, but trying to get your information so they can steal from you.
Mark asks…
My Mom and I just bought some Euros for our Italy trip and we think the conversion is wrong?
we converted 1500 USD and received 985 Euros. When i got home I went on google and got a converter. And converted 985 Euros and it turned out to be only 1396 US dollars. Did we get Jipped?? I know the rates and stuff change but we just got them today. 10 points to someone that helps!!!!
Angus Brown answers:
The bank or wherever she converts them gets a commission, so sounds about right. When you get overseas, banks will typically show a “buy” and a “sell” rate for exchanges, the difference is their commission.
Laura asks…
Please advise the cheapest currency conversion for travel to Egypt.?
Should I convert into EGP here in the UK or draw money at the ATM in Egypt OR take sterling with me and convert it at a bank.
Also, is 10% a suitable tipping rate?
I’m confused that they accept dollars, euros and GBP sterling. I’d rather use EGP as that is their currency. What is a valid reason for not doing this?
Best regards
Angus Brown answers:
Its pretty much up to you, you can convert where you are or here its the same, the sterling here has higher conversion price than dollars or euros as one sterling pound is worth about 10 egyptian pounds here,but i recommend that you convert your money in a bank before you travel to save your time
Powered by Yahoo! Answers
