A few weeks ago, I went on a trip to Roatan with a few people, including Mark Edge whose libertarian show Free Talk Live first introduced people to Bitcoin (and Intercoin too). We ended up meeting not one, but two billionaires, working to make a difference in the world.
Here are some photos from the trip. DUNA residences on Próspera have really come along, and now boast coworking spaces:
On Roatan Island
and residences:
The beach club on Roatan had a lot of libertarians gathering for Nikolas Anzinger and his wife Kara Isabella’s VC fund demo day the next day. It was there I ran into Brian Armstrong, CEO of CoinBase, and told him that his partner Balaji’s fund (of which is he a part) had invested in Qbix to help build Network States.
I happen to meet Tone Vays, a Bitcoin maximalist podcaster and libertarian:
The next day we saw a bunch of presentations by young startups to investors, at “the dome” in the beach complex. Niklas and co are gradually building “Vitalia City”, with a focus on new approaches to longevity and biohacking:
From there, we got ready to head to dinner on the mainland in Ciudad Morezan, another libertarian ZEDE (besides Prospera/Vitalia) established by Massimo Mazzone:
We bid farewell to DUNA and headed to the airport
Sadly, we missed our flight. Even rain had delayed the plane’s departure, the register was already finalized, so they wouldn’t let us on.
It was then that I was able to arrange us a charter flight, costing around $1280 for 4 people. I thought charter flight meant there would be a smaller plane with multiple people. But I was in for a surprise…
It turns out that we had our very own – very small – plane! Yes, the four of us in a small fixed-wing plane flying for an hour over the water. It was my first time to fly in such an aircraft … I gotta say, the first time popping your cherry can definitely be a bit nervewracking. Here I am slightly worrying about the wings before takeoff:
The plane taking off:
When we disembark, I find out that even smaller planes are possible… the one in front of us is not quite a glider, but close 
On the Mainland
Honduras mainland is still known for its deadly gang fights and extortion rackets. Ciudad Morazan, one of the charter cities in Honduras, is a gated community housing local families that appreciate the security they have from the chaos outside. Many have no idea there’s anything special or libertarian about it, or that their landlord is a billionaire who built his fortune with pharmacies throughout middle America.
We meet him in the airport, and take a trip in his armored luxury pickup truck with two guards riding on the back of the truck (many Hondurans travel in this way). On the way, we stop and buy a bunch of meat and other food at the supermarket, and then head to Morazan. The ride takes a bit over an hour.
Ciudad Morazan is not super impressive at first glance. It’s the type of development I would want to create outside the city for migrants to the USA, who are shipped in large numbers to cities like NYC. But it’s built, and it works. It has internet, utilities, etc. It’s secure. There’s a friendly community including families with children. And, it’s open to all kinds of entrepreneurship and experimentation.
We finally sit down to dinner with Massimo, and I get to tell him more about what I do with Qbix and Intercoin. I explain to him about our apps, the millions of users in 100 countries that we are planning to roll things out to. But most of all, I tell him, I would like to connect him with the government of Liberia, where they want investment from people like him. He is excited.
Waking up in the morning, this is what the compound looks like:
It’s finally time to head back to the mainland. Another plane, this time “normal size”, with two engines:
If you’re curious what the nice parts of Roatan look like:
So – that was the trip. Now I’ve connected Massimo with a few people in the the Liberian government, and will be heading over to Monaco in a few weeks to discuss next steps. He lives there, and invited me for a couple days.
I like my job 
