I spent the morning on one of the best museum trips I’ve ever taken. In Prague’s old town, there is a Jewish Quarter. There are at least five synagogues within a stone’s throw from each other, and a massive, yet tiny, cemetary that was quite impressive. I’ll get back to that seemingly oxymoronic comment in a second.

For 480 Czech Crowns (at yesterday’s close, that’s US$28.25) I bought a single ticket that gave me entrance to five synagogues, the Old Jewish Cemetary, a Ceremonial Hall and the Gallery of Robert Guttmann.

These sites were extremely crowded, but the attendants were very helpful in moving folks along, and every artifact was clearly explained in Czech and English. And Hebrew, in some instances. But let me get back to that comment for a minute.

The Old Jewish Cemetary is one of the most important sites on the ticket. It was established in the beginning of the 15th century and the oldest gravestone is that of Avigdor Kara from 1439. The whole area was less than the size of a football field, but has more than 12,000 gravemarkers.

Experts say that there are many more graves than gravestone in this cemetary, though. As the area was “expanded”, the residents brought in more dirt, and the new graves were layered overtop the old ones. Now, the top of layer is more than 15 feet higher than the street level.

It was one of the most haunting and interesting moments on the tour.

Another interesting sight was the Spanish Synagogue. The temple was inspired by Moorish design and was built in 1868. Rich wood panelling is gilded and painted withflowing designs and deep reds and blues. It made me catch my breath.

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For Russian citizens, bread lines have given way to conga lines at one of the hottest resorts in Turkey.

The commodities boom in Russia is allowing the former Soviet citizenry to enjoy the Life of Riley that Americans once took for granted.

Instead, we now get the Staycation.

Our former Cold War enemy enjoys water aerobics; we park a beach chair under the backyard sprinkler. Our former Cold War enemy hops a plane to some hot resort; we can’t afford to back the SUV out of the driveway. Our former Cold War enemy savors caviar by candlelight; we chow down weenies at the Wal-Mart.

But don’t worry, it’s OK. You’re taking part in that new American sensation called the Staycation. While Big Media would like you to believe that the Staycation is a good thing, it really is just another clue that we lost the Cold War to Russia.

Rather than face up to our Cold War defeat and invest accordingly, we let Big Media package our economic house arrest as a cheery Staycation. You’re not poor; you’re on a Staycation. Sure, go ahead and spend $70 on the family to see the latest Indiana Jones remake set in a time when America ruled. Back then, the Dow Jones Industrial Average really meant something.

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More than a million foreign nationals have crept into the costal regions of Mexico already… but that number is growing.

They are seeking cheap, easy access to the 2,000-mile border with the United States, and the Mexican government is helping them, even creating laws to aid them. Why? Because these people pump $5.3 billion into the country’s economy every year.

Mexico’s being paid off, and certain U.S. agencies are joining in. They want to make it even easier for foreign nationals to creep into our southern neighbor’s towns and cities.

In one popular nest, the wave of zealots has reached 60 people a day. That’s about 15% a year as the size of this camp has grown to over 200,000. The state government in the area is allowing this group to run rampant; the incoming cash is too hard to resist.

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I was having lunch with my friend and colleague Andrew Mickey, and our conversation turned to a New York Times article about Wall Street hot shots turning to farming.

Yes, it sounds like a pitch for a remake of the Green Acres TV comedy, but this is a high-stakes twist on a global agri-boom.

The current food crisis sees no letting up, creating opportunities for investors accustomed to commodities such as oil, natural gas and metals. As the Times reported, the largest investment funds have already poured hundreds of billions of dollars into wheat, corn and soybeans.

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