• Over the last year, we have traveled the world for Business Insider, visiting nearly 20 countries and climates ranging from Beijing's frosty spring to summer in the Middle East.
• Since we each brought only a carry-on suitcase and a backpack, we had packed it strategically with only the most essential items.
• We found that packing for a long trip was easy so long as you pack the right items that serve multiple purposes, like hiking boots that look good on a dance floor or a short-sleeve turtleneck that looks as good in the board room as out on the town.

SEE ALSO: I'm taking a trip around the world with only a carry-on suitcase — here's everything I packed

DON'T MISS: I traveled the world for 6 months with only a carry-on suitcase, and there are 5 things I wouldn't bother packing again

Harrison's Top Five: 1. ExOfficio ($26) or Uniqlo Airism ($10) boxers

The first question I got about packing came from my stepdad, who asked, "But how many pairs of underwear do you pack? A dozen?"

When I told him only three, he looked at me incredulously. But it's all about what type of underwear you pack. For years,the Give-N-Go boxers by ExOfficiohave been my travel staple. They are lightweight, durable, antimicrobial, and can be washed and dried in a matter of hours, making them the perfect travel companion. But at close to $30 a pair, they are expensive.

Before I left in March, I decided to try out the AIRism boxers by Uniqlo. After using them for close to a year, I can confirm that they provide similar performance and features (quick drying, anti-microbial, etc) at a fraction of the price.

2. Uniqlo Sprz NY Pocketable Parka ($20)

It's difficult to fit bulky items like a winter coat or a rain jacket in a tightly packed suitcase, so usually I have to improvise my layers.

The Uniqlo Sprz NY Pocketable Parka works as a rain jacket, a windbreaker, and an outer shell that I can wear a lot of layers under when I'm out camping in the desert or up in the mountains.

It comes with a stuff sack so you can compact it down to the size of a soda can. At this point, it's always in my backpack, just in case.

3. Fracap M120 Ripple Sole Scarponcino Boots ($275)

I find that shoes are the most difficult thing to pack on a trip. Do you pack running shoes or hip street sneakers? Hiking books or dress shoes? Even on a short trip, I often find myself walking around a city one day, hiking in the mountains the next, at a club one night, and at a business dinner another. 

The best way to get around this conundrum is to pack shoes that serve multiple purposes. Before leaving in March, I decided to find shoes that could serve a pretty ridiculous dual purpose — heavy duty enough that I could hike in them, while snazzy enough that they could pass at a business meeting or in a club.

The only one I could find that fit the bill were the M120 Ripple Sole Scarponcino Boots, made by boutique Italian shoemaker Fracap. At $275, they were the most expensive shoes I've ever bought, but I've definitely gotten my money's worth.

• Millennials still favor big metro areas like New York City and San Francisco, but they're increasingly attracted to up-and-coming cities like Raleigh and Louisville, according to a MagnifyMoney report.
• MagnifyMoney ranked the biggest boomtowns in America for millennials based on the 50 largest metros.
• These cities have seen higher wages, a decrease in unemployment, and a growing millennial population.

New York City may no longer reign supreme when it comes to the top cities millennials are settling in, but it's still a boomtown for the generation.

Other big metro areas like San Francisco and Washington, DC, are also millennial hotspots, but so too are more up-and-coming cities like Raleigh, North Carolina, and Louisville, Kentucky, both of which are more popular than DC and New York.

That's according to a report by MagnifyMoney, which ranked the biggest boomtowns in America for millennials.

Using data from the US Census, MagnifyMoney looked at growth in the 50 largest metropolitan areas between 2011 and 2016 for four metrics: population, labor force, employment, and median wages. The first three metrics were analyzed based on people aged 20-29, while the fourth was based on those born between 1981 and 1991. By limiting the study to this subset of millennials, who were approximately between the ages of 20 and 30 in 2011, this avoids the inclusion of working statistics of high schoolers.

Each category was scored relative to other metros, looking at positive and negative changes in the area. The biggest positive change scored a 100, with the exception of unemployment rate, which was reversed. To calculate the final score, the metric scores were added up and divided by four.

See below for the 25 biggest millennial boomtowns that have seen higher wages, a decrease in unemployment, and a growing millennial population.

SEE ALSO: Forget New York — these are the 10 surprising cities millennials are moving to

DON'T MISS: 5 millennials who became homeowners in their 20s share their best advice for buying your first house

25. Salt Lake City, Utah

Increase in millennial population: 6.5%

Increase in median wages: 15.4%

Decrease in unemployment rate: -42.8%

24. Memphis, Tennessee

Increase in millennial population: -0.7%

Increase in median wages: 30.2%

Decrease in unemployment rate: -40.6%

23. New York City, New York

Increase in millennial population: 6.2%

Increase in median wages: 13.6%

Decrease in unemployment rate: -35.8%

• President Donald Trump's most recent public campaign against the US intelligence community has stunned current and former intelligence officials.
• "He's doing the enemy's job for them," one FBI agent told INSIDER.
• Another agent compared Trump's unwillingness to accept intelligence assessments that contradict his beliefs to the behavior of a toddler.
• "It's like when my son threw temper tantrums when I told him he couldn't do something or if I said something he didn't like. Of course, my son was three years old at the time and wasn't sitting in the Oval Office with the nuclear button," the second agent told INSIDER.
• As a result of Trump's actions, intelligence officers are "more vulnerable to approaches by foreign intelligence services — and more vulnerable to accepting those approaches — than any other time in US history," Glenn Carle, a former CIA covert operative, told INSIDER.
• "For decades, the Soviet Union and, more recently, Russia, have denigrated the CIA and our intelligence professionals, attempting to delegitimize US intelligence in the process," another intelligence veteran, Ned Price, said. "Now our adversaries have a helper who sits in the Oval Office."

President Donald Trump's public insults against his top intelligence chiefs and apparent unwillingness to accept assessments that contradict his own beliefs pose a dire threat to US national security and create a goldmine for foreign intelligence services to exploit, current and former intelligence officials told INSIDER.

Trump's latest attacks came after US intelligence leaders, including FBI director Chris Wray, CIA director Gina Haspel, and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, testified to the Senate Intelligence Committee at an annual hearing on Tuesday regarding the top global security threats facing the country.

Trump grew enraged when, among other things, the officials testified that while Iran is still a global threat, it is complying with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), an international deal the Obama administration spearheaded that's designed to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

The assertion directly contradicted the president's claims that Iran is violating the deal and poses an imminent nuclear threat to the US. The officials also offered intelligence assessments on other hot-button issues, like the Islamic State and North Korea, that went against Trump's foreign policy claims.

Read more:Roger Stone says he'd be open to talking about his conversations with Trump, and that could be a game changer for Mueller

In a typical reaction, Trump took to Twitter to lash out after the hearing.

"The Intelligence people seem to be extremely passive and naive when it comes to the dangers of Iran," the president tweeted. "They are wrong! When I became President Iran was making trouble all over the Middle East, and beyond. Since ending the terrible Iran Nuclear Deal, they are MUCH different, but ... a source of potential danger and conflict."

He added: "They are testing Rockets (last week) and more, and are coming very close to the edge. There economy is now crashing, which is the only thing holding them back. Be careful of Iran. Perhaps Intelligence should go back to school!"

Asked to weigh in on Trump's public attacks on his intelligence chiefs, one current FBI agent put it bluntly.

"He's doing the enemy's job for them," the agent, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press, told INSIDER.

A goldmine for foreign intelligence

Trump's apparently short attention span during intelligence briefings is well established. Several media reports over the last two years said officials try to keep the president focused by using visual aids and photographs and by condensing the material. They also reportedly use his name and title as often as possible to get him to pay more attention.

But according to TIME, officials are most alarmed by Trump's angry reactions when they brief him on information that contradicts his beliefs. Two intelligence officers told TIME that they had been warned not to give the president intelligence assessments that contradict his public stances.

A current FBI agent who works in intelligence-gathering reacted wryly to the report by comparing Trump to a toddler.

"This isn't unusual," the agent told INSIDER. "It's like when my son threw temper tantrums when I told him he couldn't do something or if I said something he didn't like."

The agent added: "Of course, my son was three years old at the time and wasn't sitting in the Oval Office with the nuclear button."

Read more: DOJ veterans say Trump and Giuliani's recent attacks against Cohen could rise to the level of criminal conduct

Glenn Carle, a former CIA covert operative who spent his career recruiting foreign spies as double agents for the US, offered a more sobering assessment.

Trump's repeated unwillingness to accept the findings of his own intelligence community "makes Americans in the national security establishment more vulnerable to approaches by foreign intelligence services — and more vulnerable to accepting those approaches — than any other time in US history," Carle told INSIDER.

"Here's the dilemma: how do you serve an executive who might be a foreign asset and who undermines the functioning of the national security establishment?" Carle said. "If you serve him, you might be betraying your oath to preserve and protect the Constitution. If you don't, then you're betraying your oath to serve the executive and your commander."

He added: "CIA officers spend our careers preying upon exactly this dilemma."

'There's never been a man in the Oval Office who has zero regard for the truth'

Trump's attacks on the intelligence community are not a new phenomenon. He began casting doubt on the CIA's assessment that Russia interfered in the election as early as December 2016. In the months before and after, he repeatedly refused to publicly condemn the Russian government for meddling in the race and said it could also have been China or independent hackers.

Last year, the president stunned observers when he said during a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin that he trusted Putin's word that Russia did not interfere over the US intelligence community's findings. Following swift public backlash, Trump walked back his statements and said he had confidence in US intelligence.

After intelligence officials testified to the Senate Intelligence Committee last week, Trump met with them in the Oval Office.

Before the meeting, reporters asked Trump whether he had confidence that Haspel and Coats would give him sound advice.

"No, I disagree with certain things they said," the president replied. "I think I'm right, but time will prove that. Time will prove me right, probably."

On Thursday, after their meeting in the Oval Office, Trump claimed the intelligence chiefs told him their testimony had been "misquoted," "mischaracterized," and "distorted" by the media.

"They said it was fake news, which frankly didn’t surprise me," Trump said.

The hearing was public and was broadcast on multiple news networks in real time. Coats, who spoke on behalf of the five intelligence officials who appeared before the panel, also submitted 42 pages of written testimony, and video of the hearing was posted to the Senate Intelligence Committee's website.

Read more: Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker says he thinks the Mueller probe is 'close to being completed'

Ned Price, the former Senior Director of the National Security Council under President Barack Obama, outlined the myriad national security risks that stem from the divide between Trump and the US intelligence community.

"First, there's the risk that senior intelligence officials begin to pull their punches, watering down their assessments in order not to offend the President and his advisors," Price told INSIDER. "Doing so could well leave our top national security officials blind, or at the very least, more susceptible to threats facing us."

The attacks could also "continue to fuel a sense of demoralization within our intelligence community," Price added.

One recently retired FBI agent echoed Price's assessment, telling INSIDER that morale within the bureau "has already been down — especially in the rank and file — because of the president's public attacks on the work they do."

The agent added, "On top of that, FBI agents went without pay during the longest government shutdown in US history. In some way, the president's latest actions are just adding another straw to the pile. But that doesn't make it sting any less. How can you effectively work for someone who publicly insults everything you stand for and demonstrates so little confidence in your product?"

Carle agreed, highlighting that Trump's personality traits add another layer of complexity.

"The US intelligence community's job is to speak truth to power," Carle said. "It's not to tell the executive what he wants to hear and what supports his positions. But there's never been a man in the Oval Office who has zero regard for the truth. He is only interested in his own self-aggrandizement. There is nothing else. Nothing."

Perhaps the most chilling effect of Trump's actions, national security experts said, is the goldmine it produces for foreign intelligence services.

"For decades, the Soviet Union and, more recently, Russia, have denigrated the CIA and our intelligence professionals, attempting to delegitimize US intelligence in the process," Price said. "Now our adversaries have a helper who sits in the Oval Office."

SEE ALSO: Michael Cohen gears up to testify to 3 congressional committees before reporting to prison

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: MSNBC host Chris Hayes thinks President Trump's stance on China is 'not at all crazy'

• The Queen could be evacuated if there are riots over Brexit.
• There are plans in place to scatter members of the Royal Family in houses around the country if things get violent. 
• The plans were put in place in 1962.
• But there is no guarantee the royals would actually leave.

LONDON — British officials have revived Cold War emergency plans to relocate the royal family should there be riots in London if Britain suffers a disruptive departure from the European Union next month, two Sunday newspapers reported.

"These emergency evacuation plans have been in existence since the Cold War, but have now been repurposed in the event of civil disorder following a no-deal Brexit," the Sunday Times said, quoting an unnamed source from the government's Cabinet Office, which handles sensitive administrative issues.

The Mail on Sunday also said it had learnt of plans to move the royal family, including Queen Elizabeth, to safe locations away from London.

Britain's government is struggling to get parliamentary support for a Brexit transition agreement with the EU before the departure date of March 29, and the government and businesses are preparing contingency plans for a "no-deal" Brexit.

Business groups have warned of widespread disruption if there are lengthy delays to EU imports due to new customs checks, and even possible shortages of food and medicine.

Last month an annual speech by the 92-year-old queen to a local women's group was widely interpreted in Britain as a call for politicians to reach agreement over Brexit.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, a Conservative lawmaker and keen supporter of Brexit, told the Mail on Sunday he believed the plans showed unnecessary panic by officials over a no-deal Brexit, as senior royals had remained in London during World War Two bombing.

But the Sunday Times said an ex-police officer formerly in charge of royal protection, Dai Davies, expected Queen Elizabeth would be moved out of London if there was unrest.

"If there were problems in London, clearly you would remove the royal family away from those key sites," Davies was quoted as saying.

A senior government source told the Express that this is not a case of "project fear."

"There are dozens of contingency planners whose job is to envisage every possible eventuality," they said. "They would be negligent if they didn’t include the Royals in that, however far-fetched the scenario might seem."

The plan was apparently originally drawn up in 1962 following the Cuban Missile Crisis, and was named Operation Candid. The plans included sending Royal Family members to country houses all over the country with special armed guards.  

There is no guarantee the evacuations would actually happen, though. During World War II, the Royal Family refused to leave London.

(Reporting by David Milliken, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

SEE ALSO: Will the Queen step in to save Brexit from being stopped?

Join the conversation about this story »

• Learn2Play is an educational platform that teaches people to play eSports for money.
• There are already tournaments where players can win millions of dollars.
• The skills people learn can be applied to the real world too.
• The difference between video games and eSports is the latter is not just for fun.
• It's important players have a life outside of gaming and look after themselves, the founders said.

In December, eSports EdTech company Learn2Play hit a major milestone of one million users. By raising $2.1 million in seed investments, and the fact prize money in eSports tournaments has surpassed $200 million this year, the company's success arguably reflects the explosive growth of the industry.

"I've never been a sports enthusiast, and I've never been a gamer, but I saw a huge business opportunity in this market," founder of Learn2Play Maxim Dreval told Business Insider. "We saw how it's difficult to up your skills to play better to compete with other gamers ... It's maybe ten times more difficult, than [say] chess."

The way Learn2Play works is it involves projects that teach people to play games for money, from amateurs to professionals. These include training platforms for games like Dota2, League of Legends, Overwatch, and Hearthstone.

When your hobby becomes a career

Elena Urusova, a professional competitive player and cofounder of Learn2Play told Business Insider gamers usually start playing because they like to compete with their friends, but that hobby can now also turn into a lucrative career.

"It's about competing, it's about telling each other you are best in something, that's why we are always trying to improve our skills," she said. "When the first tournaments appeared, we started to create teams and started to train a lot. We had even a training schedule. It was like training in basketball, and in football, but gaming at that time remained a hobby."

In the early 2000s, things started to change, and organisations were formed that could help teams and players pay for their devices and tickets to tournaments.

"Over ten years, everything was developing and tournaments got much bigger," Urusova said. "A lot of brands and sponsors came to eSports. Organisations today can provide gamers with big salaries, and today players had earn tens of thousands of dollars in their organisations, and they can win millions of dollars in eSports tournaments."

One tournament, for example, called The International, had a prize pool of $20 million last year.

Dreval said in some places like China and Korea, men who play eSports are some of the most famous people in their country, and they have huge salaries.

"That's why it's more like sport than like games," he said. "It's not just for fun."

Gaming can improve many skills

Urusova said she got into eSports when she was about 17, at a time in her life when she was trying to figure out what she should do. Research has shown how video games can be great for bonding with other people you're playing with, and also improve your skills in coordination, problem-solving, and memory, and Urusova has experienced some of that herself.

"I started to communicate with people much better when I started to play because you need to play with people in a team, and you need to find the right words to talk with them," she said. "Strategy as well, I started to use self-examination to find where I was going wrong."

You can use the teamwork skills you learn in the outside world too, she said, like working with people to solve problems and setting goals.

Read more:Being hooked on video games isn't necessarily an addiction — here's why

But it's important to have a balance, Urusova said, especially as there is some evidence that video games can be addictive.

"In eSports we always say you need to do something else instead of games," she said. "Proplayers are always saying to people who are watching that it's very important to eat healthy foods, and to have physical exercise."

For example, one player called Jarosław Jarząbkowski, known as PashaBiceps, often says you need a healthy body to have a healthy mind. Other proplayers have families and responsibilities outside of eSports, and most of Learn2Play's members are over 18 years old, which is rather different to the stereotype of a teenager playing games all day and night.

Dreval said it's the difference between playing games for fun, and competing in eSports.

"In eSports games you are playing for competing and winning, and you understand you should be healthy," he said. "In games, not eSports, it's like you are playing just for fun, for satisfaction."

'You should be hungry'

Urusova experienced what happens when you don't look after yourself when she was training for one tournament for four months without any breaks.

"I was sleeping about four hours per day because I wanted to win this tournament so much," she said. "And when it came to this tournament, I was so tired, I had no motivation to win, because I didn't like the game anymore."

Her team came third overall, which upset her but also made her realise that training so intensely was wrong.

"You should be hungry, you should miss the game before the tournament," she said. "Because if you are coming to the tournament hungry you are playing like God. You trained so long and you are doing everything right because you you want to show to everyone that you are the best."

The gaming industry is growing by more than 30% per year, and it looks like it's only going up. Urusova said she believes around half of eSports players are women, but we don't always see that in the tournaments. Dreval added he would like to see more representation, but it's the same problem that many sports face — there is a larger audience for men's tournaments.

"From my own point of view, my team is always competing in all events, and I was always surrounded by support and respect from my colleagues, female and male," Urusova said.

"It's always been about competition. If you are good, it doesn't matter who you are in eSports. If you are a woman but you are playing like a God, you will play in a good team with good players. There's no reason why not."

SEE ALSO: The world's largest health organization just classified video game addiction as a disorder

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 7 science-backed ways to a happier and healthier 2019 that you can do the first week of the new year

• Avianca is Colombia's national airline.
• I recently flew with Avianca round trip from New York City's John F. Kennedy airport to Bogotá's El Dorado International Airport.
• I found the flight comfortable yet lacking in many aspects.

I recently flew with Avianca roundtrip from New York City's John F. Kennedy airport to Bogotá's El Dorado International Airport.

Avianca is Colombia's national airline, and it's actually the second-oldest airline in the world. The airline was founded in 1919 as the Colombian-German Air Transport Company. Because the oldest airline in the world is the Netherland's KLM, it's the Americas' oldest airliner. 

It's the second-largest airliner in South America, after Chile's LATAM. As Business Insider's Benjamin Zhang reported, the two airlines are vying to edge each other out in the continent, particularly in Brazil.  

With the understanding that Avianca was one of South America's biggest, and the Western Hemisphere's oldest, my expectations for the airline was high.

Here's why I was more disappointed than impressed with my flying experience.

I reached out to Avianca for a response to some of my issues on the flight and they responded in the article below.

SEE ALSO: 2 super airlines are fighting for supremacy over the skies of South America

After a delightful trip to Bogotá, I made my way to El Dorado International Airport, which is Avianca's hub in Colombia. The line to drop off one's bag and check in looked hectic, but luckily I didn't have a bag to check and I had checked in online.

But, if I had packed a bit more, Avianca has a pretty forgiving baggage policy. I could have checked two bags as an Economy passenger, which Avianca calls "Tourist Class." And business class travelers get *four* bags checked for free, two of which can be up to 70 pounds.

After a relatively speedy immigration and security process, I was in Bogotá's international terminal. The airport was definitely one of the nicer ones I've been to — the signage was clear, the facilities looked new, and there was an array of dining, shopping, and beverage options.

• What brands are you obsessed with?
• Signs.com recently conducted a survey to find out consumers' preferred brands.
• Walmart's generic brands dominated the rankings.

SEE ALSO: These popular coffee brands offer the biggest bang for your buck

DON'T MISS: Inside the career of Brian Cornell, who ran Sam's Club before becoming Target's first-ever outsider CEO

SEE ALSO: Costco, Trader Joe's, Kroger, and the 8 other stores with generic brands that customers trust the most

Body wash: Dove

Second choice: Suave

Third choice: Walmart's Equate brand

Bottled water: Walmart's Great Value

Second choice: Costco's Kirkland

Third choice: Aquafina

Coffee: Starbucks

Second choice: Folgers

Third choice: Maxwell House

• During a wide-ranging interview on CBS' "Face The Nation," President Donald Trump said "you have to get rid of the Russia investigation," parroted a Kremlin talking point, downplayed the crimes members of his inner circle pleaded guilty to, and suggested he may object to the release of a final report in the Russia probe.
• He referred to the 12 Russian military intelligence officers and 13 Russian nationals aligned with the Kremlin who have been charged as "bloggers."
• He also defended the longtime GOP strategist Roger Stone, who was recently arrested and charged with lying to Congress, obstruction, and witness tampering. Trump said he has "not thought about" pardoning Stone yet.
• And while the president initially said it's up to the attorney general whether or not to release the special counsel Robert Mueller's final report, Trump walked his comment back, saying, "I don't know. It depends. I have no idea what it's going to say." 

President Donald Trump unleashed his frustration about the Russia investigation and the special counsel Robert Mueller during a wide-ranging interview on CBS' "Face The Nation" that aired Sunday.

Among other things, the president said "you have to get rid of the Russia witch hunt" and attempted to downplay the indictments and guilty pleas so far, many of which have come from members of his inner circle.

Thirty-four people have been charged as part of the investigation, which is examining Russia's interference in the 2016 US election and whether the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow. Several people, including the former national security adviser Michael Flynn, the former campaign manager Paul Manafort, the former deputy campaign manager Rick Gates, and Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen, have pleaded guilty.

Asked to address the indictments and guilty pleas, Trump replied, " Of the 34 people, many of them were bloggers from Moscow or they were people that had nothing to do with me, had nothing to do with what they're talking about, or there were people that got caught telling a fib or telling a lie."

The "bloggers" the president referenced are 12 Russian military intelligence officers and 13 Russian nationals working for a troll farm supported by the Kremlin. By calling them bloggers, Trump appeared to be echoing Russian President Vladimir Putin's claim that many of the Russians who were indicted are merely independent hackers who are not aligned with the Kremlin. But US intelligence officials say the defense is a red herring because the Kremlin rarely carries out its own orders. Instead, Putin is known to use proxies to do his dirty work to maintain plausible deniability.

Read more: Mueller indicts 12 Russian intelligence officers on hacking charges

Meanwhile, Cohen, Manafort, Flynn, Gates, and the former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos all pleaded guilty to lying to Congress or the FBI — which is a felony — about their Russia contacts or business dealings involving Russia during the election. Manafort and Gates also pleaded guilty to other crimes including conspiracy and obstruction. All of them are currently cooperating or formerly cooperated with prosecutors.

"I think it's a terrible thing that's happened to this country because this investigation is a witch hunt," Trump told CBS' Margaret Brennan. "When you look at General Flynn where the FBI said he wasn't lying, but Robert Mueller said he was, and they took a man and destroyed his life. When you look at so many of the things that have happened — why didn't they go after Hillary Clinton for her emails? She had 33,000 emails that were deleted after receiving a subpoena from Congress."

Brennan interjected and asked Trump about the longtime GOP strategist Roger Stone, who was indicted in January for lying to Congress about his interactions involving WikiLeaks, obstruction, and witness tampering.

"First of all, Roger Stone didn't work on the campaign, except way, way at the beginning, long before we're talking about," Trump responded. "Roger is somebody that I've always liked, but a lot of people like Roger — some people probably don't like Roger — but Roger Stone's somebody I've always liked."

Read more: Meet Roger Stone — One of Donald Trump's most loyal supporters, who was just indicted by the Mueller probe

Stone was an informal adviser to the Trump campaign in the early stages of the race. Even after he stopped advising the campaign, Stone and Trump had frequent late-night phone calls. Both Stone and Trump have said they did not discuss WikiLeaks, Russia, or WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange during their calls.

But prosecutors are said to be zeroing in on those calls, one of which took place in early August 2016, hours after Stone learned from his associate, Jerome Corsi, that WikiLeaks had obtained "damaging" information on the Clinton campaign and was planning on releasing it soon.

Prosecutors also dropped a bombshell when they revealed that a senior Trump campaign official "was directed" by someone else on the campaign to stay in touch with Stone about WikiLeaks' planned document dumps.

Stone pleaded not guilty to all the charges and struck a defiant tone following his arrest. He also went on a media blitz asserting his innocence, and he stacked his team with a well known First Amendment lawyer, indicating that he intends to fight a gag order if one is imposed on him.

"Would you pardon him?" Brennan asked Trump.

"I have not thought about it," Trump said. "It looks like he's defending himself very well. But you have to get rid of the Russia witch hunt."

Read more: Mueller dropped a huge bombshell in Roger Stone's indictment, and it's bad news for Trump

Mueller is said to be putting together a report of his key findings in the Russia investigation that will be submitted to deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein. When a new attorney general — likely William Barr, a former White House lawyer in the George H.W. Bush administration who also served as attorney general — is confirmed, they would decide whether to release the report to Congress, which would in turn be able to release it to the public.

Asked whether he would elect to have the Mueller report made public, Trump initially said it was "totally up to the attorney general."

Later, he walked back his comments, saying, "I don't know. It depends. I have no idea what it's going to say."

SEE ALSO: 'He's doing the enemy's job for them': Current and former officials compare Trump to a toddler and say his attacks on the intel community create a goldmine for foreign governments

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: MSNBC host Chris Hayes thinks President Trump's stance on China is 'not at all crazy'

Bud Light brought back its viral "Dilly Dilly" campaign in a weird crossover ad with Game of Thrones at the Super Bowl.

The brand turned the phrase into a cultural phenomenon back in 2017. The company launched a series of ads created by the Wieden+Kennedy ad agency that went viral, thanks to their constant appearances during commercial breaks in NFL and college football games. 

At Business Insider's IGNITION conference in New York in 2017, we got to chat with the man ultimately responsible for the "Dilly Dilly" campaign: Anheuser-Busch InBev Chief Marketing Officer Miguel Patricio. We asked him about the origin of the campaign and — with the Super Bowl looming — if the brand had any plans to make any new "Dilly Dilly" ads. Following is a transcript of the video.

Graham Flanagan: What the hell does "Dilly Dilly" mean?

Miguel Patricio: "Dilly Dilly" doesn't mean anything. That's the beauty of it. I think that we all need our moments of nonsense and fun. And I think that "Dilly Dilly," in a way, represents that. A lot of people asked me, "How did you approve that?"

[You can thank this man for the "Dilly Dilly" campaign. He's the Chief Marketing Officer of AB InBev]

To tell you the truth, we never expected this to be so successful. It didn't test that well. We did that ad, actually, because of – the new season of "Game of Thrones" coming, but when we tested, it didn't test that well. We said, "Consumers will get it."

And especially with repetition. We have a chance here for this to become big. So, we went against the research and we gave a chance to "Dilly Dilly" and we are so happy!

[The spot was created by the Wieden+Kennedy ad agency]

I think that one of the proofs of success,  nowadays, from a cultural standpoint, is when you go to Amazon and you don't do anything, there are people already selling t-shirts. Two weeks ago, I went on Amazon. There were like ten different types of "Dilly Dilly" t-shirts. I said "Yes! That's it!"

It becomes a cultural currency. 

Flanagan: You're suing all those people, right?

Patricio: No, no. We want everybody to "Dilly Dilly" in their life, so no problem. We are gonna bring more fun, more Dilly Dillys ... Super Bowl is pretty close. Maybe we'll surprise you with a Dilly Dilly soon. I don't know. Maybe!

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• Everlane just launched $75 rain boots for women in five colors: surplus, black, toffee, pink, and stone.
• We tested them before the launch to give you an idea of what they're like in person. We found them comfortable, stylish, fairly priced, and easy to clean. We appreciated their traction and being able to wear them at the office.
• Cons to consider are that they only come in whole sizes and they're fairly short, so you have to judge puddle depth. 
• Shop them directly here, or find our reviews below. 

Rain boots done the old way conjure up visions of sopranos singing show tunes and tall, oversized polka-dot boots stomping through sunshowers. 

But when it rains in New York City, it doesn't feel like a syrupy postwar musical. It feels like Monday, and you probably don't have the cheerful optimism to drag one clunky rubber boot around all day, let alone two — which means you definitely don't want to schlep a second pair of shoes around to change for the office. What you need is one cushiony pair that magically transitions from gritty rubber rain boot to slick Chelsea without skipping a beat. And preferably one that isn't going to cost more than you'd be willing to spend on either. 

For that tall order, you should check out Everlane's $75 rain boot. It comes in five neutral colors (surplus, black, toffee, pink, and stone), and whole sizes. Currently, they're only available on the women's portion of the site, but men could conceivably get their own pair with a little help from the company's live chat box for size conversion. 

The design team's goal was simple: make the most comfortable rain boot possible. Or, in other words, the rain boot they wished existed. As a result, the $75 rain boot has a versatile ankle height, grippy tread, and a custom-designed cushioned insole for bouncy comfort. The stretch panels and pull tabs make them easier to throw on and off, and the rubber is flexible and easy to clean. They've got plenty of room for thick, wintry socks, and black rubber reinforcements at the front for extra coverage — and some style points. 

Before the launch, we tested Everlane's new $75 rain boots in the grimy slush and rain that the 2019 Polar Vortex transmuted to once it touched New York City. We stomped through puddles, ran to catch trains, and rushed through hectic weekdays at the office. Before you buy a pair, we've compiled our thoughts on them below.

All in all, Everlane's team has proven themselves extremely capable in the past at giving shoppers what they want at a price they can afford. Their $68 authentic stretch jeans (which we included in our all-time favorite jeans roundup), Supima cotton underwear (which we included in our Buying Guide on the best women's underwear you can buy), and plenty of other styles we wear every day, are a few examples of this. Their new $75 rain boots fall in line nicely.

We tried Everlane's $75 rain boots. Here's what we thought:

Surplus

Everlane Rain Boot in Surplus, $75

Rain boots are typically so big, clunky, stiff, and ugly that I don’t wear them. I usually just pull on some Doc Martens and try to avoid deep puddles. Everlane’s new rain boots are made of such soft, flexible real rubber that they bend with you and feel like super comfortable shoes. The traction on the bottom sole is fantastic — and key for slippery wet surfaces that can be treacherous like stairs and the subway platform. These boots actually look cool, too, which isn’t something I thought I’d say about a rain boot. I ordered my normal boot size — 8 — and they were slightly big, which I liked because I can wear thick socks with them. The rise of the boot is fairly short, though, so you need to judge puddle depth carefully or risk wet feet. — Malarie Gokey, Buying Guides editor

Toffee

Everlane Rain Boot in Toffee, $75

I have a lot of trouble with rain boots. I’m just over 5-foot-1, so shorter boots tend to make my legs look stubby, and taller boots tend to be totally overwhelming on my frame. Everlane has somehow perfectly mastered the height of their boots, and they cut off in just the right spot to not make my legs look like short little sausages. Thanks to a slit in the rubber that’s covered by elastic panels on the side, the boots have a flexible shaft that doesn’t chafe your legs — an issue I’ve had with every past pair of rain boots I’ve tried. The cushioned insert is also extremely comfy, so I feel like I can actually wear these all day and not just change into backup shoes once I get to the office. Oh, and I recommend sizing up if you're a half size. More room for warm socks! — Sally Kapan, Insider Picks editor

Stone

Everlane Rain Boot in Stone, $75

These rain boots are low, minimalist, and industrial in an avant-garde style that makes people take a second longer to look at them. They're definitely cool enough for daytime wear or keeping on in the office and functional enough to warrant it. In terms of design, they’re a great rain boot. They’re cushiony, the traction on the bottom is trustworthy, and the elasticized strips on the sides circumvent the dreaded chafing rain boots often incur. All in all, they're a good use of $75 if you like the look of them.

They’re only available in whole sizes which wasn’t an issue for me, but should be of note. They’re designed slightly big, so you can easily fit thick socks inside, and a half size down shouldn’t be too noticeable. This means there’s a gap between your ankle and the lip of the boot if you’re wearing leggings or thinner pants, though, which I worried about for downpours — however, most rainy days are accompanied with an umbrella, and, even when they weren’t, my feet stayed dry. But, you may need to watch out for deep puddles before stomping in them. — Mara Leighton, Insider Picks reporter

• Tanzania, and Africa's, best-known safari destination is the Serengeti, 12,000 miles of grasslands, forests, swamps, and woodlands teeming with wildlife.
• On a recent trip to Tanzania, I was told by my guide that many repeat safari tourists end up preferring Tanzania's far larger, Southern Circuit, which includes the 21,000-square mile Selous Game Reserve.
• Eighty percent of tourists to Tanzania visit the Northern Circuit, where the Serengeti is located. During peak season the parks are flooded with safari jeeps.
• Tanzania's southern parks are far more remote and far more wild. With far fewer tourists, they are often cheaper due to the lack of developed tourist facilities. 

Most people only go on safari once in their lives.

It's far from the cheapest vacation you can take — costing a few thousand dollars at minimum — and, outside the lucky few who live in places like South Africa or Kenya, it's a long flight away.

For many, the safari they dream of is the Serengeti. Spanning 12,000 square miles in northern Tanzania, the Serengeti looks like the plains of Africa you see in the movies. The setting of The Lion King is supposedly modeled after the Serengeti. 

It's by far one of the most popular safari destination, too. Out of the 1.4 million visitors to Tanzania, 80% visit either the Serengeti, the adjacent Ngorongoro Crater, or Mount Kilimanjaro — the three destinations that make up Tanzania's Northern Circuit.

Naturally, when I made my plan to go on safari this winter, my heart was set on the Serengeti. I booked a trip with African Budget Safaris and Tanzania Experience, who fashioned a packed five-day itinerary through the north. Both companies arrange safaris throughout Tanzania.

The morning that I left, I went over the itinerary with my guide Charles, a Tanzanian who has spent the last decade leading safari tours through just about every route the country has to offer.

As he talked over the map, my eyes kept darting to a Google Map on my phone of Tanzania. There were giant green splotches in southern Tanzania that looked far bigger than the Serengeti. I asked him what they were.

"People's first time on safari, they go to the Serengeti. Then they come back and visit the south. After that, they go to the south every year," he said. "It's something else."

When I asked him which park was his favorite, he smiled sheepishly and dodged the question by explaining what is in the south.

Tanzania's more-remote Southern Circuit consists of the Selous Game Reserve and Ruaha, Mahale, and Gombe national parks. At 21,000 square miles, the Selous alone trails only Greenland National Park for the world's biggest conservation area and is the only park in which you can find wild African hunting dogs. Meanwhile, Ruaha is home to 10% of the world's lion population and a considerable percentage of the elephant population.

Most people visit the Northern Circuit for a few reasons, Charles explained. It has a developed tourist infrastructure, is only a few hours from the airport in Arusha (where I flew in), the roads are easy, there are hundreds of safari companies, and there are plenty of luxury lodges, camping sites, and mid-range tented lodges to choose from. The landscape of the Serengeti is breathtaking — it is a Masaai word for ""endless plains."

The downside is that during peak season (January through February, and July through August) in the north, there are always other safari jeeps around you as you scout for wildlife. Anytime something spectacular is happening — like someone spots a pride of lions — you can bet that half a dozen jeeps are close behind. 

The south is a different beast all together.

The southern parks are about as off the grid as you can get, requiring a day's drive or an extra flight on heart-stopping Cessna plane. There is little in the way of development, with most people staying at camping sites or a few high-end lodges. If you want to do a walking or boat safari, the southern parks are usually where its done. It's not a safari for those afraid of a few bugs.

Those that do make the trek south, Charles added, are rewarded. Because so few tourists visit, it's unlikely you'll ever see another jeep during your jaunt through the wilderness. It's practically untouched by tourism, a near impossibility in 2019.

That could soon change.

Last year, the Tanzanian National Parks service announced that it is targeting parks outside the Northern Circuit for development and promotion to attract more tourists. In 2017, the World Bank approved $150 million to finance tourism development in the Southern Circuit.

I guess I'll be doing a second safari after all.

• More tips from Business Insider's international correspondent:
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• I use the same trick in any city I visit to make sure I find amazing food
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• I found out the hard way that one of the best strategies to save money on flights can end up costing you big time
• The single best piece of advice I can give you for any trip you take
• I've traveled to more than 30 countries, and here are the dumbest mistakes I made on the road that I'll never make again

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Japanese lifestyle guru Marie Kondo explains how to organize your home once and never again

• Conspiracy theories have captured the minds of thousands of people throughout history. 
• From John F. Kennedy being murdered by the US government to Buzz Aldrin staging a fake moon landing, some of the most influential historical figures have been the subjects of conspiracy theories. 
• Royals are no exception — read on for seven of the wildest conspiracy theories about kings, queens, princes, and princesses.

From John F. Kennedy being murdered by the US government, to Buzz Aldrin staging a fake moon landing, some of the most influential historical figures have found themselves the subjects of conspiracy theories.

Royals are no exception. Although the theories largely have no real evidence to back them up, they’re compelling enough to capture the minds of people around the world.  

Read on for seven of the most fascinating conspiracy theories about kings, queens, and princes:

SEE ALSO: 5 wild conspiracy theories surrounding the sinking of the Titanic

1. Princess Diana’s death in a car accident was orchestrated by the British royal family

Perhaps the most widespread modern conspiracy theory about the British royal family concerns the death of Princess Diana in 1997. An adored member of the royal family, Lady Diana Spencer married Prince Charles in 1981 to become Princess Diana. Known as “The People’s Princess,” Diana was beloved by the subjects of the British crown.

Diana and Prince Charles divorced in 1996, and Diana’s life came to a devastating end on August 31, 1997, according to Biography.com. The Associated Press later reported that a slew of international investigations concluded that both Diana and her boyfriend Dodi Fayed had passed away from injuries following a tragic drunk driving accident.

Shortly after, theories emerged that her death was actually an assassination — some even claiming that it was the dirty work of Prince Philip, another member of the royal family, or even Prince Charles himself. The motive? To prevent Diana from marrying Fayed, a Muslim, and giving birth to his child, according to the conspiracy theory.

Although the princess had speculated in a letter about her being in danger, according to the Associated Press, there is no evidence that she was pregnant at the time or contemplating marriage to Fayed.

2. Prince Harry’s marriage to Meghan Markle is a plot by the British to win back control over America

One recent, if light-hearted, conspiracy theory claims that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s marriage is part of a larger British ploy. Greg Pollowitz, an editor at conservative site Twitchy.com, tweeted this take about the couple last year, prompting responses from around the world:

“Prince Harry's kids will be Americans,” he wrote. “What if one grows up to be president and is in line for the throne at the same time? Brits are playing long-ball here, but it's a smart move. They want America back and this is how they'll do it.”

3. The British monarchs are actually alien lizards

Former BBC sportscaster and hardcore conspiracy theorist David Icke has become infamous forhis assertion that the world is controlled by leaders descended from a race of alien lizards, so it’s no surprise that he claims the British royal family, including Queen Elizabeth, are part of this conspiracy.

Icke claims he haseyewitness evidence of this — but no one besides him and his diehard followers give it any credence.

• INHOUSE, a membership club for restaurant enthusiasts, just announced $2 million in Series A financing.
• The money will help the service, which is currently exclusive to New York, expand around the globe.
• Founder Benjy Leibowitz told Business Insider he started the business while working as Head Maître D' at The NoMad in New York.
• The club connects industry professionals and enthusiastic diners across 60 partner restaurants.
• For $1,550 a year, members fill out extensive profiles about their dining preferences, meaning they should be treated as a regular in whatever partner restaurant they turn up at.
• Leibowitz said that their current membership is a "microcosm of New York" and includes household name Fortune 500 CEOs and founders.

INHOUSE is not a concierge service, says the company's founder Benjy Leibowitz: "That's a word we've banned from our vocabulary."

While bookings are admittedly a big part of what they do, INHOUSE is a members' club that attempts to bridge the invisible gap between industry insiders and diners who are passionate about restaurant culture.

At the moment, they're only accepting members in New York, but they just announced $2 million in Series A funding to help them expand around the globe.

Members of INHOUSE receive priority access to some of the Big Apple's most exclusive restaurants including Gramercy Tavern, Babbo, and The NoMad, where Leibowitz cut his teeth.

When the team behind Eleven Madison Park — currently ranked No. 4 in The World's 50 Best Restaurants list and previous No. 1 — decided to start a second project, Leibowitz joined as Head Maître D'.

Things were unbelievably hyped up in a crazy New York way

They called it The NoMad and it quickly became one of the most hyped eating destinations in the city.

"We were welcoming 1,000 guests a day between breakfast, lunch, dinner, and the bars," Leibowitz said.

"Things were unbelievably hyped up in a crazy New York way."

The NoMad is also a hotel and Leibowitz said the restaurant would always keep a few tables free for tired guests who wanted a bite to eat after their journey in. So hard was it to book a table at the NoMad, that New Yorkers were paying for rooms at the hotel just to have access.

Rooms at The NoMad currently start at $505 a night.

Obviously, that kind of interest wasn't sustainable, but it taught Leibowitz how white-hot the industry could get and how important it was to take care of your regulars.

Restaurants are built around regulars, not VIPs

"[Big spenders] historically have been touted as the VIPs in the US. But I think that's a really misleading notion because if you actually look at who restaurants value it's industry and it's regulars," Leibowitz said.

"If you talk to any restaurateur they'll tell you that regulars really are the lifeblood of their business."

Indeed, in a recent appearance on food podcast "The Kitchen Is On Fire," Will Beckett, founder of hot London restaurant chain Hawksmoor, said just that.

I like to say that everyone's a regular somewhere. I'm a regular where I get my hair cut, I'm a regular where I get my coffee in the morning.

"You build a restaurant, not on the Henry Dimblebys [British cookery writer] that turn up every now and then Instagram it — you build a restaurant around that guy that turns up every Tuesday night who will never impress anyone that you know, but he pays his bill every Tuesday night.

"And if you don't know his name and what he likes to drink and his wife's name and his kids' names and you don't thank him every time he comes in so that you are his place — forget it. It's over."

This was the essence of what set Leibowitz on his journey to form INHOUSE, which started as a reciprocity network for connecting top maître d's and best-in-kind restaurant regulars.

"I thought, we only have so many regulars but there are so many great regulars of other restaurants that are coming into our restaurant and we don't even know it," he told BI.

Leibowitz reached out to 13 other top eateries around the city and asked them to invite their five best regulars to a pilot program. Not the highest spenders, or the most famous, or the most closely related to the head chef — but the best.

These enthusiastic diners were welcomed into reciprocating restaurants like they would be if they turned up every night — from knowing what they liked to drink before dinner, to where they liked to sit, to whether they had a sweet tooth or not.

The program began to grow organically as restaurants started to see the repeat business they could acquire when welcoming in these select diners.

"It got to the point where I couldn't do this on the side while working at NoMad," Leibowitz said. So he took a leap of faith and decided to dedicate all of his time to expanding the network he'd built.

Now, INHOUSE works with more than 60 celebrated restaurants, 20 of which are in London, though membership hasn't expanded to the UK just yet.

Leibowitz is an industry expert in every sense — he reels off names of London's most-hyped restaurants du jour like they're players on his favorite football team, even though he's lived in New York for the past 10 years.

He believes being passionate about restaurants in your city is the same as being a member of one of its art galleries, museums, or film clubs.

"[It's] part of your social identity in the city, it might be part of your social calendar, it's a way to meet like-minded people, it's a way of contributing back to a cultural institution that you care about," he says.

Being a regular is also the best way to do anything, he says.

"I'm a regular where I get my hair cut, I'm a regular where I get my coffee in the morning, and I'm a regular at a couple of restaurants in New York."

In all these cases, that experience is better because those people know what you like and you have a relationship with them.

'We want to know everything'

So, how does a members club with more than 60 restaurant partners make you feel like you're a regular at each and every one? "It's been a challenge," Leibowitz admitted, but it starts with choosing the right restaurant teams to partner with.

"We don't go around knocking on doors," he said. "We are selective of the type of restaurants we work with to make sure that they are not only great teams putting out great products but also that they think about hospitality in a similar manner."

Once they have the right restaurants on board, they want to know everything about you, the esteemed diner.

INHOUSE makes diners fill out extensive profiles about their preferences: "We allow people to go as detailed and nerdy as they like," Leibowitz said.

That could be anything from your preferred cocktail before dinner to your favorite flavor of ice cream.

Not just anyone can join, though. In order to qualify for membership, you must have a restaurant sponsor — that is, a restaurant manager or owner that can vouch for you being a regular at their establishment: "That's how we keep things peer-reviewed and make sure we're getting great diners."

Once you're in, restaurants will have enough information to treat you like a regular even if it's the first time you've walked through the door. Leibowitz told us the story of a member visiting London on a business trip who dropped in on an INHOUSE partner restaurant during his stay.

He apparently called the founder to say: "I turn up to a restaurant I've never heard of, the maître d' greets me by name, I sit down, the sommelier comes over and says I hear you're into Riesling at the moment and has the wine list open on the Riesling page."

Now, every time the member visits London for work, he goes to this same restaurant.

They'll go above and beyond, too. Leibowitz gave an anecdote of a diner who is particularly fond of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, so for his birthday, one of the restaurants made him a custom foie gras and grape gelée mid-course as a nod to his guilty pleasure.

Members include Fortune 100 CEOs

So what kind of people join INHOUSE? Full membership will set you back $1,550 a year, which obviously rules out a lot of applicants.

"I was very nervous at the beginning that it was going to be very finance heavy because those people play a big part in the restaurant world," Leibowitz said.

In fact, Leibowitz found that their membership base quickly became a microcosm of New York as a whole — welcoming those in fashion, design, media, and other creative industries.

As much as a third of its members are either C-Suite or founders; people who Leibowitz describes as "captains of industry."

He won't name names, of course, but he hints that some members are household names and leaders of Fortune 500 and even Fortune 100 companies — "that includes people from the media landscape, finance landscape, and the tech landscape," he adds.

These members will also have access to events that Leibowitz says "aim to remove some of the barriers of formality that you typically find in the hospitality space."

These include dinners seated alongside leading sommeliers & chefs, fireside chats with preeminent restaurateurs, and hard hat tours of new restaurants before they open.

So, what's next for INHOUSE? After closing their last round of funding, the team is looking to expand into London and across the US, starting in San Francisco and Los Angeles, then Chicago, Miami, or Seattle.

Longer term, Leibowitz says Copenhagen in Denmark is a city that stands out to him as one that punches above its weight in terms of dining culture.

He's excited about Asia as well and has his sights on Hong Kong and Tokyo, though, he admits, these will come with their own challenges.

It sounds like the sky's the limit for this promising members' club but, as Leibowitz concedes: "It's just that easy and it's just that hard."

SEE ALSO: Stars like George Clooney, Ryan Reynolds, and Bob Dylan have struck gold with liquor launches, and countless celebrities are following suit

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Gisele Bündchen and Tom Brady comprise one of the most successful power couples.
• One is one of the most successful supermodels in the world and the other is the greatest quarterback ever.
• Together, Gisele and Brady have a quiet, but lavish, lifestyle. 

Gisele Bündchen is one of the most successful supermodels in the world. According to Forbes, she was the highest-earning model in the world for 10 consecutive years before retiring from the runway in 2015, but even today she is still one of the world's highest paid models.

Her husband, Tom Brady, is the greatest quarterback of all time. Brady has five Super Bowl rings and three league MVP awards, and he's still leading the New England Patriots even though he is well into his 40s.

Bündchen and Brady married in 2009 and together they lead an extremely fabulous life.

At one point, the duo owned a $20 million castle complete with a moat and have since bought a lavish NYC apartment overlooking the water. They co-chaired the Met Gala in 2017 and have partnerships with a number of luxury brands.

Take a peek into the couple's opulent lifestyle below:

Tony Manfred contributed to this report.

Supermodel Gisele Bundchen and superstar quarterback Tom Brady make up one of the most powerful celebrity couples on the planet.

Brady is considered one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time after earning five Super Bowl rings and three league MVP awards in his 19-year NFL career.

Source: Spotrac

Bundchen reigned over the modeling world for well over a decade and was the top-earning supermodel for 10 consecutive years. Even though she retired in 2015, Bündchen was still one of the top-5 highest paid models of 2018.

The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider may receive a commission from The Points Guy Affiliate Network.

• When you open a new personal Southwest credit card, you can earn the best-ever sign-up bonus offered for the cards: 30,000 points and an unlimited Companion Pass, which is valid for travel through 2019 (to earn the bonus, spend $4,000 on any eligible purchases during the first three months with the card).
• The Companion Pass lets you book a free ticket for a companion whenever you travel — all you'll have to pay is taxes and fees (which are typically as low as $5.60 each way).
• There's only one week left to apply for this incredible offer — it ends on February 11.
• Our pick for the best Southwest card to open is the Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card; however, read on to see which is best for you. 

For a limited time, people who apply for any of Southwest Airlines and Chase's co-branded credit cards will be able to earn Southwest's coveted Companion Pass as a sign-up bonus.

The new sign-up bonus is effectively the best deal ever offered on any of Southwest's credit cards. In addition to the Companion Pass, which will be valid through 2019, new cardholders can also earn 30,000 Southwest Rapid Rewards points. 

To earn the sign-up bonus, new cardholders must spend $4,000 on the card within the first three months of opening it. The bonus is available only until February 11.

The surprise promotion — coming just one day after a previous limited-time offer ended — represents what can arguably be described as the best-ever sign-up bonus offered by Southwest and Chase.

The Southwest Companion pass is often seen as the "holy grail" of travel for points-and-miles aficionados and self-described "travel hackers." When you earn the Companion Pass, you can select a designated friend or family member to travel with you for free, as long as the pass is valid.

Normally to earn the Companion Pass, one has to earn 110,000 qualifying points with Southwest within a calendar year. The pass will then be valid for the remainder of that calendar year, as well as the entirety of the following one.

Typically, you may be able to earn some of those qualifying points by opening a credit card and earning the normal sign-up bonus, but as Chase has added restrictions on who is eligible — for instance, you can't just open two consumer cards at once, earn the bonuses, and use those points to qualify — it's become harder to earn unless you're a very frequent business traveler.

The ability to earn the Companion Pass purely as a sign-up bonus makes it significantly easier to acquire. Should new applicants hit the minimum spend requirement quickly, signing up for one credit card can equal 11 months of buy-one-get-one flights. Coupled with competitive fares on Southwest, the pass can be used for everything from longer vacations to easy, affordable weekends away. While taxes and fees are still charged on Companion tickets, these start at $5.60 for domestic flights, and rarely exceed $20 to $25.

Learn more: 5 reasons to take advantage of Southwest Airlines' unheard-of Companion Pass deal right now

In order to receive the bonus, you can't currently hold a personal Southwest credit card, and you can't have earned a sign-up bonus from a Southwest card in the past 24 months. If you currently hold a card, but earned the bonus from it longer than 24 months ago (or never earned the bonus), you may be able to close that, wait a week or so, and apply for a new card.

Southwest and Chase offer three personal credit cards. The Southwest Priority Card is the best option for most people because, even though it has the highest annual fee of the three cards at $149, it offers annual credits and anniversary bonus points that are together worth at least $150, meaning the card pays for itself.

However, if you're dead set against an annual fee in the three-digit range, the other cards are compelling options — especially with the Companion Pass as a sign-up bonus.

Read on to learn more about the three personal Southwest cards.

Keep in mind that we're focusing on the rewards and perks that make these cards great options, not things like interest rates and late fees, which can far outweigh the value of any rewards.

When you're working to earn credit card rewards, it's important to practice financial discipline, like paying your balances off in full each month, making payments on time, and not spending more than you can afford to pay back. Basically, treat your credit card like a debit card.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus credit card

The Rapid Rewards Plus is the base level of the three Southwest cards. However, just because it's a bit less featured than its bigger siblings doesn't mean it's a bad option.

The card earns 2 times points per dollar spent on Southwest purchases, and one point per dollar on everything else. You'll also get 3,000 bonus points each year on your card-membership anniversary.

That's essentially the gist of this card — there's not too much to it. There are, however, a couple of things worth noting.

It has a $69 annual fee that isn't waived the first year. Of course, the sign-up bonus — the Companion Pass for 2019 and 30,000 points — goes a long way toward making up for that, while the anniversary points help each year after.

All in all, while the Plus card has the lowest annual fee, it doesn't offer a ton of value after the first year. If you want to earn Southwest points on your credit card, but absolutely want to pay the lowest possible annual fee, then this card is probably the best option. However, if you're ok with paying a higher annual fee, knowing that you'll get more value from the card than you'll pay for that fee, you're better off considering one of the other two.

Click here to learn more about the Southwest Plus card from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier credit card

The Premier card is similar to the Plus, with a few enhancements.

The sign-up bonus is the same, but it offers 6,000 anniversary points each year instead of 3,000.

It also offers the ability to earn tier-qualifying points, which count toward the elite "A-list" status. You'll earn 1,500 tier points each time you spend $10,000 within a calendar year, up to $100,000 (or 15,000 tier points) per year.

Otherwise, the biggest appeal of the Premier over the Plus is that it doesn't have foreign-transaction fees — if you use your Plus abroad, you'll be charged an extra 3% on every purchase.

The Premier's annual fee is $99, compared with the $69 fee on the Plus, but the extra anniversary points should generally cover that increase.

Click here to learn more about the Southwest Premier card from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority credit card

Generally, though, the Priority is the best option if you're a Southwest flyer.

That's because, even though it has the highest fee at $149, it offers at least $150 in value each year, effectively cancelling out the fee.

The Priority offers 7,500 bonus anniversary points each year, as well as an annual $75 Southwest travel credit, which can be applied to purchases like flights. Assuming that Southwest points are worth $0.01 each — although you can usually get more value than that — that means that you're getting $150 of value each year just from these two benefits, which cancels out the annual fee.

The card also has a few other benefits, including up to four Upgraded Boarding certificates each year, meaning you can board earlier and choose your seat. You'll also get 20% back on in-flight purchases, and the same ability to earn tier-qualifying points as the Premier card.

Ultimately, as long as you're willing to front the money for the annual fee, the Priority card pays for itself.

However, if you're absolutely set against the higher fee, the Plus and the Priority can be good options as well.

Click here to learn more about the Southwest Priority card from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.

SEE ALSO: The best credit card rewards, bonuses, and perks of 2019

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• If you have the Bank of America Cash Rewards credit card, you can earn 3% cash back in a category you choose each month.
• Categories include things like online shopping, gas, dining, and home improvement.
• You can also earn 2% back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs.
• If you don't already have the card, you can earn a$150 bonus when you spend $500 in the first three months.

One of the most popular rewards credit cards for Bank of America customers has a powerful new perk.

Starting January 2019, the Bank of America Cash Rewards credit card allows users to pick one bonus category to earn 3% cash back each month. Previously, bonus categories were fixed. The 3% categories include:

• Gas
• Online shopping
• Dining
• Travel
• Drugstores
• Home improvement and furnishing

In addition, cardholders will earn 2% cash back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs, and 1% on everything else. However, the 3% and 2% bonuses will only apply to the first $2,500 in purchases in those combined categories each quarter. After that, the earning rate will default to 1% until the following quarter.

Over all, this is a positive development for cardholders. Before the change, bonus categories were fixed, without any ability to choose.

While the $2,500 quarterly cap prevents you from taking advantage of the biggest purchases — for instance, choosing the home improvement category right before a big renovation project — the earning rate should be useful for most cardholders.

In addition, cardholders who have a Bank of America checking account and significant assets held with Bank of America or Merrill Lynch can get a 25-75% bonus on each category when they enroll in the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program.

Under that program, those with $20,000-$50,000 in their combined accounts will get 3.75% on the choice category and 2.5% on grocery stores and wholesale clubs; those with $50,000-$100,000 will earn 4.5% and 3% on those categories, respectively; and those with more than $100,000 will earn 5.25% and 3.5%, respectively.

If you don't already have the card and choose to apply for one, you can earn a sign-up bonus of $150 after you spend $500 in the first three months.

Click here to learn more about the Bank of America Cash Rewards card from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.

SEE ALSO: Big changes are coming to the Marriott and Starwood rewards programs and their credit cards — here’s what you need to know

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• For Honda, the stalwart Accord and Civic sedans have for decades delivered reliable sales and helped the company profit year after year. 
• But with the meteoric rise of SUVs in recent years, Honda now depends more and more on crossover utes like the mid-size Pilot.
• The three-row, mid-size Honda Pilot is updated for the 2019 model year with fresh styling, a more refined drivetrain, and new tech. 
• In the marketplace, the Pilot competes with the Toyota Highlander, Ford Explorer, Chevrolet Traverse, Subaru Ascent, Nissan Pathfinder, and Volkswagen Atlas. 
• All Pilots are powered by a 3.5-liter, 280 horsepower V6 engine mated to either a six-speed or a nine-speed automatic transmission. 
• The base 2019 Honda Pilot LX with front-wheel drive starts at $31,450. Our top-of-the-line all-wheel-drive Elite trim test car starts at $48,020. A $995 destination and handling fee pushed the as-tested price to $49,015.

For decades, Honda has depended on its stalwart Accord and Civic sedans to deliver not only sales volume but also profits. 

The automotive landscape has changed drastically in recent years. Crossover SUVs are now king of the showroom.  For Honda, it's the CR-V compact crossover. 

The Civic and Accord remain Honda's second and third best sellers in the US with 326,000 and 291,000 units respectively left showrooms in 2018. But those figures are down 13.7% and 9.8% respectively compared to 2017. 

Fortunately for the Japanese auto giant, sales of its fourth most popular offering, the mid-size Pilot crossover SUV, surged 25% last year to just under 160,000 sold.

According to data from Kelly Blue Book, the Pilot is the third best-selling three-row mid-size SUV in the US behind only the Toyota Highlander and the segment leader Ford Explorer. 

Read more: We drove a $42,000 and a $50,000 Toyota Highlander to see why it's one of the best family SUVs money can buy — here's what we discovered.

The current third-generation Pilot has been around since 2016. However, Honda decided to give the Lincoln, Alabama-built family hauler a mid-life refresh for the 2019 model year. 

Recently, Business Insider had the chance to spend a week with a 2019 Honda Pilot AWD Elite to see how the updated crossover stacks up to the competition. 

The base 2019 Honda Pilot LX with front-wheel drive starts at $31,450. Our top-of-the-line all-wheel-drive Elite trim test car starts at $48,020. A $995 destination and handling fee pushed the as-tested price to $49,015.

SEE ALSO: 50 cool cars from the last 30 years teens missed out on

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Honda introduced the first generation Pilot back in 2003. It was the company's first mid-size SUV.

Previously, Honda's SUVs were simply rebadged versions of models made by other manufacturers. For example, this 2002 Honda Passport is really an Isuzu Rodeo.

In the 1990s, Honda even sold rebadged a Land Rover Discovery Series 1 as the Crossroad.

• Superyacht Elandess won four awards at the annual Boat International Design & Innovation Awards in January, including best interior and exterior design.
• Elandess was the most decorated boat at the show: No other yacht won more than one award a piece.
• The custom-built yacht is owned by Travelex founder Lloyd Dorfman and features the second-ever sub-waterline lounge.

Elandess is the superyacht to watch in 2019.

The 244-foot yacht took home four awards at this year's Boat International Design & Innovation Awards. For its class size category, Elandess won Best Exterior Styling, Best Interior Design, Best General Arrangement & Deck Design, and Best Lifestyle Feature Design.

Read more: Take a look at the 14 superyachts with the best interior and exterior design in 2019

Abeking & Rasmussen, a prestigious German shipyard, was contracted for naval architecture and building. Interior and exterior styling and design work on the boat was done by Harrison Eidsgaard.

Elandess is owned by billionaire Lloyd Dorfman, who commissioned the work from scratch with Abeking & Rasmussen. Dorfman is the founder of currency exchange company Travelex, and has a net worth of around $1.2 billion This is his third yacht, and his second with Abeking & Rasmussen. This superyacht replaces the previous Elandess — now called Elypsian — which sold for $55 million. Alongside his yachts, Dorfman also owns a $60 million jet.

The state-of-the-art vessel was first spotted in summer 2018 in London. It made its first Atlantic crossing in the fall, where it was featured at the Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show.

Read more: Take a look at 11 of the most luxurious yachts coming to the biggest boat show in the US

To accommodate Dorfman, his family, and any additional passengers, the custom-built yacht can house 14 guests across seven cabins. According to Boat International, one of the main requests was for the ship to function as a mobile second home, as opposed to just a mode of transportation. The second home has three decks, and the top features a pool, while interior space allows room for Dorfman's art collection.

As designer Harrison Eidsgaard told Yacht Harbour, "Walking through Elandess, no two spaces feel the same; each area has its own character creating drama and interest at every turn."

Despite the top deck's beautiful view, there's even more to be seen below the water level.

According to Official Bespoke, "There’s little question as to the best view on board, though. Elandess’s sub-waterline Neptune Lounge — only the second in existence — gives spectacular access to life above and below the waterline."

The windows in the lounge measure nearly 10 feet tall and 4 inches thick; like other aspects of the boat, the idea was inspired by the previous Elandess' lounge.

Just prior to its awards competition, Boat International published an exclusive interview with Dorfman regarding the construction and reception of his new luxury yacht. Dorfman discussed how his family — including his many grandchildren — tested the ship this summer, noting, “You can’t just Google a formula for how to design a yacht for a certain number of people. You have to be involved."

SEE ALSO: The 12 largest superyachts at the 2018 Monaco Yacht Show, ranked

SEE ALSO: I spent 3 years writing about yachts, and owning one takes way more money than you think

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• The BMW M2 Competition is a two-door rocket that replaces the M2, which was already a fantastic sport coupé.
• The M2 was $54,500, well-equipped. The M2 Competition starts at about $59,000, but my test car tipped the cost scales at $67,045.
• The BMW M2 has an impressive 405-horsepower inline six-cylinder engine under the hood.

BMW's M Sport division doesn't disappoint. But in the past — with the lineup starting at the M3, moving on to the M4, through the M5 with some the muscular X6 M crossover and convertible trims thrown in — the entire M family had gotten kind of large, size-wise, leaving room for a smaller ride that evoked Bimmers of old.

Enthusiasts craved such a car, and with the M2, they got it (actually, with the M235i, they already something worth considering, but it lacked proper M Sport power). I was blown away by the M2 when I drove the machine.

"For the true believers, this is going to be the perfect car," I wrote in my review. "It is completely optimized for thrills behind the wheel. And yet it is far from useless for quick runs to the grocery store (I picked up a case of wine, and there was plenty of room in the trunk) or fetching the kids from school."

BMW has phased out the M2 and replaced it with the M2 Competition. The M2 Competition costs more, but it brings more M to the party. I knew it was going to be good, probably very, very good. But would it be worth the extra scratch? Read on to find out.

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I wouldn't call cold, snowy conditions in suburban New Jersey ideal for a 405-horsepower, rear-wheel-drive sport coupé. But on the plus side — winter tires!

Fortunately, I did most of my testing before the snow hit. The paint job was a fetching "Hockenheim Silver Metallic," and it was $550 extra (the base price was $59,000).

I had already enjoyed the M2, saying that it "struck a tuning fork deep in my automotive psyche." The M2 Competition takes its place.

TheInsider Picksteam writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

Since you don't have all day to scour the web for noteworthy sales and discounts, we rounded up the best bargains for you to shop in one convenient place.

1. Save 30% on the AmazonBasics Microwave with Alexa

If you thought that Amazon couldn't make Alexa any more useful, you probably haven't heard of the AmazonBasics Microwave. With the power of Alexa built in, this device takes the convenience of a microwave to a new level. Just say commands like "Alexa, re-heat one cup of coffee" or "Alexa, microwave 1.5 ounces of popcorn" for accurate cooking times. You'll never have to worry about overcooking or burning food in the microwave again. For a limited time, you can save $18 on the smart microwave.

AmazonBasics Microwave with Alexa, $41.99 (Originally $59.99) [You save $18]

2. Save up to 50% on winter jackets at Alpha Industries

Punxsutawney Phil predicted an early spring this past Groundhog's Day, but winter is still very much here — and having a warm jacket is a necessity. Luckily, Alpha Industries is having a big end-of-season sale with up to 50% off outerwear. The sale includes classic and modernized military-inspired jackets like bombers, field coats, parkas, and more. 

Shop the Alpha Industries end of season sale now. 

3. Save $10 on Amazon Smart Plugs

Amazon Smart Plugs are a must when it comes to creating a fully functional smart home. By pairing it to your Echo device, you can use Alexa voice commands to turn on lights, start coffee makers, and more. You can also schedule when electronics should turn on or off. Whether you're unable or unwilling to get up and do it yourself, or you'd like to control your electronics when you're not home, you'll want these all throughout your home.

Amazon Smart Plugs, $14.99 (Originally $24.99) [You save $10]

4. Save up to 40% on unique gifts at AHAlife

Although chocolates and flowers are traditional Valentine's Day gifts, they're also predictable and boring. If you're struggling to think outside of the box this year, AHAlife is a great place to shop. The retailer is home to thousands of unique items created by artisans and designers. Right now, you can save up to 40% on clearance items, which includes plenty of giftable trinkets and fun pieces you won't find in a department store or big box retailer.

Shop the AHAlife winter clearance sale now. 

5. Save 20% on all orders at the NBA Store

As the NFL season comes to an end, sports fans are now turning their attention to basketball — and the NBA Store has the perfect sale for gearing up. Today only, you can save 20% sitewide by using the promo code "DUNK20" at checkout. Here, you'll find jerseys, T-shirts, shorts, hats, and more. However, there are select exclusions like All-Star Weekend-exclusive gear.

Shop the NBA Store sale now.

6. Save $100 on a Chef di Cucina Digital Air Fryer at Best Buy

The Chef di Cucina Nutri AirFry lets you indulge in all of your favorite fried foods without all the calories. Rather than using oil, the device uses rapid air circulation technology to thoroughly cook everything from french fries and fried chicken to donuts and sweet treats. It's healthier, easier to use, and right now, it's also on sale. As one of Best Buy's Deals of the Day, you can save $100 on one now.

Chef di Cucina Nutri AirFry 5.5L Digital Air Fryer, $69.99 (Originally $169.99) [You save $100]

7. Save up to 50% on outdoor gear and apparel at Backcountry

All month long, Backcountry is having a huge sale with up to 50% off winter gear and apparel. With everything from warm base layers, fleeces, and jackets, to tents, sleeping bags, and ski equipment, you'll find many hard-to-beat deals on top brands. Although the sale is running until February 28, you'll want to shop now for the best selection as many products are only available in limited quantities.

Shop the Backcountry semi-annual sale now. 

8. Buy any Purple mattress and get the accessory of your choice for free

With over 10,000 five-star reviews, Purple is an online mattress startup you can depend on for comfort. As an early Presidents' Day sale, the brand is offering a deal that will appeal to anyone in need of a new mattress. Buy any mattress and get a free item including the Purple sheets, pillow, mattress protector, blanket, or seat cushion.

Shop all Purple mattresses now.

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