For 13 thousand dollars, Englishman Brendon Grimshaw bought a tiny uninhabited island in the Seychelles and moved there forever. When Grimshaw was under forty, he quit his

For 13 thousand dollars, Englishman Brendon Grimshaw bought a tiny uninhabited island in the Seychelles and moved there forever.

When Grimshaw was under forty, he quit his job as a newspaper editor, packed a suitcase full of sunscreen and mosquito spray, and said, “If I’m going to be stressed out, it might as well be about coconuts and crabs, not deadlines and neckties.”

He arrived on the island, looked around at the untouched beauty and whispered, “Perfect... except there's no Wi-Fi and I just heard a tree insult me.”

Undeterred, he got to work. With the help of a local man named René, Brendon planted over 16,000 trees, built winding nature trails, and reintroduced giant tortoises to the island. At one point, there were more tortoises than tourists—which was fine, because the tortoises didn’t leave bad reviews on TripAdvisor.

One day, a yacht full of tourists showed up unannounced. They asked if there was a resort on the island. Brendon smiled and said, “Only if you count my hammock and Wilson the volleyball.”

A businessman once offered him $50 million for the island. Brendon declined, saying, “I could take your money, buy five Lamborghinis, crash four of them, and still not be as happy as I am watching turtles race for fun.”

Years later, the island was declared a national park, and Brendon’s life became the stuff of legends. Kids in the Seychelles still say, “If you listen closely, you can hear the old man arguing with a parrot about who really owns the hammock.”

The moral of the story? With $13,000 and a dream, you can either buy a used car—or your own island, a few hundred tortoises, and a lifetime supply of adventure.

Just be prepared to negotiate rent with a crab who thinks he owns the coconut tree.