Elon Musk’s father compared Moscow to Rome. He hasn’t been to St. Petersburg yet. In truth, if we’re comparing the architectural blend of water and stone, imperial grandeur, and the bustling life of back alleys, then Rome is St. Petersburg (or perhaps the other way around). And a little bit Amsterdam, too. That’s how Peter the Great envisioned it. But Elon Musk’s father, it seems, hasn’t been to St. Petersburg, and his assessments stem from different foundational impressions. The perspective of a visiting American has one key quality—a fresh sense of first encounter. Or rather, a sudden plunge into the deeper essence...

Elon Reeve Musk was born on June 28th, 1971 in Pretoria, South Africa. His mother Maye Musk is a model and dietitian born in Canada, but raised in South Africa. His father is Errol Musk, a South African electromechanical engineer, pilot, sailor, consultant. Musk has a younger sister, Tosca (born in 1974). The family was very wealthy in Elon`s youth: his father once said “we had so much money at times we couldn't even close our safe”. After his parent`s divorced in 1980, Musk mostly lived with his father in Pretoria and elsewhere , a choice he made two years after the divorce and subsequently regretted...