The Euro

I'm going to be brief and careful about what I say in this entry, lest anything should be skewed or misunderstood.

Greed is an ugly thing.  We know this through what our domestic economy has suffered since 2008.  However, greed is not just an American thing.  If you have people in power, they're going to always want more if their focus is on earthly gain.  Nothing fulfills like a relationship with Christ and God, right?

Every country entered into the EU for their own domestic reasons.  Some countries hoped to boost their weaker (nay, more settled, perhaps?) economies, and some hoped it would reinforce their already-strong economies.  Some entered because they had to.  When the use of the Euro began, it was crazy-strong, and held that way for years.  It started in 2002 at 1 Euro = 1 Dollar, and quickly surpassed the Dollar (or, in hindsight, is it that the dollar just weakened?).  Some summers it got as high as 1 Euro = $1.73 . . .CRAZY and painful for the students who were on my study-abroad experiences!

Please don't maintain any concern about travel being affected by the "crisis" with the Euro right now.  Our dollar has been in "crisis" for years (really, since 9/11), and we're not in revolt.  (well, the situation is REVOLTING to me, but that's another topic.)  Europeans maintain status quo even more than we do - we took the revolutionary nature from the French in the 1700's.

Not that I'm a gambler, but if I were going to buy some Euros before the trip, I'd wait a little more and see what happens in January/February.  Right now, 1 Euro = $1.34.  Keep an eye on it at www.xe.com!

Either way, the best way to get Euros while overseas is by using a Debit Card (check card) - rather than paying transaction fees for exchange (you can often lose as much as a QUARTER of what you're exchanging in this), you only pay the bank's withdrawal fee.  It's how I've gotten money overseas for YEARS.  Also, parents, you can keep an eye on the activity of the card while we're in Italy, and make sure your child is spending responsibly!

pax,
Laura  :)