In message Piero
wrote:
>I remember my wife buying something very cheap on a big family store
>(something like 'all items for 1$ each') having trouble with a 20$ bill
>(and also with the language: I'm the only that speaks, in some way,
>english, and she was alone)...
In general you'll have no trouble spending $20 bills, that is mainly
what ATM machines dispense, so it's the defacto standard and shouldn't
be a problem even for smaller purchases.
The exception is vending machines, which usually only take smaller bills
(I tend to drink a fair amount of soda pop when I'm in a hotel as I have
issues sleeping in the best of times, so I need the caffeine kick in the
morning)
Anything larger then a $20 will be mildly suspicious on a $1 purchase,
but if the purchase is above $20 and you pass a $50 or $100, nobody will
care (if you're passing fake bills, one of the easiest ways to turn it
into "legit" cash is to spend the large fake bills and get as much
change as you can), plus some vendors that don't have a ton of cash on
hand won't want to give up a bunch of small bills.
Personally, whenever I arrive in the US I break a $20 at the airport
(usually on a drink, since the hotel shuttle usually takes 30-45 minutes
to show up), and get the change in $1s for vending machines, everywhere
else I used $20s (I can get $20USD bills from a couple ATMs in Canada
before I leave -- No surcharge, so it's more economical then using a
currency exchange place)
All that being said, rather then carrying a ton of cash, can you get a
credit card that won't require lubrication to handle the fees? I pay a
bit extra for the "traveler" version of my Visa, one of the perks is no
out of country charges or currency exchange fees (beyond the 1% you
pretty much always get stuck with when exchanging currency, but no
$5/transaction fee or anything stupid like some cards) -- In my
experience, at any larger store, restaurant, hotel, gas station, etc,
credit is no problem even for smaller purchases. At many places it's
substantially faster then cash (McDonalds, for example, you can swipe
your card as you order, when the order is done you hit "okay" and you're
done, and the clerk is busy getting your food while you hit okay)
--
I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous. |