Ranting to /dev/null

Exchange rates

Never, ever exchange currency. If you're traveling overseas, just bring your credit/debit cards and do it that way. Currency exchange places knock about 5-10% off the exchange rate and charge you a fee. Using plastic costs you nothing beyond an ATM surcharge, or if it's direct from a merchant, nothing at all.

London is expensive, but it doesn't have to be unnecessarily so. I withdrew 50 pounds at Gatwick as soon as I hit the ground in the UK, and my bank account only took a $99.97 hit. This is as close to the precise exchange rate as makes no difference.

The introduction of a unified financial system in this way is a truly remarkable achievement. I deposited United States currency at an ATM in Hershey, PA on Saturday, and within 24 hours was withdrawing it in GBP several thousand miles away. The only reason it took that long is because I was actually in transit. If I'd beamed across... somehow... I could have made the withdrawal as soon as the funds hit my account.