Money often costs too much

This quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson is exactly how I feel when I withdraw cash from the ATM. Over here, I've had to say goodbye to my American dollars and replace them with euros.

But 1 euro does not equal 1 dollar, and this deceiving fact is a major contributor to why I'm going to be completely broke when I return to the States. The current exchange rate is that 1.3669 USD = 1 euro. So every time I spend 60 cents on a water bottle, I'm actually spending more like a dollar.

ATMs and credit cards also charge small conversion fees, which is annoying. I've been mainly relying on cash during my Spanish purchases.. especially since a lot of local places here don't take credit cards. I just withdraw semi-big sums each time at the ATM to minimize fees and store most of it in my room. Then I carry around the cash I need for each day with me. This is a helpful budgeting mechanism for going out. I can say, "Alright, I'm going to spend 10 euros tonight..." and then I have to stick to it because that's all I bring!

This is not the most aesthetically pleasing picture I've ever taken, but I wanted to show the various types of monopoly-like money I carry around. They have 1 and 2 euro coins, which I actually really like!