Highways and Doorknobs and Forts

My last two days in Firenze involved staying awake and active. I had to do whatever I could to avoid the anxiety of leaving and hunger of being broke. Instead of sleeping all day or watching horribly dubbed TV I chose to get up and go out. My mother also offered to send me money in spurts. Well it was per my request so I didn't have much to spend and had enough to navigate back to Paris and home. The day of the Accademia fiasco I'd discovered an alliance banking ATM closer to the hotel. This meant that I could drain my account for whatever could be sent as well as explore. I expected to find somewhere that was off the beaten path for tourists i.e. a small bar, a free gallery. Just anything to occupy my time and spend as little of my money as possible. So I set out to this bank the latter part of the day and had a bit of an adventure.

Fighting To Be A Gladiator

On our last day in Rome we planned the excursion to The Coliseum/Colosseum. We had a decent evening and planned to be well rested for the journey. I however was in a million different places mind wise. I was still negotiating my trip home. I was offering advice to a friend looking to travel to where we were. I was also horribly managing my money. I seriously kept re-counting what I had and tallying expected costs. I was coming up very short and then I'd locked up my own card by buying train tickets. I was supposed to receive money from a friend and my mother but we could never connect. Earlier in the week iMessage was down. Then when I expressed the need it was after business hours in the states. My friend would agree to send money to match my mothers for my train ticket but wound up getting underpaid. It was a real disaster. I had about 20 Euros on hand, a little over $28 available in the bank and so many expenses ahead. I didn't know what to expect at The Colosseum, the hotel would be charging us city taxes in the morning, then there was Florence and still had to make it to home. I was in turmoil.

Money, Euros and Banking While Abroad

This is probably a little too far in the blog but that is what labels/tags are far. I hope you skipped ahead and found this gem of vital information. Sadly, I didn't get a lesson in world wide currency until abroad and two countries later. All I knew was my own countries money. I have only been mildly fascinated by the color & variety of international bills. My ignorance to currency exchange and the value of the U.S. dollar seriously hurt my spending ability while in Europe. I would encourage anyone embarking on a trip outside of their realm to research the comparing dollar before making any financial moves. Such moves do include any bookings of travel, accommodations or getting funds to spend while on your trip. Of course, I did make some specific financial moves well before I left but I'm afraid I didn't ask all the right questions regarding them. In order to save you precious time and a fair deal of money - here is what to do, say and ask BEFORE you leave.