Third time is a charm

February 10^th 2016

 New Zealand for the third time. I've hardly travelled in this world, and I am going to the same place for a third time. My sister living there is one reason, but truth be told, it is one of the most beautiful places I have seen. The air, the light, just breathtaking.

So, preparing for this trip isn't complicated, is it?

Less than one week to go. A lot of arrangements to make. Too many last minute things for me, but there is a story to go with that.

When I began to arrange for my money for the trip, I was going with the “tried and true” method of all my trips to date. Some cash, a credit card for backup and traveler's cheques.

My last trip or two, I had run into problems with cashing these Tcheques. There seemed to be a general mistrust of them, the person holding them and the amount that I wanted of my own money.

So, my big research, now just over two weeks before my departure, left me a little confused with the products being offered.

I was told about travel cards, but that seemed to me (without getting the info I needed) to be just a variation on a credit card. A bit more research informed me that they were a purchase card, could be used like a bank card to get cash, make purchases and the money was all pre-loaded on the card. Of course, it is protected against loss, as there is a pin and a record, through the bank, of the amount on the card etc.

Dragged into the 21^st century, albeit with good humour at my attention to “new things”.

This is where the last minute thing comes in. I love to be all prepared, way ahead of time. If I had been going with TC's, I would be all ready. The card needed to be ordered on line, 7 to 10days for it to arrive. Worst case for me now is that it arrives on the 10^th day and I load it on the Saturday, the day before I leave. Sigh.

Well, the card arrive in a week less a day. Loads of relief, a fast trot to the bank, all loaded up wwith new pin and all set.

The interest in these practicalities may not to be to all tastes, but things change so fast that from trip to trip (last year for the trip to London but too short to need TC's, 4 years or more since my last big trip) where I did not want to walk around with a lot of cash. New products, new times. I'm cool with it now.