Do Not Convert Prices
Hopefully in the next 2-3 weeks the family and I are going to be travelling to the UK and France. This is a must do trip due to my mothers ill health and we are combining this with a few days for shopping on the return leg of the trip.
I am bit of a human calculator and this is something I just do automatically.
What has been bugging me is he cost of just normal every day things like coffee or a snack due to converting the exchange rates from Rand's to Euros or GBP knowing a Rand is worthless in comparison. If you are coming from Europe or the States then this would be like heaven in comparison so this is going to be hell for me going the other way.
Just having a normal coffee will cost us nearly 4 x more than what we normally pay for the same item in South Africa and this is kind of depressing. My family knows how my brain works which is kid of funny and hey have already told me not too convert, but we all know bad habits don't change over night. I just think this is normal behavior because when you re suddenly face to face with these types of prices it is a shock to the system.
Don't get me wrong I an far from being a scrooge and normally go with the flow but a the same time kind of happy our accommodation will also have self catering facilities. Eating 3 meals out every day for 7 people over a 10 day period will cripple any bank account so there will be may meals cooked at wherever we are staying.
The one saving grace is I sill am fortunate enough to be earning GBP so I am not taking or converting any Rand's for this trip. What gets to me is how anyone from South Africa can afford to travel overseas these days with the exchange rates being what they are. Most families are struggling to make ends meet every month and a holiday overseas is now a distant memory.
I think this is why having crypto is even more of a must have for those not earning Dollars, Pounds or Euros because at some point travel will be impossible due to the costs. Currently the Rand is sitting at R18.70 to the Dollar and R23.51 to the GBP and R20.02 to the Euro. This is seriously bad news for those earning the Rand and this is only going to depreciate more as the value is eroded away.
Back in 2004 the GBP was 10 x 1 and 20 years later we are staring at 25 x 1 so in 20 years you have lost 2.5 x the buying power. People are not earning 2.5 x more than those in the rest of the world just to stay on level terms. The cost of living maybe cheaper here in South Africa but everything is relative to what you earn and does not seem cheaper unless you have Dollars, GBP or Euro's.
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I'd likely be making the conversions myself as well. That's just the way my mind works.
Yes you cannot change that fact and to me thinking like that is normal.
I know the feeling, have friends who come from Colombia to Panama and its the same story but the funny part is that things like food and transportation might be cheaper over there but rent, electricity is almost the same, I always keep saying Panama is extremely expensive if you are paid in any other currency in Latin America, my dream has always be living in Colombia earning in USD but there are a lot of things to consider that at my age I might just stay living in Panama for the simplicity of it
Yes it swings both ways with positives and negatives on both sides.
Most likely you'll be shocked by the prices and as I know you, you'll be converting everything back and forth 😁
I will be shocked because my brain tells me a perceived value I know and now need to pay x 3 for the same thing.
Similarly, whenever one intends to go on such a trip, one should first calculate the expenses so that there is no problem later on.