Money advice

[Robert Spenger]

Excellent advice, John

It was panic time for me in Porto when three different ATM's refused to provide
cash - the message said that I had to communicate with my bank. I tried to make
a call to my credit union, but it was hopeless. Fortunately, before I ran out,
an ATM in Braga worked fine, but in the meantime I was glad that I had the
backup of a credit card and a few travelers' checks to use for cash (since not
all places take credit cards.) I didn't have to use them, but they sure helped
my peace of mind. I never found out why the ATM's refused me. At one point I
thought that it might have been the result of one of the power outages that
California was having at that time, but the folks at the credit union said that
they had not had that problem. It did happen to another institution and it was
a news report of that incident that gave me the idea that it might have the
cause of my own difficulties. The point is that odd things happen and it is
always a good idea to have "Plan B" standing by.

regards,

Robert


"Watson, John" wrote:

> Use belts and braces, Marcia. That is, always have a backup. Take some cash,
> travellers' cheques (note the spelling! I'm an Aussie), a debit card such as
> Maestro, and a credit card - Visa or MasterCard. Keep them separately, and
> always on your person. The person who plans best is in least trouble.
> John
> www.pilgriminspain.net