Setting off on an overseas trip so soon after the last one will definitely send us to the piggy bank, looking for any money left to our name. But even if we find a cache of Canadian dollars, there is always the question of how to turn that into pounds and euros, ready to be easily squandered in Europe.

Even travel advisors like the great Rick Steves seem to gloss over the question of how to marshall your financial forces on the trip. I think Rick just assumes you will take your local credit card to an ATM in the destination country, and wthdraw any needed cash as you go along. Rick must not deal with the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC)! Although I do not quite have the proof in front of me, I think if you try a Rick Steves with them, they will begin by giving an exchange rate about 4% worse than the mid-market (interbank) one. Next, the foreign ATM will ding you something, and in some cases CIBC will have a foreign transaction surcharge. 

Our solution for these rip-off risks has been to maintain a European bank account and credit card, with HSBC. We are kind of proud that our branch is on the Champs Elysee, though the one time we actually tried to go in there, we had to buck layers of physical security, before trying to explain that we just came to say "Hi". And if you make a mistake entering the four digit pin code of your card (at ATMs) three times in the entire life of the card, it's DEAD. Not even HSBC can revive it. But if you send them a FAX (FAX?) they will eventually mail a new one only to your home, which is obviously where you currently are not. (Oops, slipped into a little ranting there!)

One thing that CIBC will do, is to mail foreign cash to your home. Even more fun than getting an Amazon parcel is getting an envelope stuffed with Euros or Pounds! For this, they only ask their inflated exchange rate, and do not even add the postage cost. (Just for laughs, their web site says their exchange rate is what they have to pay for the currency. As if!)

In financing a trip this way, there is the decision as to whether to ask for large, small, or mixed bills. Large bills are of course a pain in places like markets, while small ones take up space and weight.  Then there is the risk of loss or theft. Typically we squirrel currency in places on the bikes that even we can't remember or find. We have to write ourselves a note about where it is, and then we have to remember where the note is!

Of course, we do not put all our eggs in the "cash" basket, because of the possible inconvenience and risk. But there is inconvenience and risk with cards also. CIBC's favourite one is to block an ATM withdrawal, preferably when you are broke, tired and hungry, and out in some dusty street. When and if you get your phone working for an international call, and assuming they are still awake in Toronto, they will say "What the hell are you doing in (name of country)".  That's your cue to say, "Well that's why I got your Travel card, where did you expect me to be??". Needless to say, things go downhill from there!

Our solution to the card problem is to carry cards from various banks. That way, if one gets snarly, there is possibly the competition to turn to. This really helps if an ATM decides to "eat" one of your cards. We empathized with a favourite travelling Youtuber, William Taudien, as his card was eaten in the Maldives, and he waited hours for a representative of the bank to arrive and presumably kick the machine.