Iceland v. Uzbekistan

Being able to hit the ATM is one of the great blessings of modern travel. No longer do travelers have to spend a lot of time waiting in bank lines at home waiting to buy travelers checks and abroad waiting to cash them for a fat commission. Now, banks are happy to take the commission with no middle man.

Iceland, however, has taken electronic transactions to a whole new level. It was the first time I ever visited a country without hitting the ATM or changing any money. Instead, it all went on the credit card. No charge is too small--even hot dog vendors on the street take credit.

The only time I ever wished I had any change was when I wanted to hit the soda machine. I imagine that hiccup will soon pass. I saw my first soda machine that takes credit cards while waiting for my luggage in the Miami airport a few weeks ago.

Uzbekistan lies on the other extreme from Iceland. Except in a few international hotels, credit cards cannot be used anywhere and I didn't see any ATM machine anywhere in the country. Visitors have to bring dollars to exchange and hold on to exchange receipts if they want to exchange it back.

And not just any cash. Unless the dollar bills are in mint condition, Uzbeks won't take them for the excellent reason that other Uzbeks won't take them. And you better have the latest version of each note. Unlike Americans, Uzbeks actually check for forgeries. This is not unique to Uzbekistan but common in cash-based societies.

Once you've changed your money in Uzbekistan, you get a large pile of money. Coins don't exist and the largest note (1000 sum) was worth around $0.75 when I was there. However, it is difficult to figure out what to do with the wads of cash--you get around twenty-seven 1000 sum notes for $20.