Each time I enter a new country, that's one more currency to exchange, one more exchange rate to get down, and one more set of "fair prices" to learn.
Thailand has the baht, 35 of which are worth a dollar. When shorted change once, I had to remind myself that one baht is just three cents. They have bills, and coins as small as a quarter of a baht. Currency shows the face of the king, to whom everyone shows the utmost respect (if for no other reason than that's the law). Another traveller in a 7-11 dropped a coin and to prevent it from rolling away, stomped on it (feet are considered the lowest and dirtiest part of the body, and stepping on or over anything is extremely disrespectful), to which the employees exclaimed, "the king, the king!" Don't do that.
Vietnam has the dong, 22,600 of which equals a dollar. Math isn't quick except for a rough conversion. Costs will sometimes be listed in dollars, but you pay in dong...this results in some playing with exchange rates of 20,000 to upwards of 23,000. A 10,000 note looked way too similar to a 100,000, and I wouldn't be surprised if I lost one or two by accidentally overpaying.
Cambodia was a bit different...dollars are as widely accepted as the Cambodian Riel, if not more so. Anywhere in the country, 4,000 Riel is 1 USD, and prices are often listed in dollars. Only dollar bills are accepted (no coins), so currencies mix and there's no avoiding it. A $3.75 purchase made with a $5 bill might return either 5,000 Riel or a $1 bill and 1,000 Riel note.
In the US, a dollar bill in just about any condition will be worth a dollar. They even say if it's just over half, then that counts. And if a bill does get mangled, it's not a big deal since we print the money. You can even mail in burned, shredded, or otherwise mutilated paper currency to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing where treasury examiners inspect and validate them, and refund the appropriate amount back.
No such system exists in Cambodia, so the rules are a bit stricter. Most merchants won't accept a dollar bill that's even a little bit damaged or torn--or if they do, may subtract 5-10% of the value.
I met an expat who had a $50 bill (and the rest of her wallet) mauled by her dog. What wouldn't be a problem back home means she's down $50 here, since no one will accept it, not even a bank. I had an otherwise crisp Benjamin rejected for a tiny black smudge at the bottom.
The $2 bill is traditionally reserved for spirit offerings or good luck charms in Cambodia. Some merchants may accept it if they don't believe in that, others will laugh and say it's not accepted in Cambodia (thinking it's not real). I've also read reports of some paying a premium (more than $2), and others still that say it depends on the serial number.
It felt a bit weird having US dollars back in the wallet, in fact upon arrival an ATM gave me a single brand new style $100 bill I'd never seen before. But the exchange rate is set and consistent, so math is easy, and it's easier to use than you might think two mixed currencies would be. But those used to the Euro for example, had to do a bit more thinking and converting between two foreign currencies and their own.
Laos for the most part sticks to using their own currency, the kip, of which roughly 8,000 will get you $1. But some higher prices (e.g. tours) are quoted as dollars. The 1,000 and 10,000 kip notes, both blue, inconveniently looked very similar. Like Vietnam, I found myself withdrawing millions, and dropping hundreds of thousands in a day.
ATMs were typically easy to find in Laos, though I once had to try five before finding one that was working and accepted my card. Don Det was an exception, as the island doesn't have a single ATM.
No one seems to have change for big bills. I'll never know how a bustling restaurant can struggle to come up with 5,000 kip change.
Laos was (relatively) expensive. Still a great value, but there was some sticker shock after getting spoiled with dirt cheap food, transport, and accommodation from its neighbors.
Malaysia uses the ringgit at about 4.25 to a dollar. Upon being formed, Malaysia established the dollar as their currency. When Singapore split off in 1965 and kept the dollar, Malaysia created the ringgit. So they will sometimes casually say prices with "dollar" when they mean ringgit. Bills range from 1 to 100, and coins make up fractions of a ringgit--100 sen in a ringgit, which makes for prices such as "two ringgit, eighty cents."
I appreciated their different colored bills that were easy to distinguish and handle. No extra zeros to deal with, either. I liked not having any coins to mess with in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, but no such luck in Malaysia. Since 6% GST (goods and services tax) is not always included in the listed price, totals can be messy numbers. So receipts are sometimes rounded to five cents, no pennies required. Hey...the US could do that!
Aside from being extremely clean, Singapore may be best known for being expensive. One Singapore dollar is about $0.75. Museums ran $10-20USD admission and even dorm accommodations were steep (>$20USD), but otherwise I got around cheaper than expected. Hawker centers had good street food for less than $5USD/meal and $15USD for three days of unlimited bus and metro rides.
Nepal uses the rupee, which is roughly one US cent. Thankfully all bills and no coins. In Pokhara (not a small town) I once waited 30 minutes for an ATM as it was the only one we could find in town that worked and accepted foreign cards.
1,300 Myanmar kyat ("chet") makes a dollar, making this the toughest math all trip. Food tends to be incredibly cheap ($1-2 meal on the street), and taxis are cheap even before bargaining, but accomodation can exceed $20 for a dorm bed during peak season, especially in the tourist hot spot of Bagan.
I avoided money changers and their less than favorable exchange rates and went straight to the ATM. One of the best things I packed was a new, free debit card with all ATM fees (of which there are lots) reimbursed worldwide. If I departed a country with some notes leftover, I'd bring them with me until I encountered another traveller headed that way so we could make a fair trade.
Bargaining is a way of life over here so I learned to partake. But if I ever started to question a price when it was a matter of pocket change, I would remind myself of what an incredible value southeast Asia is.
Thailand has the baht, 35 of which are worth a dollar. When shorted change once, I had to remind myself that one baht is just three cents. They have bills, and coins as small as a quarter of a baht. Currency shows the face of the king, to whom everyone shows the utmost respect (if for no other reason than that's the law). Another traveller in a 7-11 dropped a coin and to prevent it from rolling away, stomped on it (feet are considered the lowest and dirtiest part of the body, and stepping on or over anything is extremely disrespectful), to which the employees exclaimed, "the king, the king!" Don't do that.
Vietnam has the dong, 22,600 of which equals a dollar. Math isn't quick except for a rough conversion. Costs will sometimes be listed in dollars, but you pay in dong...this results in some playing with exchange rates of 20,000 to upwards of 23,000. A 10,000 note looked way too similar to a 100,000, and I wouldn't be surprised if I lost one or two by accidentally overpaying.
Cambodia was a bit different...dollars are as widely accepted as the Cambodian Riel, if not more so. Anywhere in the country, 4,000 Riel is 1 USD, and prices are often listed in dollars. Only dollar bills are accepted (no coins), so currencies mix and there's no avoiding it. A $3.75 purchase made with a $5 bill might return either 5,000 Riel or a $1 bill and 1,000 Riel note.
In the US, a dollar bill in just about any condition will be worth a dollar. They even say if it's just over half, then that counts. And if a bill does get mangled, it's not a big deal since we print the money. You can even mail in burned, shredded, or otherwise mutilated paper currency to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing where treasury examiners inspect and validate them, and refund the appropriate amount back.
No such system exists in Cambodia, so the rules are a bit stricter. Most merchants won't accept a dollar bill that's even a little bit damaged or torn--or if they do, may subtract 5-10% of the value.
It felt a bit weird having US dollars back in the wallet, in fact upon arrival an ATM gave me a single brand new style $100 bill I'd never seen before. But the exchange rate is set and consistent, so math is easy, and it's easier to use than you might think two mixed currencies would be. But those used to the Euro for example, had to do a bit more thinking and converting between two foreign currencies and their own.
Laos for the most part sticks to using their own currency, the kip, of which roughly 8,000 will get you $1. But some higher prices (e.g. tours) are quoted as dollars. The 1,000 and 10,000 kip notes, both blue, inconveniently looked very similar. Like Vietnam, I found myself withdrawing millions, and dropping hundreds of thousands in a day.
ATMs were typically easy to find in Laos, though I once had to try five before finding one that was working and accepted my card. Don Det was an exception, as the island doesn't have a single ATM.
No one seems to have change for big bills. I'll never know how a bustling restaurant can struggle to come up with 5,000 kip change.
Laos was (relatively) expensive. Still a great value, but there was some sticker shock after getting spoiled with dirt cheap food, transport, and accommodation from its neighbors.
Malaysia uses the ringgit at about 4.25 to a dollar. Upon being formed, Malaysia established the dollar as their currency. When Singapore split off in 1965 and kept the dollar, Malaysia created the ringgit. So they will sometimes casually say prices with "dollar" when they mean ringgit. Bills range from 1 to 100, and coins make up fractions of a ringgit--100 sen in a ringgit, which makes for prices such as "two ringgit, eighty cents."
I appreciated their different colored bills that were easy to distinguish and handle. No extra zeros to deal with, either. I liked not having any coins to mess with in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, but no such luck in Malaysia. Since 6% GST (goods and services tax) is not always included in the listed price, totals can be messy numbers. So receipts are sometimes rounded to five cents, no pennies required. Hey...the US could do that!
Aside from being extremely clean, Singapore may be best known for being expensive. One Singapore dollar is about $0.75. Museums ran $10-20USD admission and even dorm accommodations were steep (>$20USD), but otherwise I got around cheaper than expected. Hawker centers had good street food for less than $5USD/meal and $15USD for three days of unlimited bus and metro rides.
Nepal uses the rupee, which is roughly one US cent. Thankfully all bills and no coins. In Pokhara (not a small town) I once waited 30 minutes for an ATM as it was the only one we could find in town that worked and accepted foreign cards.
1,300 Myanmar kyat ("chet") makes a dollar, making this the toughest math all trip. Food tends to be incredibly cheap ($1-2 meal on the street), and taxis are cheap even before bargaining, but accomodation can exceed $20 for a dorm bed during peak season, especially in the tourist hot spot of Bagan.
I avoided money changers and their less than favorable exchange rates and went straight to the ATM. One of the best things I packed was a new, free debit card with all ATM fees (of which there are lots) reimbursed worldwide. If I departed a country with some notes leftover, I'd bring them with me until I encountered another traveller headed that way so we could make a fair trade.
Bargaining is a way of life over here so I learned to partake. But if I ever started to question a price when it was a matter of pocket change, I would remind myself of what an incredible value southeast Asia is.