Fun With Foreign Currencies

Somebody gave me my first Filipino pesos a couple of days ago! They kind of remind me of Paraguayan guaraníes in that 1) a handful of money is not necessarily worth very much, and 2) they are paper (unlike Aussie dollars), with each denomination having a unique colour scheme (unlike U.S. dollars). I don’t mind this similarity, but I do hope that the Filipino coins are not like Paraguayan coins!

During the time I was living in Paraguay, several denominations of coin had about four completely different (different size, different colour) versions in circulation. It can be hard enough to figure out the coins of a different currency without an added complication such as this! (I think I probably figured out U.S. coins just before I was about to leave, after having used them for 16 months. Trying to use 25 cent coins when I was used to 20 cent coins really messed with my head!)

Another special feature of Paraguayan coins was that they were worth so little that supermarkets often gave change in the form of a handful of lollies (candy, my American friends!), rather than messing around with the smaller coins. This practice always amused me.   

Anyway, it’s now 38 days until I leave, so it’s not long now until I’ll be spending the money pictured above and attempting to make sense of the Filipino coins that start filling my wallet!!