My brain is converting to mush.

The dollar isn't nearly as bad as it used to be.

But that doesn't mean it's good. Or that I can do simple math in my head to convert funds, in anticipation of this trip. There's a reason I went into design, and not mathematics.

But more than just the exchange rate, I'm suddenly discovering all sorts of fees and ways banks and credit cards can totally snake your cash while on a European vacay.

Visa/Mastercard always charge 1% on international purchases. But on top of that conversion fee, many banks will charge a fee of their own, so your purchase on a Citibank Mastercard or Bank of America Visa is suddenly 3% more than the purchase.

Which sounds nominal, until you realize 9 nights hotel at $100/night, plus museum admission, plus souvenirs, etc... and this 3% charge starts adding up to be a couple of dinners or a pair of shoes! WTF!

HOWEVER, I have found a few great ways around paying super-high exchange rates (at currency counters and hotels, etc).

1 :: Book everything foreseeable in advance on .com websites, to avoid the international charge fee, but still reap the benefits of credit card protections (Trip cancellation/trip interruption coverage, Lost luggage coverage, $0 liability for unauthorized purchases, etc)

2 :: Pull out cash, and use it, from in-network ATMs. Bank of America charges a $5 flat exchange fee for out-of-network debit card withdrawals from international ATMs. The good news is, they consider all ATMs by Barclays (United Kingdom), BNP Paribas (France) in-network, so pulling out local cash from them avoids all conversion fees altogether.

Which is nice. because I have a limited budget, and increasing my wine consumption by 3% sounds fantastic.