Cash and taxi tips

The restaurant has a Master Card sticker on the door. So you order, eat and present your card. There is a problem. Due to the power outage we cannot process you card. There is a problem. We aren´t accepting MC anymore-the decal needs to be removed. We cannot process your card. There is a problem. The owner needs some cash today (for his girlfriend, booky, ex-wife, cash delivery, etc)so we cannot process your card.

If you´re getting screwed on the exchange rate and using US because you are short of local currency--shut up, grin and take the deal. If things get nasty management can demand local legal tender, which you don´t have enough of because you are offering US. If this is a retail transaction you can walk. However, in a bar, club or restuarant you are screwed again as in There is a problem. Always have 100 US in small bills and the equlivant of local on you.

Also, there is another situation: My taxi driver did not turn on the meter (red flag!). I asked him what would be the fare to my nearby destination and he told me 12,000 colonies ($24). I knew that that was outragous. It should be one tenth of that! I asked again. He repeated: twelve thousand colonies. There is a problem. I was about to jump out of the cab but we pulled in the next moment. I moved the decimal and handed him twelve hundred ($2.50) colonies. He was satisfied. I gave him a friendly lesson in the diffeence between twelve hundred and twelve thousand.

More taxi. Where are you from is the first question. (Target identification.) How long have you been here? (Distance to target! Ready to fire.) If you say 5 minutes or first day you are in his sights because you are probably disoriented, don´t know the exchange rate, confused and tired. You have just identified yourself as vulnerable. Always say one month--I have a girlfriend or boyfriend here. If from the airport add: I am returning. Now you are off his sucker radar. I must add that 99% of the taximen are honest, friendly and helpful.