Money and Travel

I keep foreign currency in my wallet. Not much, five Euro. 500 Tanzanian Shillings (which is about $2 US), two pounds. It’s a pleasant reminder of places I’ve been fortunate to visit, especially when I’m paying for things that are a part of the suburban American lifestyle: Mulch at the Home Depot, dress pants at Banana Republic, coffee at the local bagel shop. Thumbing past color currency to find to find a dull green $20 US bill also reminds me it’s a big world out there. I know that’s no big revelation but as we go through life, much of it is happens in a relative small footprint of habitual boundaries like the local grocery store, the soccer pitch, office and home.

Breaking through those habitual boundaries comes with a price tag. I realize that. Often it comes down to the choices that we make. Admittedly, mulch, dress pants, and overpriced coffee aren’t “must haves” and do play a role in drawing those boundaries. Squirreling away money for travel is one way to break through. Being smart about what you spend money on is another.

For some, success means making as much money as possible, buying a big house and a fancy car. That’s all well and good but my father always said “different strokes for different folks.” For me success is defined by seeing as many places on earth as humanly possible and I get a taste of that success when I look in my wallet.