The Euro

The Euro is quite unique, one of the first observations I made was that each of the bills are different sizes.  With each increase in value of the Euro, the bill itself increases in size. This is to make it easier for blind people to pay with the Euro.  Each of the Euro bills are also different colors.  The Euro bill colors are as follows: 5 is gray, 10 is red, 20 is blue, 50 is orange, 100 is green, 200 is yellow, and 500 is purple.  I have only seen a 500 bill one time, a gentleman was paying for a meal at a restaurant.  The one and Two Euro coins have a interesting design, in which the colors are inverse to each other.  The one Euro has a gold outer ring with a silver center and the two Euro has a silver outer ring with a gold center.  On one side of the coins there is a picture of Europe with the value of the coin, and on the other there is a symbol significant to one of the countries that use the Euro.  The most common one I have seen is the Eagle that hangs in the Reichstag. 

Here in Berlin, the only time I have seen anyone use a card, whether it’s a debit or credit card, has been at the ATM and they were withdrawing money because cash is far more commonly used to purchase items.  When I have gone into a store to buy a couple of items, I haven't been asked “Cash or Card?”  I had put myself in an awkward situation when I tired to purchase ice-cream with a 20 Euro bill.  The total was one Euro, but all I had were large bills, and the cashier refused to take the bill because it was too large of a quantity for the item I was trying to buy.  Because cash is used to pay for everything, bars don't open up tabs, you have to pay for each drink individually. The only time there has been an exception to this has been at a restaurant.  The money here is quite different from what I am familiar with, however, after a week here I feel I have a better understanding on how to spend my money without seeming ignorant to common customs.