I worked for a German company and the first time I went there, everyone assured me that I did not need any cash- plastic would do everywhere they claimed. Being non- trusting and wary, I grabbed a couple hundred Euros and flew over. The trip from the airport (Frankfurt) to the hotel (Wuppertal) took two trains and a taxi.... and the taxi did not take anything but cash. So had I <foolishly> listened, I would have been jammed- up on my very first day in Germany.... and it was Easter Sunday to boot (I would probably still be there but could probably speak the language decently by now).
Side note and OFFTOPIC: I get in the taxi in Wuppertal (Mercedes 500- they DO have nice cabs in Germany) and immediately notice a big photograph of a smiling George W. Bush (this was in '06, during his second term) stuck to the center of the dash. Hmmmmmm. Did not know what to think about why a German taxi would have a photo of GWB. Chatting with the taxi driver, who was quite clearly NOT German, he noticed my accent (we were speaking in English, the language he first addressed me with when I stepped toward his cab) and asked if I was American. Yep. He launches into a gigantic grin, screams 'USA NUMBER 1!' and 'George Bush is the greatest!'. Hmmmmmm. After chatting a bit, turns out the gentleman is a Kurd, and was a BIG fan of the US, and especially both Bush's, 41 and 43. Of course he had no understanding or interest in US politics, just a guy who happened to be on the receiving end of American aid and protection against genocide against his people. Of course he was not so grateful that he gave me the ride at no charge but still....
Brian
They haven't used "paper checks" in Europe for years. Some of the guys that live there can chime in, but when I lived there in 2002, we had to go to the post office to pay our utility bills with cash since we didn't have a bank account over there so they could electronically debit the account. No store, hotel or restaurant would take a check. In fact, many places would only take cash, which caused some panic when I checked out one morning and they needed 300 euros, in cash. Talk about crazy and annoyed ...