Collecting Currency

Everywhere we go guides, touts, children and vendors ask if we have some of our own currency. It's easy to answer because we simply don't. We're not sure why they ask for our loose change...maybe the novelty of having it? Maybe to exchange it when they build up enough, a few 20p's might be insignificant to us but they're worth a lot more to the people who ask us for our local change.

As we sit in Probolinggo waiting waiting waiting and waiting for the local mini bus to go to Bromo (it's currently been two hours and waiting) we have a right laugh with the locals. Sitting drinking rank iced coffee and nice iced tea the locals joke with the Chinese tourist beside us. He shows them his home currency and they study the notes carefully. "How much? How much?!" they ask. The Chinese guy calculates and tells them in their own currency. One of the notes is worth 30,000R. "I keep" the local asks hopefully. The chinese tourist laughs out loud "big big" he says as he takes the note back. "I give you 10,000R" (for the note valued at 30,000R) says the local, "no!" is the response. "I give you 10,000R and massage!" tries the local again, needless to say that wasn't enough either. The tourist gives him a low value note for his "collection" and John joins in giving a small value note from Burma/Myanmar. "It's good to build friendship" John whispers to me hopefully but there are still four empty seats on the bus and we look no closer to leaving now than we were an hour ago. I wonder if we'll get there in daylight? Sigh. Just gotta wait wait wait and see.