Well, we did have a little money – maybe €5 – but somehow we managed to not have any money returning on this trip.  Maybe we misplaced it somewhere in our move, etc., but we landed in Italy with the intention of hitting the first ATM we saw.  But we just didn’t get around to it until we got to the station in Parma.  Oh – but let’s backtrack . . .

At the train station in Malpensa, we had to go to the desk to buy a ticket.  Even though many of our cards have pins, they are mostly “chip and sign” and do not work at many ticket machines and other automated locations.  So, we got our tickets and headed on our way.  In Parma, I decided to get some cash.  Not one ATM would take my card.  Not my Paypal debit card.  Not my bank debit card.  We were pretty much cashless.  The last trip to Italy all of my cards had worked, so I didn’t even think to call the bank, etc.  Later I did phone the bank, and they fixed everything, but our trip to our new “home” was a bit stressful.  Why oh why does the US have to do EVERYTHING differently than the rest of the world 😉

Now that we’re tucked into our hotel room for the night, we’ll try to get some sleep and go apartment hunting tomorrow!

Buonanotte