In the US, I’ve mainly been living in a cash world.  I have a credit card, but I keep it for big purchases, never using it for day to day stuff.   My debit card expires the end of this month and I’d arranged for one to be sent out earlier so I could guarantee getting it at home at a time I was actually there.  What they forgot to tell me is that in doing that they would cancel my current card.  So here I am, stuck in New York with no way of actually getting any cash for the day to day stuff. There are ways round it, but they just take far more effort. I could get some money transferred to my newly opened US account (they gave me 2 for the price of one and were very keen to give me lots of cheques) but I need to send a letter to the UK and then wait for the money to come back, so it would take 6-7 days.  Time to go move money between accounts to ensure I actually have credit, can pay for a plane journey and get some cash out so I can buy food and stuff.
Perils of International Banking
