Monday, October 13, 2008

State of the Union

Let me just say that although, we have seen some price increases over the last few months over here... I am most certainly glad that I am not going back to the States for awhile. When I moved here, the won and the dollar were almost evenly pegged... around 1085 won = 1 dollar. However in the last 2 weeks, there have been dramatic losses on that front. The won is now worth about 64 cents on the dollar. The exchange has stabilized somewhat at around 1385 won to the dollar (official, not bank rates) and let me say I am very glad I don't have to be sending home massive amounts of dollars for credit cards or whatever else. I have a friend that sent home 10,000 W to get 7500 USD, just last week! OUCH! Those that are here, are glad they are here, those leaving shortly are hating life as they've seen a dramatic decrease in their savings in just a matter of days. My fellow co-worker just watched 25,000 turn into 13,000 overnight because he had to transfer money home. It just made me realize how crazy it must be over there. I miss you all and hope everyone is doing well.

1 comment:

Jenna said...

I feel so bad for your co-worker... I would cry if I lost that much! It has been interesting to watch gas prices drop over a dollar in a week here, but it is unnerving at the same time. Lots of people are excited about it because they fail to realize that the gas prices are set according to future demand... potentially scary deal. We'll just have to see.