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Letter Re: Some First Hand Experience with Mass Inflation
Dear Mr. Rawles,
I lived in Romania in 1993 and 1994 at the height of runaway inflation. It
was not a pretty time to see the land of Count Dracula! A meal that cost
5 Lei
in
1990, was 2500 Lei in 1993. My rent was paid in Deutsche Marks, as the landlord
would not take Romanian currency. However, I had to stay three days in Bucharest
prior to my departure for home. I paid nearly 4 Million Romanian Lei for the
room, and it was crummy and shabby to boot! By that time, I think the Lei
to Dollar rate was something like 100,000 to one. (It had been 5:1 in communist
days). While I saw no wheelbarrows full of money, I had to use a large shopping
bag to carry the nearly 4 million Lei from the official government exchange
office to the hotel.
The largest bill at that time, was 5,000 Lei. As we waited at a bus stop, I
sat the shopping bag down at the side of the bench. My "Securitate" interpreter
grew agitated and told me to hold the bag close. I thanked him and said, "Thanks.",
as I didn't want to lose my money. He said, "Your money? They will
take the bag and leave the money! Then how will we carry
all the money to the hotel?"
I also was in Yugoslavia when the hyperinflation of post-communism
set in. I still have a multi-billion Yugo Dinarius note. I think Nicola Tesla's
picture
is on it. At the time, the bill was good for a small sandwich only. No meat
on it, at that! This may yet happen here, in the good old USA. Thanks for the
information that you provide. I'm a new "prepper," but am blessed
by God to have a nice remote location, with good water and good farm ground.
Now
all
I need
to find is a group, not easy to do in rural Florida. Regards, - MB
