>>>>>>>>She said one funny thing. She said Czechs are generally in good shape despite the heavy diet and doing no apparent exercise. If you see someone running outside, they're American, she was told. She plans to run anyway. That's my girl.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>That's because Europe usually has food, not too much in the way of industrial stuff which goes for food in the US. My son-in-law is a heavy set guy, usually around 230lb or more, and when they come here and stay for a month, he eats a lot, lot more than at home, and yet loses at least 15 lb each time. Thin on sugar, thin on starch, rich on fat and proteins. I've also lost whatever I gained while not smoking, about 20 lb altogether, and for the last three years I'm stable around 81-82 kg. And healthy at that. We don't have a FDA...
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>She is wondering how her vegetarianism will fare. UW-Madison does a great job of preparing their students abroad, including meetings with recent alums who have been to the same place. One of hers said there was a vegetarian woman in his group. He said I don't know how she did it. Hmmm.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Our youngest is a vegetarian and she went to Prague last year, albeit for only a few days. She didn't complain about the choice of food. There's a lot of pastry of various kinds, and dumplings in many dishes. And there should be peasants' markets nearby, wherever you go, so if your daughter is into cooking, she may find whatever she needs.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>My wife and I are both vegetarian (no meat no dairy but we eat seafood). We went to Vienna a couple of years ago and thought that it would be hard to find places for us to eat. No so. They even have vegan restaurants. Which was surprising since Austrians love meat so much. I am pretty sure that Prague has vegan and vegetarian eateries too.
>>>>>
>>>>>Thanks to both you and Dragan for the input. That is reassuring. She is pretty committed about it
>>>>>
>>>>>I received an email from her an hour ago. She is in Prague, so that's good. She is having a hard time using her Visa card and/or debit card so is essentially penniless. Or whatever the Czech currency is. The Visa Sapphire card was specifically selected for her trip and the woman I just spoke with there says there are no obstacles to Emily using it. The Chase customer service group was less helpful about the debit card. It was some Indian woman who would not diverge from policy under any circumstances. The bottom line was they have to speak with the cardholder personally. I understand the policy and the reasons for it. You would just like a big bank to act like a small home town bank sometimes.
>>>>
>>>>I had similar problem last year in Amsterdam. The Europe now uses new type of credit cards with a chip. Mostly I found that they won't take (at least in Amsterdam) American CC in train stations. But restaurants and hotels still took our credit cards with no problems. Also, you can transfer money to her via Western Union (costly though). Hope she finds a way to get currency.
>>>
>>>I just made a decision to switch my banking from Chase to a small local bank, as yet unknown. I will sleep on it and not do it before tomorrow, and I am not doing this in anger, but I think I will be happier that way. My long term loyalty to Chase has been primarily due to how easy they make it to pay recurring bills. I sure don't like what I read about them in the news. Once in a while we have to choose between ease of use and peace of mind. I am going for peace of mind. The smaller the new bank, the better. It's not like Chase is burying me in interest income.
>>>
>>>This is how businesses lose customers. They have so many of them they start viewing them as interchangeable, faceless cogs in the machine. Big mistake.
>>
>>The Chase MS I have has advantage that it does not charge the foreign fees when used abroad. Typically this fee is about 3% which adds up.
>
>I will keep the Sapphire card while Emily is in Prague specifically for that reason. No foreign transaction fees.

This is what I have Chase Sapphire card. The annual fee is expensive ($80) but it also carries some insurance (like for lost days in travel, and some others). And, of course, the 3% foreign transaction fee.