Going to the UK? Check your change

by Sean McLachlan on

If you’re planning a holiday in the United Kingdom this year, check your coins. The Royal Mint at Llantrisant in Wales churned out tens of thousands of 20 pence coins with no date on them, the BBC reported. The mix up happened because on the new design for the 20p coin the date was switched from the tails to the heads, but when the coins were made, the mint used the new tails die and the old heads one.

So what? Well, here’s the kicker–coin collectors say they could be worth £50 ($83) each. This is because such slips are rare and no British coin has been issued without a date for more than three hundred years.

The mint estimates that between 50,000 and 200,000 coins were put into circulation, which means that not only are they lousy at quality control, but they don’t keep track of distribution either.

Garage sales and flea markets for travel bargains

by Jamie Rhein on

Garage and yard sales are on the rise as the stock market falls. The picking through what people don’t want to find the items that you must have–even if you never thought you might want one until it was in front of you– has never been better.

Instead of donating items to charity, these days more people are selling them to make some extra cash. Unfortunately, forclosures are also adding to the bounty.

Reading this article in the New York Times about the proliferation of garage sales reminded me of the used items I’ve purchased in my travels and why garage sales are worth putting on your itinerary. Going to a garage sale (or a flea market or thift store) is one way to find items for a lot less than they would cost new, and often reflect the place where you are traveling. You may not be able to find the items back home.

This summer, for example, I bought a brown chips and salsa bowl shaped like a cowboy hat from the thrift store in Philipsburg, Montana. The indentation at the top of the hat is where the salsa goes–the brim is for the chips. It was in mint condition and something I would never buy back home. Because I was in out West, and it looked western, I had to have it. I gave to friends of mine who appreciate kitsch.

When we were in England, I headed to a “boot sale,” the British version of a flea market. There, displayed on a blanket stretched out on the ground, I found a Wedgewood child’s mug with a Beatrix Potter Peter Rabbit design. What could be more British or more perfect than that? I bought it for my son who I pushed in his stroller up and down the rows of goods.

If you end up at a destination and discover you’re missing items that you ought to have with you, a garage sale may come to the rescue. A few years ago, we arrived at an A-frame cabin near Mohican State Park in Ohio for a weekend get-a-way with my husband’s brother and his family. We knew the cabin had beds, and for some reason, we thought there would be bedding. There wasn’t and we were so unprepared.

Off we headed to find a store to buy sleeping bags, but with no luck. Instead, we came upon a garage sale at a motel of all places. There on a table were sheets, pillow cases, pillows, one sleeping bag and a full-size comforter. All were clean, in great condition, and ours for $20.

Keep your eyes open. Maybe there’s a deal just around the corner waiting for you in someones yard.