Money (That's What I Want)

As I was standing in line at Thomas Cook in West Vancouver this morning, I couldn't get this Beatles song out of my head. I got to my computer and hit the Wikipedia and found out that the Beatles weren't the only ones to record this Barret Strong song -- including the Rolling Stones, The Doors, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Smashing Pumpkins, and even Hanson. There's your dose of trivia for the day.

I marveled at the ease in which my Canadian dollars could be turned into New Zealand dollars. Magic -- and they cost less! Once I got home, I pulled the bills out of my wallet and began to study the money I'll be using for the next several months (the Cook Islands also operate on the New Zealand dollar -- more about that later, when I debrief all of you on the Coles Notes version of Cook Islands history, culture, and economy).

Here's the skinny on Kiwi currency, courtesy of the Wikipedia:

Coins exist in .10, .20, .50 and $1 and $2. (In July 2006, old coins were replaced with newer, smaller coins, and the .05 coin is now being phased out completely).

Bills exist in $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100.

Each bill presents a historical figure on one side, and a native bird on the other.

Bills are pretty -- colourful like Canadian money! (And, like Canada, NZ has phased out $1 and $2 bills in favour of more pocket change...)

The bills also have a neat security feature -- two "see through" windows, one with the denomination embossed, the other with the signature NZ fern.

They bills are NOT made out of paper, but rather a type of polypropylene plastic.

Here's a brief history of NZ, as told through the currency:

$5 Sir Edmund Hillary, a Kiwi Mountaineer, who became the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest. He's one of few living people (excluding royalty) to be featured on currency. Also features the hoiho, or Yellow-eyed Penguin, one of the world's rarest penguin species.

$10 Kate Sheppard, the most important figure in the NZ women's suffrage movement. Also features the Whio (Blue Duck), a rare bird from the country's mountainous regions.

$20 Queen Elizabeth II. Unlike the Canadian version, this queen looks a lot like my grandma Polowick... Also features the Karearea, a.k.a. NZ Falcon.

$50 Sir Apirana Ngata, a prominent Maori politician who worked to protect and regenerate Maori culture. Also features a type of Kokako, a rare NZ bird.

$100 Lord Rutherford of Nelson, a NZ born scientist and winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1908). He performed much of the early work on the atom. Also features the mohua, a bird found in certain areas of the South Island.

All for now.

L.