1970's. Later, when I worked in the Gulf countries of the Middle East in the 1980's, banking was generally quite a struggle. Lines were long as things had to generally be signed off by at least a half dozen people for the easiest transaction. The Saudi Arabian Naval Forces used to fly in cash for our monthly paydays. Once, I remember being paid my complete salary in Saudi 5 Riyal notes (about $1.35 each). I had to carry them back to my BOQ in a large paper bag. Nowadays, I hardly ever touch cash. We run everything through credit cards for the 1% cash back offered on groceries. I cannot remember the last time I spoke face-to-face with a bank teller. Direct deposit pay and online banking have completely eliminated our need for paper currency. Sometimes, the lone $20 bill in my wallet gets worn from being there for months on end.
I thought of these things today, as we went to get some Euros for the trip that starts on Thursday. Even up until last year, we made it a practice to buy traveller's cheques before departing. It was a habit developed 25-years ago when we started taking overseas trips. Today, Thomas Cook didn't have large enough notes, so we didn't pick up any. I didn't want to repeat the paper-bag scenario. I wonder why we feel naked when flying without a pocket full of paper money. Plastic should be able take care of us anywhere in the world in this day and age.