The TRAVELER'S JOURNAL: December twentieth, with a cheat sheet for Euros.

In twelve days, the national currencies of a dozen European countries will begin to disappear, replaced by the new continental standard, the Euro. Several weeks ago, we provided a primer detailing the basic transitions and specifications of the new currency. For travelers, understanding Dollar/Euro exchange rates is as important as knowing that each Euro has 100 cents. But what are common goods and services likely to cost when calculated in Euros?

For example, dining at a superb Parisian restaurant. This evening, the tab for a meal at Taillevent might run 1100 francs per person, which, at present exchange rates, translates to about $155. January first, it will be 167.5 euros, including the tip.

Or a romantic gondola ride in Venice. A 50-minute excursion will soak you for 154,000 lire, or $73.50. Next spring that same experience will cost 80 euros.

A pint of beer in a Dublin pub now averages about three Irish punt or $3.52. That'll be 3 euros and 81 cents, although you'd be wise to leave the change on the bar. A cup of coffee in Vienna that now costs 40 Austrian schillings or $2.66 will cost 2.88 euros. An ticket to the Acropolis in Athens that presently runs 2000 drachma, will be 5.87 euros, although it is safe to assume that many fees will be rounded up to the nearest euro, effectively constituting a price increase. Euros certainly simplify the math of currency conversion, but it's still also important to understand the scale of relative value.

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