Today I went shopping for a list of random things we needed. It seems like every few days I have a new list that I need to go out and shop for which is totally different for me because I’m not a shopper. Anyone who knows me well would know that I hate feeling like I’m buying something that is overpriced or spending more than I need to so I tend to be very aware of prices. Here is the thing, I can’t figure out what’s expensive and what isn’t.

Before we left Sydney Jamie and I were joking that our scale on what is considered expensive has forever been skewed having lived there. Things are so expensive that is took a full year to stop being surprised by prices. But for us we find ourselves in a slightly odd situation of having financial obligations in the US, income still coming from AU, and now spending money in DE. So as I’m at the store and I see a price tag I’m trying to figure out if it is expensive or not. With the current exchange rates thing suddenly look different. Spending $100 AUD is now only about €50 or roughly $60 USD. So when I see something in the store for €100 am I spending $200 AUD or $90USD? While technically they are the same value they feel really different…

In the end I’ve learned that it all comes down to cost of living so once we have real bills and normal pay checks we will start to understand what earning and spending euros really means and it will become clear what is expensive and what isn’t. But in the mean time I’m looking at a jar of mustard for €2.50 and trying to figure out if it’s a good price.