Currency in Myanmar

Prior to coming to Myanmar, we were told of some very strict guidelines when it came to money.  First off, we were told that there are no ATMs in the country and credit cards are not allowed.  While this was mostly true, our first hotel accepted credit cards but that is the only place I have seen it allowed thus far.  On top of that, I have not seen one ATM but I did see a giant advertisement for one. 

So without credit cards or ATMs we were forced to bring a lot of cash with us.  You could not bring just any dollar bill now.  It has to be a new bill with no rips and the serial numbers cannot begin with CB.  So prior to leaving, I took out cash, made sure they were new $20 bills and that they had no major tears.  Apparently, they were not good enough. 

I handed the lady at the counter five $20 bills.  She put four bills in one pile and then another to the side.  I figured oh well, I can live with one bill not being good enough.  She then handed me the pile of four…S*#T.  Luckily, everyone had more than enough CRISP bills and Debra was kind enough to give me some bills in exchange for my mine.  Note to anyone traveling here; make sure your bills are beyond crisp, because if I was traveling alone, I could have been in some serious trouble.