Fading Memories -2

 CHAPTER II – A JOURNEY STARTS.

Usually, at the start of any trip, there is a degree of preparation involving its scope, destination, means of travel, time involved, anticipated end results, and cost. Especially that potentially ever-expanding detail: cost. For this particular trip, most of these preparations were foolishly glossed over by the anticipated end results factor. 

After a couple of phone calls to specific “international business” contacts (Question: what would we do without these dearly beloved “contacts”? … Answer: probably lead a normal life) it turns out that, given an existing set of parameters, there was -at the time- a market for this currency where good money could be made.  

When I asked for a “general indication” of what “good money” meant, I was told that based on the amount, availability of the goods and/or buyers, cost of transport, and contract details, the general commission would be 2% of the total face amount value of the transaction. This would be equally divided between two parts: those representing the seller and those representing the buyer. Then, each half would be further subdivided according to internal agreements.

After a quick calculation, the total commission would be more than whatever amounts of money we had seen together before. There would be many pitfalls along the way, before getting to that coveted prize. Some we could foresee, most hit us head-on as we, literally, explored these byways.

As said somewhere above... Anticipated results overshadowed all other considerations. 

To proceed with this project, we had to go to South America and meet with the person who had access to the offered product. We set up a meeting, flew down, and met with John (none of the names other than our own are real. In order to protect the guilty).

John was an unemployed office worker in his early 50’s and, as it turned out (in this instance and many others along the road) he was just somebody being used by whoever actually knew the person who owned the “buried”(literally) treasure. This last person did not wish to be known; he probably knew this was a (very) long shot deal at best and did not wish to be exposed or known as a part of this endeavor. 

He probably wasn’t bothering with too many legalities either. 

To be continued ... I think...