The Color of Money

At the Galeria Kaufhof on Berlin's historic Alexanderplatz, preparations are well under way for the Jan. 1 conversion to the new euro currency. Prices are displayed in both euros and deutsche marks, staff have been trained and 4.6 tons of euro coins and notes have been ordered to fill the venerable safes in the store's basement. "We will be a change bureau, and it's a great advantage," says manager Detlef Steffens. "We want people to bring us their marks because then we can sell them something."

Things are much different at Kamin's Minimarket, a small grocery not far away....