Bofa?

When I came over to do my internship, I decided that it might be convenient to have an account at a local bank, so I opened myself a Bank of America account, since it was free. But then I got the pamphlet explaining the fees, and it's just... horrible. They charge for using another bank's ATM (and of course the other bank charges you too). Even to check your balance. And to make up for the fact that ATMs don't charge for using foreign cards, BofA charges even more for using a foreign ATM. And just today they sent me a letter explaining that they've confiscated my paycheck for a week, basically giving themselves an interest-free loan. It's like they think that I should be paying them to take my money and make a profit with it or something. I find that sort of attitude in a bank to be most... unhelpful.

Abonnement général

Switzerland has one of the best train systems in the world: It may not be the fastest, but it is one of the most comprehensive and reliable. You can get from anywhere to anywhere else in the country, trains almost always run at least hourly, and generally scheduled for easy connections. And while it's not cheap, if you live there, you can get all sorts of discounts, and they even have a yearly unlimited pass. That's right, if you pay 3100 Francs (worth about $2500 before the dollar became worthless), you can ride on any train, bus, tram, etc. anywhere in the country as much as you like.
Imagine if such a thing existed in Northern California: you would be able to go from Salinas to Reno, from Yosemite to San Francisco, all for just one easy payment of, say, $3000. That's hardly more than a year's worth of Caltrain and Muni passes, yet it offers one the freedom to go anywhere at all, without having to bother with tickets, or even think about how much it costs. You just hop on the train and go.