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　　Buy now, pay later．Credit cards give people that choice．Those billions of small pieces of plastic in use all over the world make it easy to buy things．But people who use credit cards irresponsibly can soon find themselves heavily in debt．

　　Cardholders may not think about it, but they borrow money from a bank or other lender each time they charge something．They avoid interest charges if they pay their bill in full each month．But if they only make the minimum payment, the lowest required, it may take years to pay off a debt．Interest is continually charged on the unpaid balance．

　　A credit card may have a number of costs．First, there is the interest charge on purchases, known as the annual percentage rate, or A.P.R．In the United States right now, the average is between thirteen and fourteen to keep them．

　　Cardholders may have to pay cash advance fees if they withdraw money from a credit card．There are also fees if they go over their credit limit, or if a payment is late．Lenders may also raise interest rates as punishment．

　　In the United States, credit card fees have become a political issue．Congress has threatened to take action against what critics call abusive behavior by lenders．

　　Yet getting a credit card has become a lot easier for most people．Maybe too easy：People receive offers in the mail of pre-approved cards that they never asked for．Many cards offer low rates at first, especially if people agree to move their balance from another card, absolutely for free．

　　About half of all Americans have at least two credit cards．And the credit rating agency Experian says fourteen percent of the population has more than ten．

　　Jeanne Hogarth at the Federal Reserve, the central bank, says the average family has four credit cards．But families that carry a balance, meaning they do not pay off their statements each month, have an average of five．

　　In nineteen eighty-eight Americans had three hundred thirty billion dollars in credit card debt．Last year it was eight hundred forty billion．

　　In the latest government study, the average credit card debt for all households was more than three thousand dollars．But for those that carried a balance, the average was five thousand three hundred．

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　　When you are next in Nanoko, be sure to stay at the Garden Hotel．Whether you come on business or on holiday, you will find everything as comfortable and as convenient as you would expect in a first-class international hotel．

　　Every bedroom has its own private bathroom, telephone, wall-to-wall carpeting and colourful, modern materials and furniture in the local style．

　　In the Mitsu Restaurant, you can choose your meals from as wide a variety of dishes, both Eastern and European, as you will find anywhere in the country．In the Beach Bar, you can drink with your family and friends in air-conditioned comfort, to the music of internationally known artists．Or you can take your drink outside into the beautiful garden that gives the hotel its name, or to the tables that surround the swimming pool．Throughout the hotel, you will find the service is both friendly and efficient．

　　By day, the pool is alive with the holiday spirit and the happy shouting of children; and by night, soft lights and music make it the perfect place for a party, or simply for an after-dinner drink and conversation．

　　The Garden Hotel has its own private mini-bus service．Give us a ring and we will arrange to collect you at the airport or in the city center．Every day a bus leaves the hotel for day trips up into the hills to see the ruined city of Morote, or the villages and temples of the hill people; or along the coast to the seaside towns and wonderful beaches of Cape St Germain．

　　If you prefer, we can arrange for you to visit the Wainiri Islands that lie just off the coast．Here you can swim and sun-bathe in private and in peace; or you can fish for one of the many varieties of sea-life for which the Wainiris are justly famous．

　　The Garden Hotel is right on the beach, only five minutes for Nanoko’s modern shopping centre．Here you will find all that money can buy, at prices you can afford．

　　GARDEN HOTEL, BEACH AVENUE, NANOKO, P．R．T．TEL：46-0488

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