> There were a handful of shops that catered for foreigners. All transactions had to be in Euros as possession of local currency by foreigners was forbidden. A lot of the items were imported from China and from time to time, local fresh produce would make a rare appearance. Meat was always in short supply.
Lankov has described the coupon system in some detail. I believe Cuba has a similar system with CUC or had it until recently. I'm not sure at which point NK ditched coupons for Euros.
