Credit cards in St. Pete and Moscow were no problem for us in 2006. We still carried $10K on trip #1 and $15K on trip #2 - the usual crisp, new bills.
Keith wore a belt pack and I wore a neck purse, each with half of the money, plus our passports. Plus we carried color copies of our passports.
When you start paying out the cash - it's thousands, and it goes quickly. So your supply is rapidly reduced, once it starts going!
Becky
The Woodworth Family in Beautiful San Antonio TX