i know this was posted ages ago, but you might want to try to buy some amex travellers cheques and post them with insurace on the letter. thats what my granddad did for YEARS when sending money to mum back in NY.

he wired the money once to her and they money that was used turned out to be counterfeit and the secret service were at our house for a week questioning my mum and dad. eventually they believed the money was sent from my granddad who didnt create it or have ties to those who did. he had received the money from his bank and they didnt realise it. we received an apology but we couldnt have the money, so my granddad was out £600. btw this was back in 1991 so the conversion was roughly $1 to £1

 

changing currency

There is a way if you have an international business relationship with someone outside your home country to transfer or exchange currency midway through the process using a currency exchange dealer. Using a private credit union is usually the answer. An association with an international entity offers several advantages when dealing from a tax unfriendly country as well.
As the the last post indicated, this was posted ages ago, but it might be of interest to someone else in the same "pickle."
fingerkop

 

There are a lot of fx brokers on the net. To be safe always check if they are authorised by some financial authority and are regulated.