well, the adventures are beginning already. what im learning is…. sometimes things take a long time to get accomplished in 3rd world countries. a friend warned me of this before i got here and i thought, HAH! no sir! he must not know me. if i have anything to do with it, it will get done, and get done quickly!
well, turns out i dont have anything to do with it. so, i have spent 2 days getting a whole lot of nothing done. and it took a looong time to do all of that nothing! but, thats ok. here’s one of the stories:
i was so excited that i came prepared and organized with EVERYTHING i needed to open a bank account right!? wrong. i came with 1 bank reference letter stating i am a client in good standing, and 2 letters from businesses stating i am a good client. a very important part of this process is a stamp. the letter MUST have a stamp in order to be a valid letter. (yes, i could probably go buy a stamp for a dollar of a butterfly, and it would probably count… as long as its a stamp.) a friend literally told me, have them stamp is crooked so it looks like a stamp, and if you need to, smear it a little while it is still wet, just so they really know its a stamp. true story folks.
here let me post a happy photo in the middle of my story so you have something pretty to look at. here’s me on my way to my house from the airport with all my bags!
ok, continuing… turns out i need not 1, but 2 bank reference letters (does everyone have 2 bank accounts??), 2 business references, and 2 personal references. friends on the island called around for a few favors and got me the other letters i needed, other than the bank letter. i went through several calls with various banks and credit cards, only to find out no one is around to sign and fax anything. finally i got that taken care of which was exciting. the bank on Utila approved the letters and sent to the parent bank in the capitol city to approve. so i went to the bank this morning, certain it would finally happen! false. apparently it has to be an original letter, not a fax. so i said, well im here inside the bank, so i cant get an original signature… because im here. not in the states. alas, no luck.
these must all be new policies, because i know someone who opened an account a month ago with just the 3 letters. so… not really sure what the next plan is. a) i dont actually really have anyone in the states to get letters from because my banks are all online other than the 1 i already have, and b) even if i did, im here. not there.
so, all that is to say, sometimes things function differently in other places than the u.s. 🙂 but thats ok.. i’m open to having the experiences, even if things are a little slow going. thats what im here for!
the good news is, the whale sharks have been out the past few weeks! so hopefully we will go on a boat ride this weekend for some fishing and a search for dolphins and whale sharks to swim with. sounds pretty fun to me, right?
im still working out some kinks with my cell phones, so keep an eye out for some updated contact information page.
life and travels 