So, I mentioned before that I’ve had issues with opening a bank account here in Aberdeen. Originally, I couldn’t do it because the uni wouldn’t give me a piece of paper. Then, when I got the paper (as an email I needed to print myself at cost) I was told it’d be accepted at the banks and I’d have no issue opening the account. Right.
Well, I went to the Bank of Scotland yesterday with the letters I needed, along with my passport, student ID, and my letter of unconditional acceptance to UofA. I had everything I needed and figured it’d be like opening an account in Montreal: meet with someone from the bank, go through the documentation, provide pieces of ID, proof of residence, etc. It’d take me a little bit, but the account would take a day – at most – to be set up and operational. I even brought the last 20 quid (pounds) I had so I’d have something to put into the account, so it wouldn’t be completely barren.
The woman I met with took the pages I’d printed up and ripped them in half, telling me they were not acceptable as they weren’t the originals. She was really rude, and added that the uni knew they only accepted the originals and, basically, insinuated I was darkening the bank’s doorstep and should scurry back to some sort of rat hole. Let me tell you, I cursed that woman out in 8 languages. I told her that the uni had provided those papers and that I found it the height of boorishness to destroy other people’s property – indicating that I felt she’d been raised horridly and implying that she should never be allowed out to deal with people as she did a discredit to the institution who was generous enough to employ her unprofessional self.
So, long story short, I returned to the res and resolved to hit the Hub today (the Hub is the info centre of the uni – it has counseling, student services, etc, you go there for all papers you need). I spoke to a lovely girl there and she said that I had the right end of the stick and reprinted the papers for me (at no cost this time!). She also gave me the name of the woman who’d negotiated with the banks so they’d accept the papers. I was told to go back to the bank and should I be given any problems to have them call the woman from the Hub.
Re-motivated, I want to a different branch of bank of Scotland – this one on campus grounds this time, and met with a very nice man who told me the paperwork was acceptable, but that, unfortunately, there were no slots until Monday to meet with someone to open an account.
Since I have so little money left, I decided I’d go to a different branch and see if they could fit me in. I went back to the other branch – mainly because I was hoping I’d see the other woman to rub it in her nose – but, alas, she was not there. I met with two other people and filled out the paperwork. They accepted the documents this time and I was accepted for an account.
There are a couple of snags though. First, it takes 7-10 working days to open the account. I can go in in two weeks and use my debit card and add money to the account. Second, once the account is active, it’ll take another 3-5 days before the money wired from Canada is actually seen in the account. That means that for the next three weeks, I have to live on about 10 pounds a week, and I owe a classmate a little cash since there is an activity this weekend that I can’t afford on my own.
I think, next time I travel, I’m going to bring more of the native currency with me, and more Canadian money to convert while here too… being poor sucks.
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