My first stop in town today was the bank. I thought it was odd that their sign was gone from the building when I got off the bus, but it's Turkey. I crossed the street, glanced in the glass door and saw emptiness and plywood on the floor. They've moved before since we arrived in the region so I didn't think much of it. The ATM was in it's same old place so I stuck my card in, jumped through the hoops and got NOTHING.
I just chatted with Cam. His employer is having problems depositing his pay cheque because our branch no longer exists. Cam didn't say so - but I'm guessing he got a "Why didn't you tell us you were changing banks?" phone call from the corporate accountant.
So it appears that ING Bank has moved their branch lock stock and bank accounts to Canakkale; a twenty minute ferry ride and depending on the actual location of the branch perhaps a 30 minute drive from Gelibolu. If the branch is gone, there will be no one here to maintain the ATM so I guess we're looking for a new bank.
Oh my word! Nothing like keep life interesting over there. I think I would have panicked when I came across the empty building.
ReplyDeleteBusinesses come and go over night here. What bugged me was pressing all those buttons and not getting cash. I kept wondering if the money was being deducted from the account even though I wasn't getting any. I had to wait until I got home to check the internet.
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