Bankin'

The most I accomplished today was grocery shopping and banking. Because I will be working and living in New Zealand, it is imperative that I have a bank account. Therefore, Bret and I first went back to our favorite mall, The Palms, to set up a bank account. It was almost too easy. They handed over EFTPOS cards, which are comparable to debit cards, just without the VISA or Mastercard endorsement, and they don't have our names on them. It is how most places accept payment. I was glad to have that step out of the way. We grabbed a few more groceries to get us through the week and headed back to the lodge.

Our goal was to link our NZ bank accounts with our US ones so that we could easily transfer money between the two, to be able to pay our bills here until we have jobs, and then pay our bills in the states when we start working here. Sounds complicated, and even we couldn't figure it out. It is practically necessary for us to have actual debit cards. Again, we headed out to yet another bank to open up an account that would allow us to qualify for debit cards in the near future. The work was tedious and unexciting, but I am incredibly thankful that we live in a technologically savvy age, because if it were any more difficult I don't know what I would do.

Besides that, we got a nice walking tour of the city in today, accomplishing our errands. Spring has nearly sprung, and the cherry blossoms are in full bloom and the trees are starting to turn green. The lawns here are quite small, but beautifully manicured for the most part with flowers, fruit trees, and palm trees. It is going to be very pretty indeed!

Which way to Omaha?!

Next on the list of busy work things to do: set up a tax ID number and get a job! Wish me luck!