Paying bills

We have 4 bills each month:
* electricity (including a tv and radio tax, we think)
* gas
* water (including hot water, but we don't have to pay for hot water because we have an instant hot water heater in our apartment)
* landlady: Lili Csinta

Yesterday I paid the electricity and gas bills. I went first to our bank, Bancpost, where Peace Corps set up accounts for us. There I withdrew enough cash to pay the bills plus a little extra. The Bancpost has put astroturf on their slick, marble steps so it's safer to get money now.

Then I walk back to the Casa Cultura in the center, or downtown, and walk down Strada Stefan Cel Mare -- Stefan the Great Street. I walk about 4-5 blocks.

From blog pix, Jan 09

I take our bills to the BCR bank. I go to BCR because that's where our landlady, Mrs. Csinta told us to go to pay the bills. Bills can be paid at other banks and at the post office, but she told us to go there, so that's what we do. The BCR bank that I go to is at the end of Strada Stefan cel Mare, where it ends at the Bucovina shopping center.

At the BCR bank is a bill paying robot. That's right, you heard me: a bill paying robot. It stands in the lobby and people can pay their bills in it's chest. Sometimes a person "man's" the robot and helps people pay their bills. Sometimes the robot won't make change. Sometimes people have better things to do so no one keeps the robot company. Here is a picture of me standing by it.

From blog pix, Jan 09

If no one is at the bill paying robot, I take a number, as in this picture, and wait for my turn with a teller. This can be immediate, or entail a long wait. At least here people don't have to stand in line, I can sit in comfortable chairs in the lobby.

To pay the bill I give the teller our bills. The bills have a bar code that is read by the teller with machine like is used in grocery stores. Then, sometimes the teller asks me a question. I've learned that this has something to do with identification. I don't know what Romanian citizen identification is called so I usually just stare at the person when they ask for this. Then they stare back and sometimes ask me for a passport. That's when I tell them that I have a "legitimatie", which is identification for foreigners. They accept this. Whew!

I don't know why the bank teller wants to see my identification. It has something to do with verifying that I live at the address on the bills. Are they afraid that I might pay someone else's bills? Is there a racket in Romania of people paying the wrong electricity bill, like there is a racket in internet fraud? Nu stiu. I don't know.

After paying these bills I return home. On the way up the stairs I look at a chart that shows what each apartment owes for water, cleaning, etc. Here I see our water bill and set that money aside for the landlady.

Sometime after the first of the month our landlady, Lili Csinta comes to visit. At first she seemed frightening to us. She spoke a mile a minute and loud and sharp. Now we really like her. She slows down to talk to me, and she loves our cat. She invited me to her house in August. She cares for street dogs and cats all the time. Here's a picture of her (in the pink dress), me and her friend Julia.

From blog pix, Jan 09

From blog pix, Jan 09

As I've said before, there are no checks in Romania. People use cash or cards for everything. They also rarely use the mail. This means paying bills takes a few hours altogether.

This is a normal process for us -- taking lots of time to do things.