Did you used to think that the life of an expat was one of excitement and glamor? That every day opened with the possibility of a new adventure lurking around the corner, and could end in any number of ways, possibly featuring a different country, a handsome man with a mysterious past, or booze fueled karaoke?
Well, I hope, faithful readers of this blog, that you have learned your lessons. Mostly it means lighting trouble and international financial headaches.
You heard earlier in the week about my lost debit card, which is being dealt with and has caused me a minimum of stress. The money I needed transferred did transfer, so tomorrow I can both pay back my friend and continue to eat.
Tonight's debacle, however, is a bit more complicated. I've been tracking tickets home, and the prices dropped dramatically recently. Thinking I'm not going to do much better than $850 and just one layover, I tried to buy my ticket tonight. The purchase order originally went through with my Kyrgyz phone number, and was rejected because that is not the number my credit card has on file. So I tried it again, correctly, and was locked out of my credit card for possible fraud.
It turns out that I have to speak to the people at the company directly. They will not call me. My father, who has Power of Attorney, is powerless until I give him specific authority over this account (it did not work that way with banks and other stuff). We tried the one parent on one phone with the company and the other on the phone with me put the phones together and they refused. There are no collect calls in Kyrgyzstan. No one I have ever asked has had any idea how one would make a collect call here, and all companies are set up on the principle of collect calls. So I have to wait 12 hours or so, as it is the middle of the night, find an IP phone place, and figure this out in a public place. At least I hope it's figured out, because that ticket isn't going to stay that price forever.
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