Still Trying To Get A Bank Account

Another hot day, but it all of a sudden rained around 7pm right after we got back from buying pots and other stuff for the kitchen and right before we went back to the store to buy groceries and light bulbs. We finally have light throughout out house after 19 days of being here. Alicia has been working hard to figure out the electricity and she did a really good job of wiring and hanging the light in the kitchen and the one bedroom. She did it yesterday when I was out running around. It is such a blessing to have light and something that I have taken for granted. We also bought pots today and had our first real meal complete with a really good salad (Dad would have been proud) and a packet of ranch dressing that Jennifer Porter gave us. We also got our first shelf that we put in our storage room, which would have originally been a maids room. The shelf was something that we really needed and got put to work really quickly as it is almost full. The price was hard to swallow as anything plastic here is really expensive. I guess they take advantage of the fact that plastic is so useful in humid climates because it will never wear down. We really spent the entire day at cartorios (places people go to where the government workers will officially recognize people's signatures for official documents) trying to get the signature of the owner of our apartment recognized so that we can open a bank account here. We started the morning going to the one closest to our house, but they were not giving out any more numbers that morning to let me sit and wait for service. So I went to the cartorio where I met the lady yesterday that had been to England and she got me set up so that I can go there in the future, as it looks like a far more efficiently run place. As we were there I saw that I was not the only one that gets frustrated at the bureaucracy because as Claudia was serving me we started to hear shouting and I could pick out that the man was upset because that had been his 10^th time at the cartorio and he had paid over $R 2000 and all he needed was a signature to finish whatever he was doing. It was quite the outburst and sent all the other workers running to their colleague’s aid. Alicia and I then went downtown and got to the other cartorio before the doors opened and I got a good number. We only had to wait a half hour. However when I got to the window I was informed that my owner’s signature was not there. So now I am going to have one of the members at Bonoco phone my owner and see what is the problem. I guess it is possible that Robson (the bank manager) at the bank didn’t really understand. It has been a frustrating process, but we need bank accounts so the hunt will continue. Alicia and I then ate lunch at a little lanchonete downtown and were surprised how good the food was. Alicia had rice and beans with chicken and I had the same with beef. A nice find. The day went so long we ate supper at nine thirty. It was really quiet on the streets last night and I don’t now if it was because of the rain or if because tomorrow is a holiday. I still have to find out the reason for the day off. Oh well, the cartorios are closed for the rest of the week so I have the weekend to regroup with that. Luciano from the Church of Christ in Suburbana (a suburb of Salvador) as called after supper and invited us out again for a bar-b-que on the day off but I had to tell him we already have plans. Thank-you God for another safe and fulfilling day.