Saturday 18 December 2010

International ATM - McGyver - Kiri

What do you do when it's Saturday night and you have £1 left in your wallet? 
As far as I remember from my last trips in Japan, you can't withdraw cash with a non-japanese card in banks, but should be fine at ATMs in convenience stores and post offices.
It's Saturday, the post offices are closed. So I walk and walk and walk, trying to use my card in Lawson, Family Mart, 7-eleven, even a bank just in case... Each time my card is rejected. S-t-r-e-s-s.
Yes I could ask people I know to lend me £10 but I'm too embarrassed to ask them plus I'm supposed to be a grown up so I decide to find a solution on my own.

(opening music of McGyver starts)
I get back home, flip open my laptop, get the internet cable which is hanging outside, connect the two together, google, search forums....and then....this...
Off I go again. I walk and walk and walk, trying to find these dammed ATMs.
At last, I find one which even speaks in English to me. But it's only when I see the cash that I realise I've made it. Hurray!!
(opening music of McGyver finishes, I've got the same pose as the photo below except instead of the plane there's the ATM)

To celebrate I go to the supermarket and buy: a baguette (super good), kiri (bit like Laughing Cow but less creamy), salad, tomatoes, olive oil for a luxurious western feast of tuna salad and kiri on bread. (Yeah I know I live the high life)
Afterwards direction the sento for a hot bath and back home to watch Dexter S3 under the hot air con.

Now that's what I call life!

^_^
Extra notes:
Afterwards I did more researches and found this website. I must have been unlucky until now because every single time I tried to use my card at banks it didn't work. But, from what I gathered on this website, it should be fine at Citibank and Shinsei Bank.
And, in the past, I must have been lucky that each time I tried to withdraw money at convenience stores it worked (well up till this evening). Strange....

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