Well, That Was a Pleasant Surprise

I kind of about to run out of cash. I've gone through money a little faster than I had planned (that should be "planned", because I didn't really plan very much. I just picked a round number and bought that much Hong Kong dollarige), and this morning, I had HK$10 (ten Hong Kong dollars. Get with the program people) in my wallet. Plus about HK$28 in change, but I needed that for laundry. Since the exchange rate is about 7.8 HK$ to 1 USD (I'm not going to spell that one out for anyone), HK$38 is not a lot of money.

Now, when I was in Japan, and Europe, my debit card worked just fine. I just assumed it would work in Hong Kong. It is the finance capital of the East, right? Imagine my surprise when I tried to get cash and the machine said 'no'. Maybe I tried the wrong bank? Well, I tried HSBC, which is a pretty large international bank, and that didn't work, either. Bummer.

Luckily, I do have a couple of credit cards, but I'm not sure they even take AmEx over here. I could look it up, but I'm lazy. I know they do take MasterCard, so I just use that. But I'd really prefer to use the AmEx, because it's that cool clear/bluish tinted card with the chip. Yes, I embrace all of the latest technology (from the early 2000's). Of course, most restaurants are cash only, so that presents something of a problem. I guess I'll be eating more sandwiches for the next few weeks...

Well, the fortuitous part is that as I was putting some stuff away this afternoon, I found HK$1000. Although that's only about US$128, it does give me a little breathing room for the next few days. I'll have plenty for the metro, as well as a few meals, if I want to go out. I am, however, trying to make more things at home (though, without a kitchen, I'm extremely limited. Sandwiches, frozen food, salad, cereal), so I shouldn't burn through it too quickly. I'll see about the debit card early next week.

It was a very pleasant surprise finding that cash. See? I knew if I just sat back and waited, something good would happen.