4th day
I forgot the sense of stupidity that runs rampant at this place. You must do things in the right order, needing paper A before you can secure B, etc. At office A, they give you the first piece of paper that allows access to the entire place. Then you try to go to office B, but B is located in a more secure place, requiring another piece of paper. Where to get the 2nd paper? All around the place you go, up and down, in and out, five more places, each one saying, not here, try there. Finally, you wind up at the FIRST place to get the second paper! Why couldn't they have issued both pieces of paper at the same time?!?
Then, once you finally get to office B, it's closed until 12:20. Oh, well, time for lunch. Then you return at 12:15 and the sign has been changed: now closed until 12:55. But eventually you get paper B. But what's this? Office C closed at 12:00 today! All over the place people scream in frustration.
I went to the phone store to buy 2 cheap cell phones (they call them Handys here) and get started on a pay as you go plan. There's only one person working, so things move slowly. Finally, it's my turn. I explain what I want, kein Problem, then OH NO the computer's down, so she'll have to do things by hand, the way they used to. Come back in an hour. OK, time for tea. In an hour I return, to find that everything's all settled, sign here, fork over the cash, here's your bag with the phones. Only one problem, I found a few minutes later: the phones don't work! So back I go. Oh, she says, it's because the computer's down. Keep trying. If it doesn't connect to the system, turn it off and wait. Then try again and wait some more. When should I worry? If it doesn't turn on by 10 a.m. tomorrow, then bring them back in. GG!
And it's lucky that we've been here before, or else we'd be even more in trouble. At least we know to expect it.