Korean Job Discussion Forums

seonsengnimble

Thanks a bunch.

I was standing in front of the atm cursing because I lost my wallet, and I never registered a six digit user number and speaking with a customer service representative on the phone explaining how I lost my wallet on Friday night and I had no way to withdraw funds until monday morning, which was a bit problematic since I only have water and coffee in my apartment and 6,000won in cash.

He overheard and gave me some money to get me through the weekend.

Anyways, whoever you are, you're a decent fellow, and I'm sorry if I came off a bit ungrateful. I was just really pissed that my bank book required two pins, and I was never told about the second one.

roadwork · Joined: 24 Nov 2008 Location: Goin' up the country

seonsengnimble · Posted: Fri Sep 04, 2009 11:19 pm Post subject:

Arghhh. I just got back from the one keb center that's open on saturday in bangbae dong to get a replacement card, and apparantly my passport doesn't cut it for id. I need my arc which is in my wallet. The center only issues debit cards, and can't do anything else. There are two ridiculous things about this. The first is that a passport, which is an internationally valid form of identification isn't considered a valid form of id at the bank. The second is that most people who lose their atm/debit card probably lost it with their wallet which more than likely contains their arc. So they in effect have a service center which can help out about 5 people a year.

Fortunately, I have the money from the kind gentleman at the bank and a bunch of coins.

PeteJB · Joined: 06 Jul 2007

If you know your ARC number you can give that instead. Oh and, afaik, a passport IS valid identification at a bank. Usually though it's just a technical issue - if you opened your account with a passport it'd be no problem, but if you opened it with an ARC then that is then required.

eIn07912 · Joined: 06 Dec 2008 Location: seoul

Hey, sorry to hear about your situation. But if you're really hard up for cash, might want to talk to your school about it. Most of them are pretty cool about giving you a small advance if you're short on cash. They know if your hungry your teaching quality is going to decrease. Plus, Koreans aren't totally heartless. They know people fall on hard times every know and then. I've found that even though my boss is an evil demon lady from the seventh ring of hell, she can tell when one of us really just needs a helping hand and she's more than willing to help out when she can.

I don't want to hijack your post, but this brought up something that has bothered me for quite some time. It's true most guys carry their arc in their wallet, along with money, business cards, photos, and other stuff. And while it certainly sucks when you lose your wallet or it gets stolen, there's not much of an other option out there..... except for the guys, that are well out of middle school, that don't carry wallets. This always bugged me. Why would someone old enough to carry important things, not carry a wallet? For instance, I teach with a guy well into his thirties. Every day, he just grabs whatever cash he has, throws it into his pockets and his keys and thats it. He doesn't carry his arc, insurance card, credit or debt card, business cards, photos, nothing. Just cash and keys. I mean, this is what we do in seventh grade. How can a guy get by on just his cash and keys? I don't get it. It just seems strange to me. It also seems kind of immature. Not carrying a wallet is something "boys" do. Men always where a watch, have their keys, and put their wallet in their back pocked and don't complain if it's fat and they have to sit on it all day.

Xuanzang · Joined: 10 Apr 2007 Location: Sadang

Sometimes the passport poses a problem when you`re trying to activate internet banking or get a CC. Seems it`s more of temporary solution until they put in your foreigner id number. Happened to me before.

schwa · Joined: 18 Jan 2003 Location: Yap

Veering well off-topic but I'll take a stand for not carrying a wallet.

Havent owned one for several decades & consequently havent ever lost anything significant. Cash in a front pocket, housekey in a hip pocket, & if I anticipate needing a card I just put that in my pocket too. Simple.

I dont get the concept of needing to carry a fat flap of leather loaded with junk & the subsequent panic when it goes missing.

Julius · Joined: 27 Jul 2006

Of all the things I remember and treausure the most in life, it is those occasional acts of generosity.

Kikomom · Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2009 7:30 am Post subject:

You may have met your guardian angel looking out for you.

seonsengnimble · Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2009 7:47 am Post subject:

At first I was thinking that Korean banks are terrible, but then I realized that this isn't really any different than what would happen in the US. US banks are closed on the weekend, and there aren't any bank books. Granted, I wouldn't need an ARC back home, but I don't think I will need one on monday, so it's kind of beside the point.

I've had the same thing happen back in the US, but it was back in High-school. It was a little less annoying, because I had food at home, and the only thing I couldn't do was buy an eighth.

The most annoying thing I lost this time, though wasn't the ARC, but my Tmoney card. I just refilled it on Friday morning, and today I spent 5,000 won on public transportation, whereas I would have spent 3,800 if I had a T-moeny card. I realize this is a small difference, but it's a bit annoying when you're living off of the change in your dresser.

sojusucks · Joined: 31 May 2008

Koreans seem to assume that we know everything they do but then many treat us as 2nd class citizens (the ones in my area). I hear them say all sorts of bad things about waegooks.