Wednesday, November 17, 2010

A BNP Affair


I didn't think I would succumb because yes, I'm a bit of a stubborn soul.  I keep my guard up and I hold a soft spot for the familiar.  I don't like to get too involved, too hooked in, too personal.  After all, I arrived in France with the mindset of a single gal without no plans to stay here long term and little constraints. But you know what?  It happened.  It happened one sweet day. I've finally jumped on the bandwagon, let my guard down, opened myself up to possibility and well, the whole seems pretty promising.

Yes, ten months in and I finally opened a French Bank account. 

It feels pretty good. I'm treated well.  They call, but they don't call too often; just to see how I'm doing or invite me to an information session that offers student incentives.  I don't want to get ahead of myself, but they're better than some of the other banks I've been with in the past.  I'm being shown experiences that I haven't yet had until now in France--like being able to rent movies; like renting the city bikes; taking road trips with ease, because for most of the things here in France, your bank card needs that special chip; that chip that I didn't get in America; the carte bancaire.

I quite like my California credit union and despite the distance, we've made it work, which is probably why I stayed committed.  Plus, you know, it's hard.  It's hard once you've trusted other banks that looked good on paper, that your parents approved of, that promised not to disappoint, and then little by little, you start to notice that something's not right--a small fee here, a small fee there.  And that's how it begins.  It never ends well.

Sure, it's still difficult at times with a new relationship and of course, the language barrier can be a bit touchy, but there's patience; like the time they spent 17 minutes explaining to me how to deposit money into the machine versus how to deposit a check into the machine (because it's different than in the States).  Or the fact that I wasn't belittled when I hopelessly admitted, "umm, I don't know how to check my account online. Did you realize your website is all in French?" 

Yes, they did realize this.

I feel the way that I'm assuming my grandparents felt during the age of cell phones and email, but it's okay.  I'm making progress, I'm making efforts and BNP and I, we have a basic communication.  It's the foundation, right? Who knows what will happen when it's time to pack up and return to California, but for now, I know that I'm living in the moment.  I'm happy….with my new bank.



14 comments:

  1. congratulations! now you can swipe when you pass through tolls...super fast!
    aidan

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  2. This seems like something that should be on a bucket list: "Have a foreign bank account." I guess that sounds kind of shady though. In any case, I'm glad you are enjoying your new relationship. I'm with my bank because I'm too lazy to divorce it.

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  3. french banks are great, we actually have a bank manager who deals with our account and looks after us, even though there is rarely much money in it...

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  4. I can't believe that you finally did it! lolxxx

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  5. Look at you all foreign and French! :-)

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  6. I don't have a French bank account. But then again I don't have any money to put in it. Hopefully that will change in the near future...

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  7. Happy with a bank! Now that's not something you hear often! Thanks for dropping by the townhouse...good to meet you :)

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  8. Hi there. How great is it that you are getting to do the things you love. My nephew lived in Paris for six years and he is back in the states now. He could probably give you some good and sound, practical advice.

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  9. I like your spirit! I'm about 9 months in myself, applied for an account like 6 months ago & still haven't got my dang card, ugh. Sounds like your budding relationship is off to a good start :)
    I'm still carrying on long distance with my bank in CA as well...can't stand the heartbreak :)
    enjoy your weekend!

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  10. I had a hard enough time opening an account on the east coast where english was supposedly their first language! Well done.

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  11. congrats. i know you feel like a million bux ;) haha.

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  12. I'm glad it's working out - I set up direct deposit with a French bank three months ago and still haven't gotten my card! The plus side is that it's kept me from spending any money. But I would like to spend it eventually.

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  13. Holy cow! I just had something similar happen. And I know just what you mean about picking a bank because it's what your parents approved of-and comparing a bank to a relationship (not to be a shameless self promoter but I wrote a similar post about banking-but mine was about breaking up: http://www.jennaventures.com/2010/12/its-not-you-bank-of-america-its-me.html) so this REALLY spoke to me.

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  14. Where did you go, Lauren? Where? Where?

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