More About the Flat

Monday December 8

I went to Quito to pay for my water bill for the flat and to get some money out of my account. When I got to the city I found a big line there, so I went to the internet to see what Matt said about the water.

As soon as I sat down Irina saw me and said ‘hello’. It was good to see her. She was with her baby boy who is 6 months old. I asked her if she remembers when we paid the water bill as I said that I don’t have any receipts and I was never given a number like I have with the electric. She recalled that we had to get the number stamped on the meter, then take a reading and to provide my address. This can be paid where the electric is paid.

It was God-sent that I met as I forgot all about this.

I asked if she could wait a minute so I could check my mail to see what Matt wrote. He wrote that the problem was with me but that other people hadn’t paid and they turned off the water on the whole building.

I wrote a letter to send back but after I did that there was no internet connection on my computer. So I asked Irina if she would like to go for a cup of coffee and she said yes. I said I’d go to another internet café to send the letter.

We had a nice chat and we both talked about what we were doing. Irina was someone that I hired before I moved back to Cyprus. Since then I have Judith working for me when I need her.

After she left I went to another internet café. Mathieu in the meantime sent me another email. He said that my client is moving out (as there is no water). I don’t blame him. Matt will be putting him in another flat that another foreigner owns. He also suggested that I get my lawyer to meet with whomever to take care of the problem.

I wrote back to Matt saying what idiots these people are. They don’t send bills out so there is no reminder that the water has to be paid. They don’t send a warning that the water will be turned off. For those who don’t live in the flats I can see how some people could be late.

One thing that I thought of after I sent the email was how stupid they are by not having the plumbing put in where they can turn off the water in individual flats.

I forgot about paying simply because I don’t pay water where I live (when I bought it the previous owner has it hooked up where they don’t know). But I think that it’s because they can’t read the meter.

This is a long story so I’ll have to add more…

With what I know now in how things work, I should have insisted that she show me the updated water bill before I bought the house. as they could come back and say that I owe water for the past four years (when I bought the house). and they might have me pay since ‘day one’ whenever the last payment was made.

I had been asked by some guy (a neighbor I think) that they can’t read my meter through the whole in the wall, so it should be made so the water guy can read it. However, at no time did someone from the water company come by and ring the bell to come on the property to take a look – like the electric man. And since the technology and thinking is primitive here, they can’t turn off the water without turning off everyone else’s on the street.

So, I hope I don’t have problems when I sell the house. or I hope that they don’t get off their collective butts to simply ask. You see before I bought the house I was told that my meter is not registered with them.

Back to the flat…

With not using common sense, even if they don’t have the technological know-how, they should send out monthly water bills like they do for the electric and they should send out late notices and put it in people’s doors or mailboxes.

In the meantime they lose money!

The bad thing is that people who pay have to go without water! I wonder how many apartment buildings are like this?

I also got an email from Maria, my lawyer, that the government department that is processing Jayne’s visa wants a copy of my latest property tax to show that I paid it.

All of this government red-tape crap. Why this is needed for a visa only and Ecuadorian can tell you?!#
So I have to send a scanned copy to her.

After the internet I went to the bank to get some money out of my euro account (that was changed into dollars).

I told Jayne all about this when I got home. She suggested that I go inside after I read the meter to see that the water is turned off – good idea! However, with the way they put taps in the houses and flats they don’t have the ‘off position’ in the same direction. In other words when you turn the taps all the way to the clockwise position it should be off, but it’s not like this in one bathroom at home here. so, the only thing I can do is turn them all the way to the right and hope that is what it’s supposed to be. Since no one will be living there no one will be able to turn them off. What I will have to do is go there every day to see when the water is turned on and to make sure all my taps are off.

There’s always a problem in Ecuador – even with a simple thing like installing taps.