UNO: Study Abroad in Writing

I’ve had several people ask me this, and ‘ve been planning on putting this post up for a while now, but, as I’ sure you can all guess, this is getting to be crunch time for me, so if I’m not posting as much on the blog right now, I promise I’ll make up for it in June! So anyhow, I know you all want to know about the best ways to call home, and to stay in touch with all those loved ones you’ll have to be leaving behind. So, here goes…. There are a number of different options. By far, as always the best option is Skype.

1. Skype is a program you can download to your computer and then make phone calls from one computer to another, anywhere in the world, for FREE. And I do mean its free. The program is free to download, and its free to call any computer anywhere. You can also make calls to any land line or cell phone in the world using this program, although that will cost about 3 cents a minute. The calls are of a very high quality too – no scratchy bottom of the well sounding phone calls. You will need a headset with earphones and a microphone if these things are not built in to your computer, or if you want more privacy.

2. The second best option, in my opinion, is to get a pay as you go cell phone after you get to San Miguel (or where ever you’re going). You can get one of these for about 30 USD, and then put as much money as you like on it over the summer. Rates/plans vary. Some will include free incoming calls, and some will have cheaper call the US rates, so look into it when you get there, if this is something you’re interested in.

3. Your cell phone from the US. Chances are, it will work. But you should turn it off and forget you even have it with you while you are there, as using it will be exorbitantly expensive. If ou do think you want to use your phone, or if you have one of those sleek little iphones, make sure you call your service provider in the US and get an international calling plan befre you go. Without that, you could be paying $3 a min or more. With it, you’re still probably going to be paying a dollar a minute at least. I don’t recommend this option, except for emergencies….

4.  Ekit.  I have used this company a number of times.  They are affiliated with Lonely Planet.  You pay a certain amount, and they give yo a nmber and an access code.  Every country has a number you can call to access their system, and then you get fairly good rates to call anywhere in the world.  They are friendly and easy to work wth, although I should caution yo to check their website and find out what the rates are for the destination you’re going to, as they vary widely, and also, there are often many different access numbers you can use, some of which cost less than others.  The benefits of this are that you can use it from any phone in the world, and you prepay it.  I still keep my account active for those times when I can’t have my computer with me or when I don’t have internet access….

I definitely DO NOT recommend buying one of the expensive worldwide cell phones before you go.  You can always get a cell phone at your destination thats cheaper than those!

Also, I want to encourage everyone not to worry about this too much. You are going to be really busy while you are there, and as much fin as I know we will all have, this isn’t a vacation. So I wouldn’t plan on calling home every night. Of course, you want to stay in touch with everyone, I know, however, I just want everyone to be able to really experience living abroad!

Let me know if y’all have any questions!

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