To use our new global phone we have had to take the plunge into the icy waters of Android out of the skin temperature iPhone world. After some initial research, we found that we had to have a phone that was unlocked (meaning not tethered to one network), and set up to take SIM cards and operate globally. So we bought a Motorola Moto G, a slick little rig. Even in English this phone feels like a foreign land to us. But we got a 14 day data only SIM card from T-Mobile and have be downloading all the apps we imagine we might want while on the global road. We looked into SIM cards in China and decided to get a prepaid China Unicom SIM card here in the US. From where? Amazon of course!
The SIM card arrives complete with cell phone number - unlimited receiving of texts and calls in China, a nominal fee for outgoing calls and a total countrywide connectivity to the wireless network. It was the wrong size for our phone, but that doesn't matter! They can be cut down to the proper size - and here are even adapters to use the tiny ones in a bigger SIM slot. who cut it for me? A guy at a shoe repair place on Flatbush Avenue n Brooklyn.
Nxt challenge is to figure out if we can get this SIM card to give us prompts in English. Seems it connects to the USA wireless here no problem, but it may be costing us too much to roam here, so we plan to use our local SIM til we get on our plane Thursday mornng.
Meanwhile Rob is organizing slides and other images on the travel computer, and taking on weird inexplicable messagess that seem to pop up on the computer as he goes about his work. He is preparing Art supplies, wrapping gifts, and making lists of what he doesn't want to forget to do.
i'm working on knitting my second sock. Task for the afyernoon is to pack the checked luggage and see if there's enough room in the carry-on for soome snacks. Unbelievably our 15 hour flight offers one meal they are calling "lunch." As vegetarians who do not eat dairy, we wonder what might show up on our plates. Certainly seems like we might appreciate a a stashed PBJ, oranges, cucumbers or something else raw.
