Re: Advice Needed: Calling from India to US on a cellphone

Otto Pylot <otto@bogus.address.invalid> wrote:

: My daughter has been invited to a wedding in India. She will be gone
: from December 11 to January 4 and travelling mostly alone...
:
: What is the best way to obtain a SIM card for her to use?
: ...
: I'd like for her to have the card before she leaves. That way we know
: what her phone number is and all she would have to do is activate it
: once she lands in Delhi. Or should she wait and get the card at the
: airport, and if she does, whom should she get it from?
: ...
: Obviously this international travel thing is new to us so any and all
: advice and/or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

A card from the US would be more expensive. Of course, nothing wrong
with her having one for use during the first 1-2 days.

For calling the US, she should use a PCO whenever possible. They are
everywhere, a bit like pay phones with an attendant.

A cell phone is great for being reachable, and it would be economic for
her to use it for local calls. Ask one of your friends to buy a sim
card in advance (in their own name). They'll know the local scene, who
has the best 1 month rate etc. She can leave any unused minutes with
them.

Getting a sim card in India has gone the way of flying in the US. It
used to be easy, but ever since terrorists started using cell phones to
coordinate their activities, paperwork and checking etc have become
tedious and slow.

Otto Pylot <otto@bogus.address.invalid> wrote:

: > For calling the US, she should use a PCO whenever possible. They are
: > everywhere, a bit like pay phones with an attendant.
:
: PCO? Don't know what that is.

The letters stand for Public Call Office. But that doesn't matter,
"PCO" is what most people understand. It is just a pay-phone, but
instead of depositing coins, you pay the attendant after the call. Very
civilized and safe. The presence of an attendant increases the security
of the equipment as well as customers. They are everywhere.

It is possible that smaller ones may not be hooked up for overseas
calls but most should be.

: Unfortunately we don't know anyone in India. I suppose we could ask
: her co-worker (the one who invited her to India).

If she is flying all the way for this wedding, it has got to be a good
friend. You can request their family. Indian families will gladly do
such favors for a guest.

If the family is traditional rather than "modern" the only sticky point
could be that they may not accept payment. She wont' discover that
until the last minute, when she offers the payment. If that happens: It
is good form to insist two or three times. If the refusal persists,
they are probably sincere and a graceful way out is to later give them
a suitable gift, without explicitly tying it to this matter. Of course,
another way is for your daughter to work it out with her friend.

BTW, I read her dates again. Obviously a 1-month card would be fine.
Buy maximum minutes she is likely to call herself (in India you don't
get charged for calls received); it is more hassle and more expensive
to buy extra minutes later.

My gut feeling is she should use PCO's to call USA whenever possible
and her cell phone for calls within India. But get the locals' advice
too.

Get her a copy of the Penguin Guide to India (or to the region she is
visiting) or an equivalent.

On Thu, 10 Nov 2005, at 16:39:44 [GMT GMT] (03:39:44 Friday, 11 November
2005 where I live) "Ajanta" wrote:

> The letters stand for Public Call Office. But that doesn't matter,
> "PCO" is what most people understand. It is just a pay-phone, but
> instead of depositing coins, you pay the attendant after the call. Very
> civilized and safe.

But not necessarily clean and healthy!