General Info

[QUOTE=LionBacker;2379052]Hi,

I am traveling to Medellin next month. I am planning on visiting casas in centro during the day and staying in at night.

Is there any hotels in centro that I can stay at which are walking distance from many casa?

I am thinking about Hotel Kong since it has four casas on the same block.

Thanks.[/QUOTE]Ayenda 1235 Botero Hotel. Steps from Botero Plaza, Yakuza casa just across the street, most of El Centro's casas within walking distance.

Please check Wolf662's perfect report (Hotel Botero Medellin was the old name) for details:

[URL]http://www.internationalsexguide.nl/forum/showthread.php?2654-Medellin-Hotels-and-Rental-Apartments&p=2151246&viewfull=1[/URL]#post2151246.

[QUOTE=Jbj64;2380733]Hi I am thinking of saving some money and ditching verizon for Google FI. How is the service internationally, I travel for fun alot so that is important. I currently pat $10/ day for verizon travel pass. It works great but it gets expensive for 3-4 weeks.

I have a Pixel and am thinking of upgrading and that is when I would switch.[/QUOTE]Those options are both outrageously expensive.

Just bring an unlocked phone (or get it unlocked in Colombia) and get a local SIM. My phone plan with Tigo is 55 k a month and includes 8 gig of data (4. 5 g), and unlimited calling and texting including to mexico the US Canada and PR. And it was month to month from the get go.

[QUOTE=LeyenLouvain;2374943]Many reports warn of street trannies carrying knives. Is this to do with them just wanting to defend themselves or do they also attack?

Is it worth trying to get them on side such as by giving them a small tip for giving directions or something, just in case they would help you out if someone attacks you?[/QUOTE]Trans chicks who work the street have a very high incidence of robbing their customers. Caveat emptor. Also for whatever reason Jackson doesn't want this forum to have anything to do with that subject.

[QUOTE=BangoCheito;2381014]Those options are both outrageously expensive.

Just bring an unlocked phone (or get it unlocked in Colombia) and get a local SIM. My phone plan with Tigo is 55 k a month and includes 8 gig of data (4. 5 g), and unlimited calling and texting including to mexico the US Canada and PR. And it was month to month from the get go.[/QUOTE]He's not searching for an option for a mongering phone. He's searching for service for his personal phone that he needs for work. Getting a new SIM card in every country and then sending daily reminders to all of his contacts saying "don't forget, this is my phone number for this week" probably isn't the best option.

Google Fi or T-Mobile is probably the best bet.

[QUOTE=Jbj64;2380733]Hi I am thinking of saving some money and ditching verizon for Google FI. How is the service internationally, I travel for fun alot so that is important. I currently pat $10/ day for verizon travel pass. It works great but it gets expensive for 3-4 weeks.

I have a Pixel and am thinking of upgrading and that is when I would switch.[/QUOTE]Google Fi is way better than that. I think the most you have to pay is $70 per month. It is limited to a few phones and it may work on Iphones. You can get a google fi sim card in the USA, and it has to be activated in the USA Once there, each country you enter, you have to activate service, which is usually no big deal. For the most part, it is the best way to keep a phone number and go around the world with it. It is way better than Verizon or Tmobile pass. FWIW, I bought a google pixel Xl 2 for $250. Best camera phone there is.

[QUOTE=JjBee62;2381219]He's not searching for an option for a mongering phone. He's searching for service for his personal phone that he needs for work. Getting a new SIM card in every country and then sending daily reminders to all of his contacts saying "don't forget, this is my phone number for this week" probably isn't the best option.

Google Fi or T-Mobile is probably the best bet.[/QUOTE]I have a SkypeIn number for that. Who actually still uses phone calls and texts though? Everything is Whatsapp these days.

Disaster has struck! So I'm on my way to Medellin (currently in Panama) and my brand new Samsung phone has been struck with a fault in the charging socket. It is now completely flat along with my WhatsApp and FB contacts. Can you believe this shit? It's like 2 months old.

Anyway that has left me in a difficult position so I have a couple of questions. Does anyone know of a Phone repair place that will be open tomorrow? FYI I'm staying at San Peters in Laureles if there's anything nearby.

The second question is where would be my best bet to find a super cheap but functional smartphone nearby? Anything will do.

I guess that rules out Uber / Cabify from the airport.

Thanks in advance.

[QUOTE=Grrrr;2385319]Disaster has struck! So I'm on my way to Medellin (currently in Panama) and my brand new Samsung phone has been struck with a fault in the charging socket. It is now completely flat along with my WhatsApp and FB contacts. Can you believe this shit? It's like 2 months old.

Anyway that has left me in a difficult position so I have a couple of questions. Does anyone know of a Phone repair place that will be open tomorrow? FYI I'm staying at San Peters in Laureles if there's anything nearby.

The second question is where would be my best bet to find a super cheap but functional smartphone nearby? Anything will do.

I guess that rules out Uber / Cabify from the airport.

Thanks in advance.[/QUOTE]Your best bet for a cheap phone, outside of El Centro, is the Monterrey mall, which is next to the Poblado metro station. It's a mall with dozens of cell phone stores. There's another smaller mall like it in Laureles, but I can't remember exactly where. I know it was somewhere north of the metro line, but can't recall if it was north of Suramerica or Estadio.

Hopefully you had all your important info on a your sim card and not stored in the phone.

[QUOTE=Grrrr;2385319]Disaster has struck! So I'm on my way to Medellin (currently in Panama) and my brand new Samsung phone has been struck with a fault in the charging socket. It is now completely flat along with my WhatsApp and FB contacts. Can you believe this shit? It's like 2 months old.

Anyway that has left me in a difficult position so I have a couple of questions. Does anyone know of a Phone repair place that will be open tomorrow? FYI I'm staying at San Peters in Laureles if there's anything nearby.

The second question is where would be my best bet to find a super cheap but functional smartphone nearby? Anything will do.

I guess that rules out Uber / Cabify from the airport.

Thanks in advance.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Grrrr;2385319]Disaster has struck! So I'm on my way to Medellin (currently in Panama) and my brand new Samsung phone has been struck with a fault in the charging socket. It is now completely flat along with my WhatsApp and FB contacts. Can you believe this shit? It's like 2 months old.

Anyway that has left me in a difficult position so I have a couple of questions. Does anyone know of a Phone repair place that will be open tomorrow? FYI I'm staying at San Peters in Laureles if there's anything nearby.[/QUOTE]Many businesses are open on Saturday. I don't know of any cell phone repair places, but the person at checkin at San Peter may be able to help you find a place. Does your phone have a removable battery? If so, you can get an external battery charger. I have one I can loan you.

[QUOTE=FunLuvr;2385524]Many businesses are open on Saturday. I don't know of any cell phone repair places, but the person at checkin at San Peter may be able to help you find a place. Does your phone have a removable battery? If so, you can get an external battery charger. I have one I can loan you.[/QUOTE]Just go downtown. There are scores of phone repair places open all day even on Sunday.

Thank you to everyone for the great advice and particularly Fun Luvr for the offer of a loan phone.

In the end I got it sorted with a repair guy that was on a street near Suramerica station. Took him a few hours to get the parts but I got it back late afternoon. I'the never realised how exposed you are without your phone. No maps. No Google Translate. No Uber. Etc.

Annoyingly I've not been able to lay any pre-emptive messages of my arrival with my FB contacts so it's happening late. Might wander down to park Lleras later.

I use a Three-UK SIM when I head to Colombia. It's valid in 71 countries including USA and all of Europe.

12 GB of data is enough to last 5-10 trips, and runs $40 at Amazon. There's a cheaper 1-month SIM too.

No registration, or anything. Slip it in and you're good to go. Works out cheaper than getting a Colombian SIM, especially if you can split the $40 over a few trips. Everyone in Colombia uses Whatsapp (Even Rappi the delivery service) so no worries there.

[URL]https://amzn.to/2BLIcly[/URL]

[QUOTE=BangoCheito;2381014]Those options are both outrageously expensive.

Just bring an unlocked phone (or get it unlocked in Colombia) and get a local SIM. My phone plan with Tigo is 55 k a month and includes 8 gig of data (4. 5 g), and unlimited calling and texting including to mexico the US Canada and PR. And it was month to month from the get go.[/QUOTE]

Hi!

My Spanish is very poor, and on my next trip in Dec I was thinking of taking some Spanish classes during the day. I have found several options in Laureles including Colombia Imersion school, Prime, Elefun, OSLA international and Ondas. Anyone have any recommendations?

[QUOTE=Balimassage;2386028]I use a Three-UK SIM when I head to Colombia. It's valid in 71 countries including USA and all of Europe.

12 GB of data is enough to last 5-10 trips, and runs $40 at Amazon. There's a cheaper 1-month SIM too.

No registration, or anything. Slip it in and you're good to go. Works out cheaper than getting a Colombian SIM, especially if you can split the $40 over a few trips. Everyone in Colombia uses Whatsapp (Even Rappi the delivery service) so no worries there.

[URL]https://amzn.to/2BLIcly[/URL][/QUOTE]Appreciate this. I will look into it because I do travel frequently.