Things are moving ahead with the possibility of taking a trip or two to Israel in the near future, with the intention of having the visit be part of preparation to lead a short-term study abroad experience for students every couple of years. I’m getting past the stage of thinking about general aspects of the itinerary and sites to visit, and turning my attention to specifics of accommodation and transportation. I would welcome additional input anyone wishes to offer, with such specifics as “this hotel is much better than that one and affordable” or “this archaeological site has excavations ongoing at present, and the person in charge doesn’t mind if a group of students and a professor stop by to watch from the sidelines.” I will probably post a draft itinerary at some point in the near future.
I am also thinking about the logistics of keeping students and their families in contact. In the past, when travelling to Latvia or India with students, I have made a point of creating a web site or blog to which photos could be uploaded, and I know that students’ families appreciated this. The new iPad seems like it might be ideal for taking photos, posting the photos with an update about the trip on a blog, not to mention simply finding one’s way (assuming the iPad is allowed in the country). But perhaps I’m just looking for an excuse to get one.
But I am certainly interested in the issue of connectivity, in such cases but also more generally. I use a cell phone very little, except when travelling, and outside of the United States the phone is useless anyway. And so I wonder whether anyone out there has tried turning their iPad into a cell phone, using apps such as Line2, Nimbuzz or even just Skype. I can imagine that it might be better and more cost effective to have the least expensive 3G plan and use the iPad as a phone, than to have even the cheapest pay-as-you-go cell phone service. I’d be interested to hear from anyone who has tried to ditch their phone (whether mobile or land line) or simply do without it and use their iPad instead.
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