Contact Info While Abroad

In the case of an emergency, you can be reached most easily by phone at the following numbers (direct dial from the US using 011 international code):

Guatemala

Proyecto Lingüistico Quetzalteco - PLQ

5a calle, 2-40, zona 1

Quetzaltenango, Guatemala

Tel: +502 7763- 1061, +502 7765-2140

Email: proyectolinguisticoquetzalteco@gmail.com, plq@plqe.org

Pablo Ricardo Rojas Velásquez

+502 58341880

20 avenida D15-74 Zona 5, 

Quetzaltenango, Guatemala

Costa Rica

Biblical Latin American University, San Jose, Costa Rica

(506) 2283-8848

For emergencies only our staff cell phones are available, and numbers will be provided for you once you arrive in each country.

In the case of an emergency, your family and friends can also call the CGEE office in Minneapolis and leave a message with as much information as possible.  During office hours (8:00am – 4:30pm Central Standard Time).  After hours and on weekends, one of our Minneapolis staff members will monitor an emergency cell phone at 612-817-2830. 

Many US cell phone companies offer options for international usage abroad, although some are very expensive. Make sure to check with your cell-phone provider about international usage and costs. If you have a cell phone that is not tied to a data plan (unlocked), you can also purchase a SIM card at many stores across each country. These SIM cards are pay-as-you-go, and can be topped off with more money at many small stores. There are also many options for purchasing inexpensive phones in Central America. We recommend you do your research ahead of time: Read this article by the Federal Communications Commission.

Additionally, as you meet people and exchange phone numbers abroad, it is important to note that on US cell phones when calling international numbers you MUST include the country code before the local number (+506 for Costa Rica, and +502 for Guatemala). This is true even if you have a local SIM card in a US telephone. 

Upon arrival, students can let their families know they have arrived by internet; there is WIFI at all guesthouses. In Panajachel, San Cristóbal de las Casas, and San José students generally use Zoom, Whatsapp or other internet calling services to stay in touch with people at home. 

In general, postal service in Latin America is relatively slow and very unpredictable. Allow at least 2-3 weeks for delivery of letters and slightly longer for small packages. Warning: it is often difficult to claim packages at the post office. Import taxes may be charged that are equal to the value of the package. In many cases, packages don’t arrive or arrive opened with some of the contents missing, so we caution you about having anything valuable sent through the mail.

Also, although reliable, special courier services such as Federal Express or DHL are expensive and must be sent to a street address not a post office box.  This makes it extremely difficult for students to receive their packages, requiring extra effort and money such as trips to the airport, paying import tax, or having to hire extra services for packages to be delivered to their ultimate destination. For these reasons we don’t advise using FedEx or DHL, and advise using the normal postal service.

Mailing Addresses (Regular mail only. Not for courier or special delivery services-With the exception of Guatemala)

Guatemala

Pablo Ricardo Rojas Velásquez

20 avenida D15-74 Zona 5, 

Quetzaltenango, Guatemala

Please note: Guatemala doesn't have a national mail system. You need to use courier or special delivery services. 

Costa Rica:

Universidad Biblica Latinoamericana

San Pedro de Montes de Oca, CEDROS 350 al ESTE de los Perimercados, a mano izquierda portón negro y muro terracota

San Jose, Costa Rica

Please note that packages are subject to taxes which can be very expensive, even by courier, so we recommend you do not have packages sent to you in Costa Rica.

Keeping in touch with family and friends is very important. However, since you will be moving around frequently, communicating with them will be a bit of a challenge. Email is easy to access in cities, and some hotels and cafes have WiFi services. There are a plethora of internet cafes in Panajachel and San José.

As computers will be needed for homework and papers, we recommend that you bring a laptop with you if you have one available. There are computers available in Costa Rica, but they are rather old and hence slower than you may be accustomed to.

Of course doing so entails the risk of damage, loss or theft, so you should plan to insure it.  Or, you could purchase a cheap, used laptop. CGEE cannot reimburse you if your computer is lost, stolen or damaged.

If questions arise as you plan for your semester in Central America, please refer to this list to find the appropriate person to address your concern!

Course Registration: CGEE Semester Staff: globaled@augsburg.edu.  The CGEE Semester Staff are the ONLY people who can register you for CGEE courses and help you add or drop any.  You MUST write to CGEE to request adding, dropping, or changing course registration in any way. If you do not write to CGEE yourself, these changes will not be official and could cause lots of problems at the end of the semester. 

About programming in Guatemala: Gabriela Maldonado 

About programming in Costa Rica: Elisa Vanegas

About Spanish courses:  Gabriela Maldonado

About Religion course: Karina Vargas

About POL course: Elisa Vanegas

About HIS/WST course: Gabriela Maldonado

About insurance, travel, health concerns: Elisa Vanegas

Not sure who to contact? Feel free to our staff in the Minneapolis office (globaled@augsburg.edu) and they will gladly direct you to the right person.

The US Department of State has information on Absentee Voting Information for U.S. Citizens Abroad here. Please request your ballot before your arrival to ensure you can vote while abroad!