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Once you get the Brazil sim card, if you want to maintain it for future trip, you need to add money to your prepaid account usually at least once every three months otherwise the number will expire and you will need to get a new sim card once you return to Brazil. You can view your account online, along with the expiration date of the sim before you have to recharge, but be sure to get the password associated with your account when you are in Brazil (most cellular companies send you a text message with the password). You can recharge the sim account using one of the many services that allow you to "Top Up" accounts in foreign countries. One challenge I have had is US credit cards are often declined. If you have this issue, consider using Paypal if you have an account and it is an option on the site as it works with no issues.

Welcome Governor! I love your latest Visit Indiana tourism board video! https://youtu.be/5LH2FVxrj4k --Damn, forgot how to make a media link...

You brought up a good point. I had not touched on the recharge issue. I am in Brazil so often that I do not run into the problem of my prepaid amount expiring. Depending on how much “prepay” amount added to the SIM, the SIM remains valid for as little time as 30 days or as much as six months. For example with TIM, if you recharge with amounts less than R$27, the prepaid amount is valid for only 30 days. If you recharge for R$27 the prepaid is valid for 90 days and if you recharge for R$50 or more, the prepaid amount is valid for six months. Other carriers probably have different expiration times. One reputable recharge company in the U S is a company called “Cloncom” and this company accepts credit cards for recharging foreign SIM cards. Here is a link to that company. http://www.cloncom.com/?lct=s

"Yes, that's right, Richard Branson has found a new base for his some of his Virgin businesses.Richard blogged that he was moving his business after discovering that his entrepreneur great-great-uncle, Reuben S Branson, founded the city of Branson. In a final flourish to what is surely one of the more high-profile April Fools of the day, Virgin America says it is naming its newest plane Jolene, to honour Dolly Parton, who launched a business in Branson. A Dolly channel will play her hits on repeat on the plane (only from 9 to 5)."

Is it later yet?

How keen of you to raise this possibility. Although I have been to Rio many times, I never noticed any bad air quality. After reading the below article, I wonder how dense my senses are. According to the below article, the air quality in certain sections of Rio is not good. Naturally, the bad air could (will and should) impact the Olympics. I wonder how the Olympic committees are going to handle the air pollution issue during the events. It seems there is one problem after another when it involves the Olympic events. Here is the article: http://www.rioonwatch.org/?p=6734

Just curious, but if traffic is that bad, then I would suspect that the air quality would suffer also, and wouldn't that impact the athletes at the Olympics?

Agree with both of the above absolutely. The surveys all show it -- the Reaper is taking care of this problem for us.

I personally know some young straight guys from IN that think this law is ridiculous. Our hope for the future is our young guys. Best regards, AR1

Maybe our hope is in our youth http://article.wn.com/view/2015/04/01/The_Arkansas_governors_own_son_urged_him_not_to_sign_the_con_o/ The Arkansas governor's own son urged him not to sign the controversial 'religious freedom' law Posted, 2015-04-01 Even Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson's ® received a rather personal objection to the state's controversial "religious freedom" legislation. When Hutchinson announced on Wednesday that he would not sign the bill in its current form, he cited... "My son, Seth, signed the petition asking me, Dad, the governor, to veto this bill. And he gave me permission to make that reference,"

Then, Grab your Brass Ring......

Well, for a rsponse from someone who lives here: 1)There are already two BRT lines completed in the metro area with a third nearing completion and the fourth under construction but planned not to be ready for the Olympics. 2) The two-level Elevado Joa which runs from Barra to Sao Conrado is being doubled with a second structure and tunneling as well as a separate smaller tunnel for bicyclists and pedestrians. 3)I've been here for the World Youth Journey in 2013 and the World Cup in 2014 and things seemed to run pretty smoothly. Except for the flooded field past Recreio in 2013 where the final celebration was to be held and then moved to the beach in Copacabana. One thing they did during the World Cup at the Maracana and I assume that they will do again for the Games, if you didn't have a ticket you didn't get within a great distance of the stadium. So I have my doubts that if tourists are planning on coming to Rio for the excitement and not plnning on purchasing tickets, they wil not be getting close to the venues. 4)In 2013, some of the Peregrines were being housed out past Sao Goncalo in rental bedrooms, and even by me we had pilgrims from one of the Baltic states. 5)That many new hotel rooms, I doubt. For Reveillon, there are usually around 6 or so cruise ships docked at the Praca Maua, so maybe they can squeeze in a few more or even more at the naval base or at the container port further west, 6) I was quite surprised at how well organized things seemed in both 2013 and 2014. So I think it could be a pleasant surprise at how well things might run. And if one has been to Copacabana for Reveillon, it is a marvel at how quickly the city government can move a million people to the north and away from the beaches. 7) Biggest problems will be the complaints about the water for the events in the ocean, Guanabara Bay and Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas. Really filthy all around. The politicos have been dragging their feet and lining their pockets for nearly 25 years. 8) I just got back from a month in Europe. Having been at the airports in London T-5, Amsterdam, Brussels, Barcelona and Madrid - Barajas T-4, I fear that the substandard facilites at Galeao will be a nightmare.

A minaret is a distinctive architectural feature of mosques and this one was taken outside the great Blue Mosque in Istanbul today! The others are from the Blue Mosque as well. I went on a tour inside. It is still an active Mosque so you must take your shoes off before you go inside and there are those that are praying. It was a beautiful Mosque!

I have eaten at many places including a fish place near the bridge and a restaurant called Platinum near the old city and it has a glass floor that you can see the caverns below. very cool. But, for photos, here is one place I ate outside the palace that I liked the kabob's.

Thailand volleyball player Wuttichai Suksara aka Golf 7’3, size 22US, enormous ears

Today’s Rio Times reports that a Dutch transport technology company used GPS to track and compute 146 major cities of the world to determine how cities rank traffic wise with traffic congestion. Again, for the second consecutive year, Rio ranks number three for having the worst traffic. Worse, even than Sao Paulo - One line in the article grabbed my attention where it states: “Residents of Rio de Janeiro lose a hundred hours per year on average stuck in traffic.” Remember, the above statement applies NOW - Before the Olympic start next year. This study and confirmation cannot bode well for next year’s Olympic games. Here is a link to the full article: http://riotimesonline.com/brazil-news/rio-real-estate/rio-has-third-worst-traffic-of-146-cities-in-the-world/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheRioTimes+%28The+Rio+Times%29

But you are always POLITE about it......... unlike ME....

Just heard on the local San Francisco news station that Bush is here trying to raise money and Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce.com and a power-donor, cornered him and made him see the light. Until now, I thought Benioff donated only to Democrats but, apparently, not so. Good to know that Bush's 'principles' seem to be within Benioff's budget.

Sounds like ol Jeb is trying to straddle that yellow line.

'Weak as water!' -- Mrs Slocombe Jeb Bush flip-flop on Indiana law shows what a difference two days make http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/apr/02/jeb-bush-flip-flop-indiana-anti-gay-law

A malignant polyp, said Paul, Would look great all blown up at the mall. And in spite of some folks Who may make tasteless jokes We could offer free selfies to all!

Thanks for sharing! I do believe that I was letting my imagination get the better of me! Again, thanks! I appreciate your take on the matter!

The massages at the Turkish Baths, may be a bit on the sensual side, but if your looking for erotic, probably not going to happen. They'll give you a towel to wear, and hands everywhere with strong massage, but they stop short of erotic. The Bath houses are usually very ornate, and in most places the massage will be a bit more public than your used to. But you get lost in the whole experience and you probably won't miss the erotic part.

Oh SNAP !!!!

Inferno Canto III Per me si va ne la città dolente, per me si va ne l'etterno dolore, per me si va tra la perduta gente. Giustizia mosse il mio alto fattore: fecemi la divina podestate, la somma sapienza e 'l primo amore. Dinanzi a me non fuor cose create se non etterne, e io etterno duro. Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate. THROUGH ME THE WAY TO THE CITY OF WOE, THROUGH ME THE WAY TO ETERNAL PAIN, THROUGH ME THE WAY AMONG THE LOST. JUSTICE MOVED MY MAKER ON HIGH. DIVINE POWER MADE ME, WISDOM SUPREME, AND PRIMAL LOVE. BEFORE ME NOTHING WAS BUT THINGS ETERNAL, AND I ENDURE ETERNALLY. ABANDON ALL HOPE, YE WHO ENTER HERE.

Thank you for your very reasonable response to my copying your question then my using your question for the basis to start a new thread about cell phones in Brazil. I hope that you will have an easy time when you decide which telephone carrier to use while in Brazil. Considering the high probability that you will not find a telephone employee that knows English, be sure to prepare a translation in Portuguese requesting a prepaid SIM card then bring that translation, along with a copy of your passport, to the phone company outlet that you choose. Your having these documents will make it easy for you to accomplish the objective of getting a working Brazilian SIM card. If you get a working SIM card for Brazil, please report back and let us know how things went. There will be others who might also want to obtain a Brazilian SIM card. Your experience will be an additional guide to those folks.

Oz, I just got back from 4 weeks in Europe. At the Casa Mila in Barcelona, Alcazar in Seville and Alhambra and Generalife in Granada, I paid the extra 3-5Euros to go to the head of the line with a guide.