Yesterday my cell-phone purchasing adventure did not go well. There was a nifty Sharp V902 (the other first 2-megapixel camera phone in Europe that I wanted to get from Vodafone. €249 with a 2-year contract. A bit expensive, but it has a real flash.
Unfortunately they wouldn’t accept my foreign passport to get a contract. They wanted my resident permit. The problem is my temporary resident permit is only for 6 months, and that is no good for a 2 year contract. But when I do get my resident permit it will be for 2 years from january. If I get it in a couple weeks, then it still won’t be good for 2 years from the date I purchase my phone.
I think on Saturday I will make a last ditch effort and offer to pay for my 24 month’s of service up front. It is no worse than when I gave AT&T a $1 000 deposit to get service from them. But perhaps Vodafone is a large inflexible company and will not take my offer. In that case I’ll just have to get the cheapest pre-paid phone I can get, and buy a digital camera.
Things to do/get:
- sign employment contract - requires: sofi-number, employment contract
- mobile-phone - requires: bank account
- health insurance - requires: sofi-number, doctor
- take dutch classes
- get paid - requires: sofi-number, signed employment contract, bank account
- internet connection at home - requires: cable modem, router
- non-temporary resident permit - requires: legalized birth certificate, landlord’s passport
Accomplished:
- place to sleep
- got moving expenses
- temporary resident permit
- sofi-number
- bank account
- landlord’s passport