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  • Writer's pictureKatrina Julia
    • Jul 6, 2021
    • 6 min read

How to Get an Apple Computer While Traveling Overseas

I think we will agree that life and travel bring us surprises all the time! When leaving Atlanta, GA in 2020, I didn't imagine during my travel to 7 Continents replacing my Apple in less than 6 months.


I love to travel. Before I even arrived here on earth, you may have heard me share I was conceived in Bulgaria, born in Poland, at a refugee camp in Italy at 6 months of age, and in the USA before two years old. By the time I was two years old, I had four stamps in my passport. Needless to say, casting a vision to travel to 7 Continents is not a surprise.


What did surprise me is when the things spiritually and practically aligned to have the vision become reality sooner, AND in a global pandemic!


My first three months of 2021 in Costa Rica flew by with no problems with my 2017 Apple MacBook Pro. I can't say the same for my next month and half in 2021 in Guatemala. While in Lake Atitlan, and watching Lifeway Women, I noticed my computer screen flickering and becoming almost all white. When I touched my computer, it was very hot. I immediately closed my computer.


On my iPhone, I Googled White Screen and MacBook Pro. I found various articles referencing a problem with the 2017 MacBooks on heating up and impacting the screen. With no recall on the computers, I felt it would be wise to replace the computer sooner rather than later. I immediately paid attention each time I used the computer to the heat. When it started to get hot, I would take a break and shut it down.


With researching options to trade-in my Mac and get a new one, I found no Apple Stores in Guatemala and in Quintana Roo in Mexico. I discovered all Best Buy Stores in Mexico closed due to the pandemic. I both messaged Office Depot and Apple Resellers in Guatemala and Mexico. While I could easily buy a new Apple, I could not trade-in my existing Apple. The only way I could do a trade-in would be at an Apple Store.


In researching flights to Florida, Houston, and Atlanta, I discovered it would cost me at least $500 round trip negating the cost of the trade-in. In comparison, flying to the Apple Store in Mexico City to trad