I bought calling cards from Walmart last time I was there, can't remember the rate to AU but it was quite reasonable. Like some others here I got stung with roaming charges the first time I was there.
Next US visit (next week) I will definitely buy a SIM card and use it in my tri-band phone as has been suggested - thanks for the tip. I found the calling card good but the problems are:
- Have to find a phone to call from
- Have to enter lots of numbers
- They often have hidden charges (eg connection fees etc) so don't go as far as you might think.
I don't think I will be able to do the messagebank / pager thing NM suggested as I only have one tri-band phone. Plus Telstra can't even sort out my regular messagebank service properly far less trying to divert messages to a different O/S number....