It talks back to you. It talks back at you. It takes pictures. It takes notes. It wakes you up. It plays music. It plays video.

You might teach it a song. You may talk to it. You may play games on it.

It tells you what time it is. It tells you where to go. It makes you smile. It makes you laugh. It makes you feel good.

It is like a bandage attached to your hips, a cord that never sleeps, your carrying card to a membership that thousands are members but only you ride it.

It comes with its own color, dress code and its own lipstick. It is annoying to some and savior to others. Some even breathe, sleep and eat it.

It tells you stories. It bears your soul. It pays your bill.

Soon it will be serving you a meal at your favorite restaurant, open your favorite beer, turn off the light at the office. Yes, it is the cellphone, mobile, extra terrestrial, whatever you want to call it and it is here to stay.

Gone are the pay phones, the mobile phones of yesterday, the germ infested stations of the world, the boom box of all mother cellphones that resembles a glass window rain station then anything else.

Yes, I miss looking for a coin. I miss asking a passerby if they had twenty five cents to spear. I miss the sound of the coin falling in the box. I miss “please add ten cents”. I miss calling the operator to please make a collect call.

I miss tons of things but at least the conversation was private, the world did not know what restaurant I was going to and who I was meeting with for lunch, when I entered that room and closed that door, the world was my oyster. I could jump, scream, fart, tap and no one would care. At least I did not interrupt anyone’s meal or the quietness of the train ride whenever the phone rang. At least, there were many at least’s but nothing like coming across a phone booth. Yes, a public phone, a phone booth, a treasure.

I was engulfed with a tremendous sense of awe, an indiscernible astonishment when I saw them. They are not lost after all, they have not vanished, they are not today’s museum, they still  exist. I just have to thank whoever is keeping them alive, I guess they are needed after all, they can come in handy!

And here they are. Enjoy some interesting phone stations I found while cruising Italy, Switzerland, Portugal and the US. Have fun and delight yourselves!