Losing My Phone: First Day In Colombia Saga Continued
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May 19, 2017
The New Hotel, Athens: Contemporary Art Meets Ancient City
May 26, 2017
Do you ever have those moments, in adulthood, when you want to just run into a corner and yell…MAMAAAAAAA!!! Well, losing my phone was one of those moments for me.
After chasing down the taxi I left my phone in, to no avail, I finally meandered back to my Spanish language school, The Whee Institute, and told the administration what happened:
Do you think I’ll get my phone back? I cautiously, yet optimistically, asked the school founder.
This is Colombia, man! He emphatically answered.
Still trying to stay positive
Dejected, I called my bank and cancelled both my debit and credit card that were inside the case. Then, as a single tear dropped from my face, I remotely deleted the phone contents. In no mood to study after losing my phone—I skipped class, went home to drop off my bag, and then headed back out.
Pro Traveler Tip #1
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Always have a stash of emergency cash!
Seeing that I no longer had access to my bank/debit cards, I exchanged some of the US dollars I brought along for local currency. Given the situation, I decided to put the money to good use. After going to a nearby hotspot named La Villa, I purchased some drinks and began to drown my sorrows with a few beers. Don’t judge me—it was a rough day! And at least by the 3rd or 4th beer I had finally managed to relax a bit and make some new local friends.
“We should hangout sometime.” Local friend #1 said.
“Sure! It’s my first day here and I really don’t know that many people yet.” I replied.
“Great! Give me your phone and I’ll put my number in.” Local friend #1 continued.
“Snap back to reality, oops there goes gravity.” -Eminem
“Uhhh…” Awkward pause… “Let me find a pen and some paper.”
Just when I was feeling better, local friend #1 reminded of losing my phone once again. Enough was enough! I finally decided sleep would be the best remedy.
Pro Traveler Tips #2/3
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Always keep a business card in your phone case.
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Regularly check your spam folder.
Before heading to bed, I checked my email and noticed an unfamiliar address in my spam folder with a subject that read: Teléfono extraviado.
After google translating the contents of the email, I was shocked to read that a woman had found my phone in the taxi and wanted to return it <insert hymns of joy and angels singing here>.
Long story short, I got my phone back a few days later. ANNND…when I tried to offer a cash reward, The Good Samaritan who found the phone was having no part of that. Ultimately, the moral of the story is this:
Regardless of how bad things seem on the surface…positive thoughts and positive energy bring positive results and, no matter where you go, kind-hearted people exist all over the world!
Arms outstretched and all smiles again!
I’ll never forgot losing my phone and the subsequent actions of the woman who found it.
In the comments below, share a story of a truly wonderful person you’ve come across during your travels.
34 Comments
Awesome tips for travelers. That feeling when you loose your phone…not cool.
Hey man,
I barely read your post about your stories here in Colombia. I feel identify with your friend #1. I remember when you told me about your lost phone, when I asked your number and the way was find your twitter profile.
I’m glad concern you could find it.
I still waiting for your articles of Prague trip.
I hope we could be in touch and that you can remember me.
Good to hear from you again, man! Glad you stopped by to leave a comment!
My husband lost his phone in the Bahamas. Well we think they stole it when we went on a carriage ride. The guy took the phone to take our photo and never returned it. It was like something out of a movie. They tried to make it seem like we were crazy when we confronted them smh.
Wow that’s crazy. It’s amazing the lengths some people will go to.
This post made me lose my breath. I was feeling for you. I’ve been there. I lost my ATM card while studying abroad. I was sweating like a dog!
What a nightmare!? I can’t even imagine losing my phone in this situation. Whenever something goes wrong, I always call my Mom first. Lol. I wouldn’t even be able to reach her! 🙁 So glad you got your phone back.
My phone got stolen once and I cried living tears. It was heartbreaking….
Oh Wow, I didn’t expect that ending. There is nothing wrong with taking a moment for a pitty party….in fact, I think it’s healthy. As long as the party is only 24 hours. LOL.
So glad you got your phone back. I hope Colombia turned out to be a fabulous adventure.
Well, the adventure is still ongoing…but when you lose your phone on the very first day things can’t help but to get better!
We are so dependant on our phones these days, i cannot imagine what would i do if i were you in that situation. I’m happy though that everything turned out positive at the end. You are very lucky!
I have never experienced losing a phone during international travel, however these are great tips to keep in mind in general to have important items on stand by just in case any emergencies that could happen on a trip.
I would have panicked so hard if this ever happened to me! How interesting! You are such an amazing story teller. And I also enjoyed your additional tips and advice at the end. It always pays to be prepared and have things stashed for emergencies like these. You never really know what’s going to happen whenever you travel so it’s best to be prepared.
Ahh so glad you got your phone back!! It’s a nightmare when you lose your phone, keeping a business card in the back is a great idea!
This is the best story I’ve read all day. It absolutely warmed my heart. You’re right, there are still good people in the world. I hope your business card had your blog on it .. I bet she’d love to read your story.
It actually did…and I hope she was able to read the story as well! Thank you for your kind words 🙂
Wow that’s so awesome. I have had people lose phones around me before. And they never seemed to reappear unfortunately. That was kind of sad for sure. ;(
I feel sorry for you. I know how it is like to lose your phone in a taxi. But in my case, I got it back, so I had a happy end eventually. The piece of advice about keeping your business card in your phone case is excellent! I would have never thought of that! I will put one in my phone case right away since I am prone to losing my personal belongings. Thank you for sharing your story with us.
OMG that sounds like a total nightmare. I don’t tend to use my phone abroad but if I lost it full stop it would really be a nuisance. I do keep a back up for emergencies but hope never to need it as it’s a bit rubbish.
I would go nuts if I lose my phone. It’s great that the woman returned your phone. The sad thing is you already deleted the contents of your phone. Plus, you cancelled your credit & debit cards. Would you be able to lift the cancellation or is it bound for replacement? Truly, your story is a great reminder for us travelers.
Unfortunately the cards were gone for good, but I saved my phone numbers to google so I am miraculously still connected to everyone in my phonebook!
Ahhh! Happy and relieved you got your phone back, although you had quite the struggle between the time you lost it until it was returned to you. That’s one of my greatest fears too, losing my phone. So far, I haven’t experienced that and I hope I never will. Great way of telling your story – simple and easy to digest.
I’m glad you enjoyed it and I hope your luck of never losing a phone continues!
I thought you weren’t able to retrieve your phone. The “This is Columbia” statement seems like a negative comment to me. But then, I also believe that there is still a good samaritan anywhere. Good thing you were able to get it back.
I agree as well on the tips you’ve mentioned. Indeed proper that we have a calling card or even our details by our phone just in case. And if I may add, we may also opt not to put our important cards in our phone case. It would surely be heartbreaking if together with the phone, our credit card and ID are included.
I agree with your opinion on that comment. I felt it was a bit negative as well but he was only being honest. 9 times out of 10, in any central area of a major city, you’re probably not likely to get something of such value back. Good point about the cards as well. I usually separate them and have one in the case and one in the wallet..but I went shopping that morning and forgot to do so!
I’ve experineced losing a phone too ages ago. And it made me really cry not because the phone was lost but because of all the files and most importantly the photos i had there. So it became a lesson for me to always back up my photos from time to time in case the same thing would ever happen again. With regards to your story, Glad to know that there are still a lot of good people out there…
Good people are everywhere. When travelling on the night train from Paris to Rome the night before Christmas Eve the train was very crowded, and we ended up sharing the bed cabin with a strange man, We were three young women and were a bit concerned so we took turns sleeping and one of us staying awake ti keep an eye on our fellow passenger. He turned out to be a Vietnamese man on his way to see his girlfriend who lived in Sicily.
Oh my god, that’s incredible that you got your phone back. Just goes to show that there are some decent people out there. I’ve lost and had stolen lots of mobile phones and you don’t realise how much you rely on them till your gone. The last time it happened I realised that I actually only know one mobile number by heart! ridiculous!
Glad you got it back!
Wow, I like how you approach on this kind of event. Truly, we shouldn’t have panicked much whenever we get to have this kind of situation, especially if we are not really sure of the situation. I’m glad that you were still able to get back your phone. Your tips are really a big help for many travelers. I’m also happy that you get the chance to check your emails before heading to bed. Take care always and have a safe trip always. Thank you so much for sharing this with us.
I’ve lost a lot of phones in this life. Most were stolen, some were misplaced and never found again. The pain afterwards is really devastating especially if the phone/s were gifts from loved ones. Nevertheless, we must learn from these and be careful the next time. So when I’m out or commuting, I won’t take my phone out or just have an extra phone with me; like a dummy phone of some sort. Haha!
Or perhaps having two phones? Hihi. You know what? I just had my phone broken for more than a week now and I think it’s okay. It’s actually a smartphone but I own a very coy phone which is just purely call and text. And I think it’s great. Losing a phone in another country is a different story though.
That must have been so scary losing your phone ! I have lost mine before but thank goodness that kind person gave you that phone back! x
I experienced losing phones many times due to my negligence and my forgetfulness haha.. That’s also the reason why every time I travel, I bring a spare phone with me ( my spare phone is usually a phone with lesser value haha just for calling and emergency purposes). And you’re right, you should have business cards either on your phone case or better yet on your wallet… I also have a tickler where I list down the numbers I can contact in case of lost or emergency
Good thing, your phone was found by someone who is so kind to exert effort of returning it to you.. what a good Samaritan indeed!
That story had some twists and turns!