Thursday, April 28, 2011

Telephone booth


I took this photograph very recently in a restaurant, but don't go thinking we still use these od telephone booths! They belong to the 50th, when mobile phones did not exist and when even having a home line was hard (in 1968, the rumor had it that half of the French was waiting for their phone line, while the other half was waiting for the dial tone!). Now we're very lucky; I pay 35 € per month for my phone line/DSL /cable television access and I don't even pay for my calls anymore, even internationally!

30 comments:

  1. I've been telling friends for a while how inexpensive it is to have phone/cable TV/high-speed internet AND free long-distance calls in France. Here in Canada, my phone/TV/internet package is well over $200 a month and long-distance calls are not free. It's not even a fibre-optic connection.

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  2. That is so cool. I'm glad some of these pieces of history are still around. Leave it to the French to make something as utilitarian as a phone booth into a piece of art.

    I am VERY jealous of your phone/internet rates. I pay more than that just for my internet connection. No cable at Mrs. Vandertramp's house--I refuse to pay for TV, just on principle. TV should be free. Still have an old analog set with a digital converter box and rabbit ears.

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  3. Nice nostalgic picture. Can't believe that's all you pay. I pay $90 just for cable tv and an extra $60 for my landline. I have an emergency only cell phone which costs $25 for 3 months. Just another reason to live in France. Sigh.

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  4. I'm jealous too! Was there a phone inside that one could use? I just love it. And I love the joke. :-)

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  5. France has come a long way, baby! And we in the US finally elected a multi racial man as President only to have certain factions hound and humiliate him into having to prove he is a US citizen. Something no other (white) President has had to do. Two steps forward and 50 years back. Now I know what they want to take America back to. Here's hoping many more of us want to take it forward!

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  6. Your photo looks like an old movie -- nostalgic. I just love it! The colours are very warm, just like your weather. :-)

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  7. Love your phone booth photo :-) The colors, that old-fashioned feeling....
    Like the others, I envy that you have such reasonable phone/dsl/tv rates.

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  8. This is such a quaint photo--so French or at least what my mind gravitates to when I think of France. As Lois points out, it is nostalgic and conveys warmth. Thanks for the transport, Mr. Scott. ;-)

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  9. Petrea, call me for free when you get there!

    Wish that I could call my friends in France for free from the US!

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  10. After having been in Paris this spring, your phone bill is the cheapest thing I've heard of in Paris. Everyone in Paris must be wealthy to live there. I could not believe the prices.

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  11. That reminds me of an expression from when I was living in Mexico about 30 years ago. "Half of the Americans living in Mexico are wanted in the United States. The other half aren't!"

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  12. I use the telephone booths on the streets as my cell
    costs too much to call the US and the calling card I buy from the French post office is cheaper. I guess I am the only person using them.

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  13. Quick grammar question (I'm having a debate here!). Is it more correct to say:

    "in 1968, the rumor had it that half of the French WAS waiting for their phone line, while the other half WAS waiting for the dial tone!

    or

    "in 1968, the rumor had it that half of the French WERE waiting for their phone line, while the other half WERE waiting for the dial tone!"

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  14. Oui? J'ecoute, Eric! I believe that if you were to say: half of France WAS waiting....OR half the French PEOPLE WERE waiting...that would be the preferred English grammar to use. GREAT picture! ^_^

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  15. Eric, the same question is also valid in French !
    "la moitié des Français était...", ou "la moitié des Français étaient..." !!
    I choose "était", but in English, ... not sure !

    BTW, your photo is great! colours, atmosphere, ...

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  16. Eric, I agree with Thib, in French, that makes a difference and I don't know if it is the same in English.
    I would say "la moitié des Français étaient" ou "la moitié de la France était" ... depending of the add... But hmm, for sure, I often make the mistake :)!

    Great colors in this photo and great temptation for calling a friend and having a lunch there!

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  17. Another great photo Eric, thanks.
    I have noticed that you often tilt your photos to great effect, achieving some interesting angles. Are you very conscious about that, or do you just spontaneously tilt your camera a bit?

    I want to try it out myself :-)

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  18. Beau Gosse is right: either half of France (it) was or half of the French (they) were.
    In 1968, I was one of those waiting for a phone! My friends knew to call me while I was still at work, but if I ever needed to make a call when I was home, I went downstairs to the cafe where they had a phone in a booth that looked exactly like this.
    (Who's your phone/DSL/cable provider anyway—and why can't we get a deal like that here in the States?)

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  19. Don't tell you-know-who, but this photo risks to have more comments than
    EIffel Tower!
    EIffel Tower!!
    EIffel Tower!!!

    Great nostalgia Eric in a time of infobesity!

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  20. The colors are fantastic (and I have to admit I don't really care for red all that much, but here, it is perfect.) The table looks like it was set for me! (I'm saving, I'm saving! lol) I miss phone booths ...how you can you have fun with your friends seeing how many people you can cram in one without a booth?

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  21. Eric, my French grammar is terrible but I know my English grammar. "Half of the French WERE waiting for their phone line, while the other half WERE waiting for the dial tone!" is the correct usage.

    Your English is excellent--better than a lot of native speakers!

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  22. I love the vintage feel of this photo...

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  23. @Anna, I too love the vintage feel of the photo.

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  24. Lucky you on those rates! It's hard to find any rates for phone, internet and TV for less than $100.00 depending of course on what package you choose.

    Kris

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  25. Last time we were in town, we rented a flat for the week. One day after breakfast there was a knock on the door, and it was a salesman selling the "Triple Play" phone/TV/internet. I told him I was a relative, and then we started to chat. I happened to ask the price and almost fell over when he told me! Then I told him I paid $150 in the US and he was like "I'd be rich selling over there!!" Just shows the grass is always greener on the other side...


    Sean

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  26. Quick note about our DSL/phone/TV rate. This is only due to the fierce competition there is in this market here, especially from one company called Free (which is not "free" despites its name!)

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  27. Ooooo, that's pretty cool!! but I understand you guys are not so lucky when it comes to mobile phone plans, right?

    I remember those phone booths (I'm pretty sure they still had them until the 70's at least) Then you had to ask for tokens. As to residential phones, I remember when you had to ask for it at the PTT (?), wait about a year or so (particularly outside Paris) (Nope, I'm NOT kidding) to get hooked up eventually. And all the phones were the same. By contrast, in the US, at around the same time, they said "Sure, and what color telephone do you want?" and you left the building with your phone in a bag and the line was activated within hours.

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  28. Oh what atmosphere, what romance. I love this image!

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  29. was this photo taken at Chez Paul?
    i remember chez paul had a little telephone booth in the corner. that was my favourite bistro parisien! i had steak tartare for the very first time there!

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