Why having my internet cut was simultaneously the best and worst thing that could have happened to me

Yes, shock horror, I have been without mobile data since 2014. Breathe. Let that sink in. How, I hear you cry, does one survive without internet connection at all times in technology obsessed 2015??

Well, I had no choice so techno-free January became a thing. Okay, so not completely techno-free, I am still graced with the presence of wifi, thank goodness. No wifi for a month would be something else. Sad but true, we live in a world that revolves around and completely depends upon technology.

This break from 3G data was not a choice, well…not really. I didn’t top up my phone in time so when I did top it up, no internet until next month. Great. The world here relies completely and utterly on whatsapp as a means of communication. SMS? What even is that? To put it straight, whatsapp goes down, Italy goes down. The case is the same in Spain. When at home, I sent the odd whatsapp here and there to friends overseas or if sending photos, but generally texting was the done thing. I have been out the country a while so this may have changed since August….? Now though, EVERYTHING is whatsapp, which if you didn’t know, works over mobile data, i.e. internet. So, no internet, no whatsapp, no social life for me?

Wrong! I actually think this has made me more social. So it is very annoying when you have to tell people a million times to please send me an actual real life text message because I didn’t pay my internet and so whatsapp has abandoned me, and okay when we got a bit lost in Milan last weekend I really could’ve done with Google maps to rescue us, but that wasn’t an option so we actually read an actual real map. Yep, they do still exist. And I can’t help thinking when I go to look for somewhere to live in Ferrara this weekend (cry, let’s not talk about that one..) that Google maps would indeed be invaluable whilst searching for various addresses in a completely unknown city. Doing that without internet is gonna suck quite a lot and most likely end up in my getting lost…can’t wait.

But on the other hand, I am no longer constantly checking everything and anything; ooh who’s instagramed a new picture of their latte? Oh my goodness so-and-so uploaded another selfie and has changed their profile picture for the third time in as many days?

WHO CARES?!

Certainly not me, yet I’m the first to admit I still find myself constantly up to date on my entire news feed. But no internet means no more, hurrah! I genuinely feel like I’m taking more in and appreciating what’s around me a little bit more now that I’m not too busy catching up on what’s happening in everyone else’s lives. And the number of times I go to look at my phone and remember there’s no internet so not really anything to look at, that number is scarily high but slowly decreasing.

So I’m not going to go and live in a hole after this revelation and yes, once February hits I will be welcoming back my mobile data with open arms, but at the same time, I think I’ll be less inclined to scroll through gym selfies and meaningless plates of food (not a dig, we’ve all done it..) and more inclined the leave it in my bag and look at it only when it buzzes or when there’s some weirdo on the bus and I need to look busy to avoid eye contact.

So there is in fact a life without 24/7 3G, who knew? Maybe try it one day, turn off your data for a while, life can be pretty cool if you actually pay attention.