Don't be paranoid, just be prudent

Doh! 11% failure rate.

Patty,

Thanks for the reminder. It's remarkable how some people become complacent and think "it can't happen to me".

So, of two couples we know with recent travels to Europe, 50% were pick pocketed. Of those victims, all were males, so failure rate of the RS's protecting valuables class for the two males is 100%. Thanks Ray.

It's like the story of the two hikers getting ready to start out on a trail. One hiker is putting on his running shoes. The other hiker asks why. "That's in case we run into a bear," says the first. "You can't outrun a bear," says the other. "I don't have to outrun the bear, I just have to outrun you."

In the same sense, you don't have to be impregnible, just be a harder target than most of the tourist crowd around you. The pickpockets/scammers will leave you alone in favor of easier targets - the ones with wallets and wads of cash in their pockets.

On what was probably my 12th trip to Europe I was pick-pocketed in a Paris metro station, altho the pocket was the outer one on my Ameribag healthy back bag. All I lost was a small cosmetic-type bag (which usually held my small camera but not at that moment) which contained 2 triple A batteries and the memory chip from the first part of my trip. I knew better, of course, but was careless. Now that pocket contains nothing but a package of tissues. Anything else is either inside the bag or in the "under a flap" zippered pocket next to my body. My friend (also female) had earlier lost some cash at a gas station. So our failure rate was also 100% ...

I hope to get pick pocketed in Paris or Rome next trip. I am taking two old wallets with several hundred dollars of monopoly money in them and a picture of my dog. That should get a laugh from them when they open that. Will just be in my back pocket. Sounds like fun anyway. If they see the wallet, doubt they will try for anything else.

Aside from the Monopoly money, be sure to include a slip of paper with "sucker" on it. The last time in Paris two years ago I was waiting at a traffic light opposite of the D'Orsay Museum when this kid "picks" up this big gold ring. Never encountered this scam before. I thought right way here it comes, so I shrugged my shoulders, that stereotypical Gallic shrug. I could see the kid was annoyed and pointed to the gold ring again. Again, I shrugged looking at him with the "what do you want me to do with it?" look. He gave up, walked away. I could tell he was ticked.

Unfortunately, pickpockets are accepted members of society in European cities. The police see the same people all day, every day working the crowds in busy tourist centers, and they record them on closed circuit television. But I've seen no evidence that they're combating those guys.

I was pickpocketed at the foot of a Paris Metro escalator when one of the perps "tripped" and tourists started falling on top of him in a pile. All they want is cash, and they'll throw down the billfold, credit cards and any documents on the ground.

I now carry nothing in any pockets. My wife follows close behind me when in high risk places. When anyone gets into "my space," I am not a nice, naive American. I'm a 6'3", 235 pound jerk. You've just got to be proactive in your safety anywhere you go.

We just finished with a few days in Paris, and from all my research I expected much worse. We were cautious about where we stored things, but even looking around to try to catch pickpockets in action out of curiosity, we never saw anyone. We only saw the petition scam once, but we said no and she left us alone. We did notice that she was a lot pushier with an elderly woman with a cane and tried to follow her down the street. I was surprised how many tourists were the opposite of paranoid. Outside the Louve, there was a group of tourists that left their purses and back packs on the ground unattended while they walked 30 feet away to take pictures in front of the pyramids. We watched for several minutes and none of them ever looked over to make sure their things were ok. If I were a pickpocket, I would choose people like that verses people who are paying attention with a hand on their belongings! We did watch a group of about 20 of those Eiffel tower sellers grab all their merchandise and go running across the street in a big group when an officer came through, so that was entertaining. We didn't find them to be as pushy as I feared either, after reading in preparation.

Onees not need to be a large American to deter pickpockets David. My children and I have been able to do just fine, we use our minds, not the threat of our brawn, and has worked for years. Over last 4 plus decades I have been visiting Paris I have had two close calls, one when I was 23 , and one about 6 years ago. In both instances I have not have to had to attack perps..I found yelling at them loudly worked just fine. In both cases I feel I needed to accept some responsibility for attempts as in both cases I was been careless and was preoccupied.
I did swing out at the fellow when i was 23, but only to push him away!

In both cases the crimminals ran away, and not because i was large or physically intimidating! They are most usually not inrerested in a conflict, they are just sneaks!

David, you really assume a whole lot of crap. Pickpockets are no more accepted members of society in European cities than armed robbers are accepted members of society in American cites. (Oh, and thanks for lumping all European cities together on to one plate as though they were all the same.) Where do you think you are going to see evidence of how the police are combating crime? Do you have an inside scoop on police surveillance?

What a scary, bizarre attitude.

I have seen people trip a number of times on escalators, not once has it been on purpose to commit a crime. Sadly, people get badly hurt when this happens and most people rush over to help them. Just because you were pick-pocketed at this moment, doesn't mean that the thieves caused the accident. How fun it must be to walk through life imagining that everyone is out to get you and that every accident is on purpose, just to distract you!

Where are these high-risk places that you need a woman walking behind you for your body guard? You two must be a sightseeing treat, both of you doing the "tourist clutch" on their bags, never being able to enjoy themselves for fear that someone is going to sneak up on you.

So, keep on being proud of being a big, huge "pro-active" jerk. You must have been that rude person that ignored me when I offered information about your tickets or help with a map on the train. It was all ok though, cause I watched you spend twice as much for your ticket and watched you go past your stop, making you miss your flight.

Oooh, Ms Jo . ....... Liking a lot.

Oh yes! Like button for Ms Jo.

Getting out the popcorn...

You go girl, Ms. Jo.

Accepted members of society? The police haven't turned over their records to you, David? Occasionally bad things happen. The vast majority of people are helpful, especially in situations where someone is hurt or needs help.

It's annoying and inconvenient to be a crime victim, but acting sensibly should suffice.

Hey, Ms. Jo, you don't have to attend every argument you're invited to.

It wasn't an argument Ann. Just an accumulation of face-palms collected over time, every instance where I have read David post with his skewed attitudes about Europe, pick-pockets, crime, having his wife protect his back, and his threats to get physical with anyone who got too close to him, and I felt it was time to say something. It seems others may possibly feel the same way?

Wow, lottsa underwear bunched up on this thread. I've seen too much pick pocketing while traveling in Europe, although never a victim. And yes, when my wife and I travel in crowds (e.g. trams, subways) we are alert for each other as mentioned in the one post. My opinion, not necessarily fact, is that pick pocketing in some areas of Europe (juveniles in Italy come to mind) seems so prevalent that authorities must categorize it as a nuisance and that tourists just need to follow simple preventive advice and therefore would not be victims. 'Nuff said, but if not, I'll make additional popcorn.

I will only add the tripping on the escalator gambit has been going on since at least the 80's when my parents had this happen to them in Paris. Fortunately they were pretty experienced travelers and my Dad realized what was going on as a young man pushed in front of him to get on the escalator before him. He told my Mom to make a sharp right at the top as there were guys also coming up the stairs between the sets of elevators. Sure enough the guy ahead tripped and Dad was ready and jumped over him while Mom made a quick exit to the right while the guys who came up the steps grabbed for her purse. They did get their hands on it but she had a good grasp on it and was moving away which they didn't expect. The absolute hilarious thing is that Dad was the least athletic person you can imagine and he was in his 70s then so I don't know how he managed to jump over the distraction guy.

Hmmm... pick-pocketing so bad that workers staged a walk out.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32844573?ocid=socialflow_facebook