Pickpockets in Europe
They're Everywhere
Pickpockets, purse snatchers, luggage thieves. Modus operandi. Self defense.
The Amsterdam police hung this four language banner over the Kalverstraat, one of the busiest streets in Europe. This pedestrian "street" is barely 50 feet wide and is literally elbow to elbow during most of the shopping day. It is a good idea to become slightly paranoid of any close encounter you experience on this street. Your goods are not actually "yours" until you get them home.
Carpe diem. Vivere bene! Gratia Deo.
Chapter 8 Part 1
HOW TO EUROPE:
The Complete Travelers Handbook
John Bermont
This entire book is published totally free on-line by the author and photographer, yours truly, with help from my daughter Stephanie. Yes, you can copy — if you ask first. Please read my copyright and permissions statements. Visit my home page at enjoy-europe for truck loads of more helpful illustrated travel information sans pareil. If you have questions or comments after reading this chapter please see NOTE TO READERS. Updated 23 October 2015.
Go Like Marco Polo.
Since the days of that intrepid Italian viaggiatore who made it to China and back, the double-edged problem facing travelers has been:
- Carry money that can't be lost or stolen.
- Carry money that is accepted everywhere.
IN FOUR PARTS
This Internet edition of chapter 8 is divided into four parts because it is so big. The four parts are:
- Pickpockets: They're everywhere.
- ATMs in Europe: Travel Cash.
- Cash and Credit: Paying Your Way in Europe.
- Potpourri: Barter if you're broke.
The first part of this chapter will focus on the issue of protecting your stash. You tourists are viewed as plump juicy targets for the disorganized but ubiquitous underworld of Europe. You are rich in their eyes. You buy a Metro ticket. Pickpockets jump the turnstiles.
The criminals have no conscience. You have a good probability of losing everything while enjoying nothing. Even if you are a backpacker wearing school rags you are tasty easy game. What you have in your backpack is more than many thieves have in their home, if they even have a home. A tethered lamb in the woods would have a better chance. To save yourself a worthless trip to the police station to report your loss pay attention here.
AVOIDING JESSE JAMES
There are many things to know about money, about exchanging your US dollars for European currencies, and about the money instruments available to travelers. The most important thing to know is how to protect your money, passport, and belongings against thieves.
The original Jesse James was a murdering train robber in the years after the Civil War. He operated from Missouri and was a local hero, having the reputation of stealing from the rich Yankee railroad barrons. His most famous crime was the attempted robbery of a bank in Northfield, Minnesota. His gang was pretty much shot up and sent to Hell by alert townspeople exercising their 2nd Amendment rights, but Jesse and his brother got away. I'm sure you have seen a couple movies about this famous incident. The James brothers are long dead now but similar miscreants are always on the loose. There are plenty of them in Europe, hanging out just where you want to be.
Pickpockets
Pickpockets won't shoot you, but they will get your goodies. They thrive in the train stations, airports, post offices, museums, amusement parks, city tourist offices, and public crowds. Thieves also make a good living in the subways and on the streets. Nearly every traveler I have met in Europe has a story to tell about an attempted theft on themselves or on someone they know. I've had six brushes with these devils and they are batting 16% on me. The loss was relatively minor, and should not have happened. In too many cases it is a sad story because the thief was very successful. It is a frustrating calamity when you are robbed because the police can do virtually nothing except to hear your story and then file it. You are left with the burden of canceling credit cards, getting more cash, and replacing documents, probably including your passport. Did you ever try to get into a US Embassy overseas? Yeah, sure.
You Probably Haven't Seen This on TV
What follows might sound funny, even dumbfounding. Some human-looking creatures will try almost anything to steal your stuff. They are brazen and audacious and cunning. They prefer to pick on the weak and helpless, but, as I learned by firsthand experience, they'll go after a 6'1" 190-pounder also, at least in the off-season.
Ketchup: A Chinese businessman on a train from Paris to Cologne (Köln) told me an interesting story. He was in a Paris Metro station and some people started shouting at him and pointing at the back of his coat. He took it off to have a look and found ketchup on it. Just then someone came over to help him clean it off. The businessman appreciated that, but felt something inside his breast pocket as the friendly helper was wiping off the ketchup. He grabbed the thief by the wrist as he was extracting the businessman's wallet. I found that story hard to believe, but the businessman went back to his compartment and returned with an expensive fur coat. It had a two-inch wide river of ketchup right down the middle of the back.
Hand cream: Three weeks later I was in Madrid. Walking back to my hotel from the post office on a major boulevard at sunny noontime, an older couple started shouting at me and pointing at the sky and at the back of my jacket. After a moment, I put my hand around in the back and felt something slippery. My hand came back smeared with hand cream. Immediately a younger fellow appeared out of nowhere and approached me with some napkins to help wipe it off. Such a friendly good Samaritan! Wrong. Remembering the story of the Chinese businessman, and recognizing my helper as a fellow I had seen gambling on the sidewalk with US $20 bills the day before, I became alarmed. I pulled my jacket together and backed up, shouting "No! No!" The helper with the napkins became slightly disoriented. He walked out into the Calle de Alcala, a major boulevard in Madrid, and was nearly run over before he got his wits together and went back the way he came. The man and woman who shouted at me, and who were obviously part of the heist play, kept walking up the boulevard as if nothing had happened. During the ten minute walk back to my hotel, not another soul mentioned anything about the white streak on the back of my coat.
Mustard: I heard a similar story in Portugal, except that it was mustard over there.
Cardboard: Another modus operandi involves the use of a piece of cardboard and some teenage girls in worn dresses. The girls approach you holding the cardboard outstretched as if they were pathetic beggars. They put the cardboard up close to your chin with one hand, thus concealing the other hand which is busy grabbing your wallet down below. A friend told me that a group of girls had tried this on him in Rome. Two days later a solo pre-teen girl tried it on me near the Rome train station.
On the Train: When Elizabeth and I found a compartment on the Venice (Venezia) to Vienna (Wien) overnight train, we quickly chucked our stuff in the overhead rack and settled in. Though she put her purse up there, I was sure it was temporary. To make a toilet trip during the night I reached under the seat for my shoes and found her purse there. Good enough, I thought. But the next morning she said she hadn't put it there. Then we discovered that some money and credit cards were missing. Telephone calls from Vienna to cancel the cards were time consuming and expensive, using most of the time we had available before catching our train to Budapest. For some reason the thief was selective in rifling her purse and took only two credit cards and the cash, leaving behind the American Express card -- a discerning thief. The thief must have been someone in the compartment since I was sleeping next to the door and am easily awakened when train doors are opened.
Tragic Success: I've talked with many people who were hit hard, even before landing in Europe. A girl I met while traveling had flown from San Francisco to Los Angeles to catch a flight to Europe. While she was waiting for the boarding call at Los Angeles International Airport someone stole her purse with her passport and money -- only a half hour before departure. A friend of mine had his watch stripped off his wrist in the Louvre Museum in Paris. An Australian girl I met had her purse stolen while she sat in a Barcelona café with five other people. The passport of an American girl disappeared in Basel on the day her tour group was to depart for Paris and fly home. I met two others from the group who stayed behind to help her out. They wasted at least a day and additional expense going to Zurich to get a replacement passport. A Dutch guy I met on a train was on his way home after one day of a one month vacation. Somebody stole his wallet.
I could fill a book with details of these and similar stories. So, "Let's be careful out there."
Purse Snatching
This is a profitable sport for the lowlifes just about everywhere. Girls, if you don't have your hand on your purse someone else will. Many women put their purse on an adjacent chair when they are in a restaurant. Sometimes they hang it on the back of the chair, an even easier place for those in the snatching business. Keep it slung around your neck, in your lap, or jammed in behind you when you sit. When shopping never lay your purse on the counter. The lowlifes have a right to shop also and they will nudge themselves close to your handbag if it is not secure. If you get crowded just step away until the offender moves. Keep your purse hung around your neck.
Do not keep your passport in your purse. Keep it in a money belt under your blouse. Keep your credit cards and big money there also. You can carry some day money in a convenient place so you don't have to go to a dressing room to get it from under your blouse.
Baggage Thieves
Many travelers "hide" their passport and money in their suitcase. Baggage thieves know this — that's why they are thriving in the tax free baggage-stealing business. Baggage thieves also know that there are clothes, toiletries, a camera, razor, and other goodies inside which would make a nice present to their girl friend or earn a little money at the flea market. The one thing that baggage thieves do not care about is the disaster they wreak on the dream vacations of those whose suitcases disappear. That's not their department.
Baggage thieves operate primarily in airports, train stations, on trains, in metro stations, and on the metros (subways). They prosper in and around the congestion and confusion of tourist information offices and hotel booking offices. They also examine parked cars and open the trunks of those with out-of-town license plates.
Friends of mine have had their cars broken into in Paris and a thief rifled the suitcase of another friend on a French train. Gone were his money and traveler's checks. An American bicyclist I met had his luggage stolen from under his legs while he was sleeping in a French train station. I have met other travelers, bitter and frustrated, who had their belongings stolen on trains, in train stations, and from their cars.
SELF DEFENSE
On Guard
Armed robbery and mugging are less prevalent in Europe than in the United States. But you have to be careful not to display yourself as a tempting target for quick fingers on fast feet. Be alert at all times in public places. Look around in train stations and post offices. Study the faces and the actions of loiterers and strollers. Most people are going somewhere or doing something. But you'll see some who seem to be planted there, just watching and waiting like a snake in the grass.
Gypsies
Some people may consider this paragraph as "profiling." Sorry, but it is just the way things are. I only report it for your self defense. The message is to be alert for gypsies. Assume that every gypsey is a highly skilled thief. That's a fact. Their usual come-on is begging. They often work in groups and act like a pack of hyenas on the street. I'll never forget the fright I once had in Milan. When traveling with Elizabeth and our two-year old Stephanie we had to cross a major boulevard near the train station. With a toddler you carry an unbelievable amount of stuff and we had to cross in shifts. As I was beginning to come over with the second load I saw a half dozen gypsy women slowly approaching Elizabeth as she was yelling at me in alarm. Boy did I move, and the gypsies cleared out.
Though they hang out more frequently in southern and eastern Europe, gypsies can be anywhere. Major cities such as Paris and Rome have large numbers. When you see the women, dressed in characteristic flower print dresses and billowing skirts, go on red alert because they are likely to have a close encounter with your wallet, wristwatch, passport, or whatever else you have of value. Be especially wary of the children. They are trained in the art of theft from an early age.
Video Recorder
I have discovered a great defense against gypsies, no matter how many are circling. Start filming them with your video recorder. It is simply amazing how fast they scatter. They sometimes make abusive threats as they flee. An old woman in Warsaw started hitting me but she couldn't kill a fly with those flimsy arms.
When we stayed in Milan for a week visiting Elizabeth's sister, I used to stroll over to the train station with my video recorder nonchalantly hanging in my right hand, set on pause and ready to roll. When the gypsies approached, I would raise it and start filming. You'd think I had an Uzi machine gun by the way they scattered. One fellow, about 25, was so mad or disgusted that he stopped, turned toward me, pulled his sweat pants down, grabbed his joint, flipped it around in the air, and shouted "Here, take a picture of this!" Even his girl friend partner was shocked.
I have a half hour video of another gypsy girl trying the beggar scam in Warsaw solo while her tribe stood across the street. It's a very well rehearsed procedure. She would not approach couples, only single walkers. But if there was someone walking within 20 feet or so she would back off. If you are traveling alone you are particularly vulnerable. If you are approached for a handout anywhere in Europe never give a penny. It is their profession to look as pathetic, helpless, and hopeless as possible. The Sherlock Holmes story "The Man with the Twisted Lip" is a good description of the practice. In the 1960s a Wall Street Journal reporter practiced the method in New York City and was making an annualized $14,000 a year, tax free of course. That was twice as much as I was making as a young engineer in Chicago at the time.
Keep It Close
No matter how you carry it, keep money out of sight and close to your body. Since my close encounter in Madrid, I always keep my wallet in a tight front pants pocket in crowded areas. When I come over from Haarlem and the train enters the Amsterdam train station I instinctively move my wallet from my rear pocket to the front. The Amsterdam train station is a rat hole of beggars and thieves.
I keep my passport, big bills, and a couple of credit cards in the pocket of my T-shirt. I wear a business shirt or turtleneck over this. It is just as secure as a money belt.
Money Belt
Many travelers use a money belt. A money belt is a pocket on a belt which should be worn under your shirt or blouse. Many wear it on the outside so they can get to it in a hurry, a habit which razor toting thieves really do appreciate. Keep your passport and a minimum two day supply of local cash on your person at all times. If your hotel has a safe, you can use it to keep your other foreign money, airline ticket, rail pass, etc. Do not forget to retrieve them from the hotel safe when you check out.
Circle Your Wagons
Defense against baggage thieves is rather simple -- just hang on to your stuff. Do not EVER accept a gratis offer from a stranger to watch your bags while you buy a ticket or powder your nose. On the train, sit in a compartment already occupied by one or two people who have so much luggage that they couldn't carry yours if they did steal it. Get a conversation going and each can be the watchdog while others go to the toilet or dining car. But again, do not leave any valuables in your bag. I normally loop my luggage shoulder strap through one of the iron bars on the luggage rack. That would at least slow down anyone trying to steal it. Use a cable tie to seal your bag whenever it is out of your sight. I think this saved me on a flight from Los Angeles to Geneva, connecting through New York and Barcelona.
Secure Parking
Always park your rental car on a busy, well-lighted street. Never leave anything visible in the car, and never leave anything in the trunk overnight. Lock your car if it will be unattended for more than ten seconds. I have seen camper vans parked in the big cities with long chains around the girth to prevent anyone from opening the doors.
Street Wise
On the street, hang onto your stuff. In Dublin, a new-found traveling friend and I were saying good-byes and exchanging addresses at an intersection. Though we had put our bags down for just a moment, a policeman came over to warn us to hang onto them or they would be stolen. In both Barcelona and Naples, hotel clerks warned me that thieves would pull my camera off the neck strap. Nobody did because I always have one hand on my camera when I'm out around town.
Team Sport
Pickpockets and baggage thieves often work in small groups. One or two are there to distract you in some way, another one makes the grab, (s)he quickly passes your goods off to another, and the runner makes his getaway in the confusion. You don't know what to do. There is not a heck of a lot that you can do, during or after the fact.
One stunt commonly reported from Barcelona is the metro doorway block. During the mad rush to board the often over crowded metro cars a gang will push you from behind. They have your wallet in a split second but do not get on the car. As the train pulls out of the station you feel for your wallet. Gone!
Another stunt reported from Amsterdam involves the train from Schiphol Airport to Amsterdam's Centraal Station. The gang targets business people carrying a laptop computer case. One or more board the train behind the mark and others stage a ruse on the platform as a distraction. The computer is gone and out the door just before the train departs. For partial defense aganst computer theft I separate my files from my computer. I carry a small netbook when I travel but it has none of my personal files on it. These are on a flash drive in my pocket. The computer only has the operating programs. Emails are kept at my email host behind a strong password.
When traveling never keep sensitive information on your hard drive. I am constantly reading news reports of some corporate chump who had a laptop stolen with thousands of private data records on the hard drive. If you are in the habit of leaving your laptop running while you use the restroom in a coffee shop or the library break the habit before getting on the plane. If you do this in Europe you will have no computer to come back to after you flush the toilet.
Prevention works best. Try to not look like a tourist, especially not like a wealthy American tourist. If you want to keep your nice jewelry and fancy purse, leave them home in your dresser. Only bring valuables that you don't mind having stolen. With the costume that I wear (see chapter 5, What to Wear in Europe: Your Best Travel Clothes for all Occasions) many people mistake me for a European over there, at least until I pull out my city map and camera.
Also, never give money to a beggar, no matter how destitute they appear. That is part of their professional ruse. And make no mistake about it, they are multi-talented professionals — actors, make-up artists, hustlers, getaway demons. One time at the San Sebastian, Spain train station a young woman approached me with her hand out, and with a baby slung over the other arm as if it was an old coat. I brushed her off, but I had to do it several times. Later as I sat on the train I looked out on the platform. There she was with the baby in a new stroller cheerily waving good-bye to some friends on the train.
If you donate they determine where you keep your cash. They'll be back to help themselves when you least expect it. They even follow you into stores and restaurants to make the snatch. When you finish your seafood florentine and crisp chianti you'll reach for your purse to pay. But you won't have a purse any more.
MORE ON MONEY
As noted above, this Internet edition of chapter 18 is divided into four parts because it is so big. The four parts are:
- Pickpockets: They're everywhere.
- ATMs in Europe: Travel Cash.
- Cash and Credit: Paying Your Way in Europe.
- Potpourri: Barter if you're broke.
Have a good trip!
NOTE TO READERS
I welcome questions, comments, complaints, and compliments. If you have any concerns about your trip to Europe that have not been covered well enough on my web site please do not hesitate to write. Ask, cuss, discuss, or whatever. I read every email and update my pages when I see a question repeating, Then I will not get that question again, hopefully. In some cases readers have been so generous with their time and talent that I have included their emails verbatim, e.g. chapters 22 and 25.
I do not open attachments. I do not click links to web pages of any kind. I will reply in a day or two, usually.
My email address is [email protected].
Do not forget to smell the hyacinths. At your liesure scroll through the Table of Contents of How To Europe: The Complete Travelers Handbook and read all 30 chapters, FREE on line. Good deal! You'll probably find the answers you seek, and some you didn't know you needed.
FREE
This web site is totally free for everyone, and a labor of love for me. To keep it afloat I receive a commission from Amazon.com for all goods purchased through the adverts I have selected, and any other products you might buy when you are on the Amazon site. Amazon has almost everything for sale, except the Brooklyn Bridge and Mount Rushmore.
Please visit my on-line store at
.
Your support is most gratefuly appreciated. TIA.
To like and like not:
Adverts
To support this site:
Please buy your goods at:Amazon.com
Shop in your shorts!
Please clean out your cookie jar before clicking.
Wear a money belt under your shirt to protect your passport and valuables, especially if you are staying in hostels or dorms.
Lewis N. Clark RFID Blocking Waist Stash
An RFID blocking wallet protects your passport and credit cards from identity theft in public places.
Travelon RFID Blocking Passport Case
The links in this pink field take you directly to a page at Amazon.com. The Amazon page details the item, and in most cases includes candid and critical comments from others who have bought the item.
Amazon pays my site a small commission when you click and order an item, if you put it in your shopping cart within 24 hours based on the cookie they set on your computer. If you don't want to make a quick decision just put it in your shopping cart, think it over, and come back later. The revenue covers the cost of maintaing this web site and keeps it free to users.
You benefit when buying here because Amazon has:
- 20% - 30% discount on many items,
- free shipping deals, direct to your door,
- no sales tax on internet purchases in most states,
- zillions of products, well almost,
- fast delivery even when it is free,
- shipment tracking in UPS, USPS, FedEx,
- easy returns if you are not happy with the product.
You win we win. Thanks for your support!!
Have a good trip in life,
John Bermont
Note: Italicized notations by the author.
Rolling luggage sure beats lugging a pack on your back.
Travelpro Luggage Maxlite 2 20" Expandable Spinner
A shoulder bag for your daily walk-about.
Travelpro Luggage Maxlite3 Soft Tote
Keep your stuff organized. There are more than a dozen colors and patterns to choose from.
Luggage Packing Cubes
eBags 3pc Set
The two gallon size is excellent for packing your clothes, but it is hard to find in Europe.
Two gallon plastic bagsZipLoc by SC Johnson
Inconspicuously lock your zippered luggage with a black wire tie.
Cables to Go 43036 Cable Ties - 100 Pack (Black)
Note: The highlighted #E number is purely arbitrary. It is meant to help quickly identify products in this advert column when you write in for electrical advice.
See NOTE TO READERS.
Plug adapters are needed throughout Europe. There are at least five models used in different countries.
This adapter is for the standard grounded plug in France, Germany, and northern Europe. It does not fit in outlets of Italy, Switzerland, Ireland, and Britain.
#E-010
Adapter with two plug-in ports and surge protection.
European Schuko plug.
4.8 mm prongs.
Equivalent to type E and F.
You can use this ungrounded Euro plug in some European countries. See additional views in the text column on the left.
#E-020
Adapter plug with two plug-in ports and surge protection.
Euro Plug
4.0 mm prongs.
Equivalent to type C.
This is a universal plug adapter for the UK and Ireland.
#E-030
AC Adapter Plug for use in England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland
Equivalent to type G.
Here is the Swiss version.
#E-040
LiteFuze Wonpro Grounded Universal 2 in 1 Plug Adapter Type J for Switzerland3000 Watt
(max 250 Volt, 13 Amp)
Here is the grounded Italian model.
#E-050
CVID BA-12 Grounded Universal 110-240 Volts Italian Travel Plug Adapter (Type L) Italy
If your gizmos charge through a USB port this can keep you going. European cars have the same 12 volt system as American cars.
#E-200
Scosche Dual USBCar Charger
This 50 watt 220/110 volt step down transformer is good for very small 110 volt appliances and light duty chargers.
#E-070
Travel Smart by Conair 50-Watt International Transformer
A Swiss Army Knife is unquestionably the handiest item a traveler can carry, except not on a plane.
Victorinox Swiss Army Huntsman II Knife
To help find your way on the winding and poorly posted roads of Europe. It works for civilian travelers also.
Lensatic Military Marching Compass
Before you go to France watch this movie. It's an amusing romantic tale with spot-on scenarios and beautiful background. Really great acting all around by Kevin Kline, Meg Ryan, Jean Reno, Timothy Hutton. Kevin Kline sings 'La Mer' like the pro that he is.
French Kiss, DVD