Part One: Europe—Stay Alert! – Scam Edition
Part Two: Europe—Stay Alert! – Theft and Robbery Edition
Part Three: Europe—Stay Alert! – My Defensive Tactics
* I put this together to remind everyone that even when travelling in Europe, you still need to pay attention to basic safety details. But please don’t let that put you off going. Once you’re there, enjoy the scenery to the fullest and interact with the locals. Many of the situations below are things adults have drilled into us since childhood, but growing up accustomed to Taiwan’s safety makes them easy to forget overseas. Pay a little more attention to your surroundings and the small details, keep these basic precautions and responses in mind, and you’ll be better able to tell good from bad and enjoy a trip that is both fun and safe!
Europe—Stay Alert! Five! Street Magic: Misdirect, Then Steal – Theft and Robbery Edition
Psychological battles mainly test your wits, and with preparation you can usually leave the table safely. But actively aggressive theft and robbery require endless caution, plus a little luck and prayer that you never encounter them. These stories inevitably leave you amazed at the thieves’ skill, speed, and ability to catch people completely off guard. Their techniques are practically street-magic performances. One common method is todistract you while secretly opening your bag or snatching valuables. They often work in groups and create situations that would not normally arouse suspicion.Reading other travellers’ accounts can at least help you take precautions in similar situations.
One commonly reported setup isasking for directions.When you think about it, this is rather illogical. We’re East Asian visitors in Europe, clearly looking like foreign tourists, so why would anyone ask us for directions? These street-magic theft rings send one or two people to ask the way, sometimes holding a large map in front of you. At normal reading distance, the map blocks your view from the chest down. While you’re distracted, accomplices rummage through your bag or pockets and take your valuables. Afterward, you may even walk away cheerfully, pleased to have helped another traveller, without realising your bag has been searched.
You should also be extremely wary when someone in loose clothing approaches. (They are reportedly often Roma women.)In crowded places, they use wide sleeves to hide your bag from view while a hand underneath removes your belongings.Similar techniques can accompany requests for directions, surveys, or anything else.Any tactic that draws your eyes away may be a setup for theft.To avoid this,use a crossbody bag whenever possible and guard it constantly. When someone approaches, make a habit of placing your hand over your bag and all valuables. Don’t routinely keep valuables in your pockets.For more detailed prevention advice, see Part Three:Europe—Stay Alert! – My Defensive Tactics。
[ No escaping it—face the truth! ](Image sourced online)
Something similar happened to a Taiwanese woman I met in Spain. She and several friends were resting at round tables outside a café in Paris. Tired from walking, they placed all their belongings on the table, including their bags and an expensive Canon 5D camera. A man who looked like a local approached and said, “I accidentally dropped some money under your table. Could you help me look for it?” The kind-hearted women all bent down to search. They couldn’t find anything, while the man kept directing them to check different spots. During that heads-down moment, the 5D vanished into thin air. The “Frenchman” soon gave up on the pretext and quickly left. Like a girlfriend who’s fallen out of love, it was ne～ver～coming～back. Sonever let valuables leave your person. Keep them within touching distance at all times and care for them tenderly!
They may alsograb something less important first,such as a shopping bag, then steal a more valuable wallet or phone amid the confusion. Another chaos-making trick is for members of the same street-magic theft ring to pass the loot from person to person immediately after taking it. You lose track of where it went, and amid the confusion they sprint off like 100-metre runners. (Why not enter the Olympics and challenge Mo Farah?) Even if one thief is caught, the property has usually already passed to someone else and cannot be recovered. Your only real option is to keep that first line of defence from being breached.
There have also been cases where a failed street-magic theft turned into an angry, outright robbery.This happened to my former working-holiday colleague Chin-hua, coincidentally while she was travelling in Paris. (Seriously, Paris, how wicked can you be?) While walking near the busy Opéra, she encountered one of the notorious survey-pushing street-magic gangs. Being sharp and already aware of this distraction-and-theft tactic, she refused the survey and kept walking. The “magicians” immediately transformed into assailants, grabbing at her and rummaging directly through her crossbody bag in an attempt to steal her wallet. Chin-hua shouted, drawing help from passers-by, yet the gang brazenly continued searching. Her wallet survived only because her bag was crammed with belongings and it was buried at the very bottom. Therefore,keeping valuables at the bottom of your bag is important. To protect yourself if you ever face such aggression, consider carrying pepper spray or a whistle as a first line of defence to attract more help. Beyond that, all you can do is pray at the temple and hope good luck keeps you from ever encountering it.
[ Three survey-pushing street magicians searching for their next target ]
Europe—Stay Alert! Six! Street Magic: Vanishing into Thin Air – Theft and Robbery Edition
Later, a German friend told me that while riding a bus in Paris, this fully grown man stood up and instantly discovered that the wallet in his trouser pocket had vanished. He noticed only when he reached the bus door to get off. It wasn’t near his seat, and the most suspicious person was the sole Roma girl sitting behind him. She acted as though nothing had happened and refused to admit anything, so the German guy had no choice but to accept the loss. Don’t forget:things in pockets are easy to steal. Men who habitually keep phones and wallets in their pockets should avoid doing so!
Wallets, phones, and cameras casually left on tables can also vanish after a crowd of people passes by.In the confusion, you’ll never know who took them. So once again: put your valuables away properly.
Europe—Stay Alert! Seven! The Elegant Metro-Door Getaway – Theft and Robbery Edition
Another place wheretheft and robbery are especially common is the metro.Its constant movement and heavy passenger traffic mean you must become extra alert when it is crowded. One common scenario, as described in Point Five, issomeone using loose clothing to block your view while stealing your wallet on a packed train.A classmate encountered this in Paris. Fortunately, she noticed immediately and shouted that her wallet had been stolen. The female thief in loose Roma-style clothing guiltily dropped the wallet on the floor. Nothing was ultimately lost, but the incident ruined my classmate’s mood for the entire day.
[ Inside the Paris Métro. From how shaky this photo is, you can tell how terrified your girl was to take out her camera—quick and dirty ]
Anotherfrequently reported tactic is to snatch something just before the metro doors close, then make an elegant turn and dash off the train.The thief will pull hard, and there have been cases where victims fell and were seriously injured. To avoid this, Ialways stood as close to the centre of the carriage as possible and firmly refused to stand by the doors.Even when it was crowded, I squeezed towards the middle whenever possible. (Crowds are when you need to worry most.) Andnever keep your head down scrolling on your phone as you might in Taiwan. Put away all valuables, cover them securely with your hands, and constantly watch your surroundings.Besides, you’ve gone all the way overseas—don’t spend the whole trip staring at a tiny screen, right? Right?
[ Everyone who saw it was stunned! It was probably something like this ]
* Trains are generally safer than urban metro and tram systems. Train tickets cost more, and thieves would be carried far away and have to find their way back; fare evasion is also harder. Cheap city transport probably offers a higher return on investment, making it a danger zone. (Tempted yet?)
Europe—Stay Alert!Eight! Come Home After Dark – Theft and Robbery Edition
I’m not exactly young anymore either, and repeating advice from mothers and schoolteachers of old may sound terribly dated. But ignoring your elders really can cost you, and those old warnings are both correct and practical.
I’d heard that in Rome and other satellite towns in Italy,travellers had repeatedly been abducted from dark alleys or around street corners.So I was extremely nervous in Rome. I could use my defensive tactics against other forms of theft and robbery, but uprooting and carrying off a tiny 150 cm woman like me would be ridiculously easy. I walked very cautiously and kept asking my Couchsurfing host whether Rome was dangerous. I stayed tense, with pepper spray constantly in my hand. Fortunately, Rome’s streets actually felt quite safe; during the day they were mostly filled with tourists. But perhaps I stayed safe precisely because I avoided dark alleys and excluded towns rumoured to be dangerous from my itinerary.
As a general rule, I tried not to go out at night unless my Couchsurfing host or hostel roommates invited me to join them.In Lisbon, Portugal, my host and a group of her classmates once took me drinking in a famous nightlife district. We headed home around three or four in the morning, and many people nearby were visibly drunk. Even though we were walking in a large group, a man deliberately came very close and tried to talk to me. He kept talking even when I ignored him. Luckily, my quick-witted host stepped between us and sent him away.
[ Rome’s supposedly perilous streets at night were no longer frightening under my host’s leadership ]
One evening in Florence, Italy, I walked alone up a small hill to Piazzale Michelangelo to watch the sunset over the city. Well, of course it was dark after sunset. Florence had seemed like a fairly safe small city, but as I walked downhill and reached an intersection, I suddenly heard a man’s voice that sounded as though he was calling someone. I turned around and, um…a man was playing with his private parts.It was too dark to see whether he was handsome. (Again, not the point.) This can happen in Taiwan too; during university, I once encountered it near campus in broad daylight. I immediately turned away, pretended nothing had happened, and briskly continued downhill. I showed no panic, even though my heartbeat was loud enough for the roadside frogs to hear. Naturally, I pulled out my pepper spray and readied it again. I never looked back—except for repeatedly sneaking glances to make sure nobody was following. Fortunately, I reached my accommodation safely. Thank heaven for blessing me with good luck.
[ For this million-dollar view, I paid the price of being se—men—tally startled ]
Being outside after dark, in quiet lanes, or in dim places away from busy areas genuinely increases the chance of an incident. Sogo home after dark, or find a dependable companion. Dress simply and take fewer valuables out with you to shave at least a few percentage points off the risk.
After reading the theft and robbery section, you may be so shocked that you wonder whether to abandon Europe altogether. But Europe isn’t exceptionally dangerous. Rather,we grew up in Taiwan, a relatively safe country.Japan and Korea, which we love visiting, are also very safe, leaving us with relatively low risk awareness. That lack of vigilance makes it easy to overlook many important safety details. Solearn what situations you may encounter and remind yourself to stay alert. Know yourself and your opponent, and you’ll improve your odds in every battle!
Next, I’ll share the safety measures and defensive tactics I developed because I was terrified of losing everything or being uprooted and carried away.
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