We sat on the RER train from Charles de Gaulle airport giddy with excitement to be in Paris for Annamiek’s 22nd birthday. Metro maps out, we sat tracing the route to our hostel. The doors opened and a man moved towards the exit. Just as the last-call buzzer sounded, the man reached over Annamiek’s head, firmly gripped her bag, and yanked it upwards against her body. Luckily her grasp was stronger than his, and he hopped out just as the door was closing.
A bit shaken up, we readjusted our valuables and nervously counted the remaining stops until the safety of our hostel. As we rode out the rest of our train ride, I realized just how targetable we really were. Three young women on a train late at night with a large suitcase, talking excitedly in American and Australian accents — we could not have looked like an easier target.
It seems stories like these are a common occurrence among the international students at Manchester. Everyone seems to have some sort of travel woe, whether an attempted mugging, missing their train, not complying with the temperamental check-in procedures of Ryanair, forgetting their print-out boarding pass or having their wallets stolen (I myself am unfortunately guilty of this one). The stories are literally endless.
While we all can commiserate over our losses, studying abroad is truly about living and learning. You can read countless travel books about how to be a smart tourist, how to watch out for the scams, how to plan a flawless trip, but essentially nothing will ever go exactly as planned and accidents do happen. You can prepare to lessen the chances of incidents, but you ultimately have to roll with the punches and be as prepared as possible, and sometimes hearing from people actually having been through those experiences is the best preparation you can receive. So, although these may seem like common sense, I’d like to offer some tips I’ve learned from traveling in Europe:
1. Monitor your voice. Sometimes easier said than done. But it’s funny how true the “loud American” stereotype actually is, and it can make you such an easy target from the get-go.
2. Conceal your bag. If you have a small purse wear it underneath your jacket, not out in the open. We didn’t have any more problems in Paris when our purses were underneath our trench coats and out of sight.
3. Confirm all check-in procedures. Some travel services have catches with luggage weight and size limits, hidden luggage or administration costs, and strict check in procedures. Not complying with these procedures could cost you a hefty fine or possibly even to miss your non-refundable flight to Dublin.
4. Always ask if people can help you. When my wallet was stolen in London; we were literally sprinting from train to train to cab to coach in order not to miss our bus back to Manchester.
Ordinarily, the buses are very strict with leaving right on the dot. We got to the station 2 minutes after the bus was supposed to leave and begged for them to hold the bus so the rest of us (running with luggage) could make it on. Surprisingly, they held it for us. The same thing happened when we missed our bus from Liverpool due to a flight delay. People seemed willing to bend the rules if people just asked, and that saved us from spending 30 pounds on a replacement ticket!
I could probably drone on and on about all of the different travel hints I could give based on our travel mishapsin Europe, but I would have to say that those have been the most useful thus far.
As a general rule, being aware of your surroundings and the stipulations of your travel methods could save you from losing your wallet, paying hefty travel fees or missing your weekend in Venice. And who would want to miss out on a few nights in Italy!