Travel Safety

I touched on this subject in the last post I wrote (Embrace the Fear of Travel) where I discussed how you should never be paralyzed by fear, including those terrifying news reports from overseas. In this post, I really want to talk about how to travel safely. The world is filled with threat. The threat of rape, theft, violence, clumsiness (I've done more bodily harm by tripping over myself and running into walls/trees than any sort of attack), etc. While you cannot guard against the unknown/chance/being unlucky, there are a few precautions that everyone can take to minimize the chances of your travels turning into one of those horror stories that scare people into not traveling. This post will mostly be geared towards women, although there are a few tips that I think men can benefit from as well. 

I have been traveling since I was in the womb. My first plane flight was when I was 3 months old. The first time I traveled alone, I was fourteen years old and headed from Chennai to Manila. I have backpacked with a couple of friends in India. I bused alone up and down from Washington DC to New Jersey visiting friends when I was sixteen. When I was seventeen I backpacked across Europe with my boyfriend at the time. During my university years I visited friends in India, Malaysia, the west coast of the U.S., and Kingston, Canada. I studied abroad in Shanghai and backpacked with the Boy all around western China. I traveled alone to Greece and stayed in hostels in Athens and Santorini. I then met two friends in Barcelona and traveled to Madrid and Toledo. After college I have moved to Hong Kong, Lhasa, Dharamsala and now Alanya. And I haven't even begun to list the number of places I have gone to with my family. 

In all of my time around, I have only had one theft: a cell phone stolen from me in Manila. I would say that is a pretty good statistic in terms of me coming out on top. I have had one almost-molestation attempt in Chennai from an auto rickshaw driver (I was sixteen). I have been groped by an infamous old Indian gentleman who pulls a grab-and-run at the movie theatre in Chennai (I was fourteen). I can't even begin to count the sheer number of canceled/delayed buses/trains/planes. Suffice to say that I have an extensive amount of travel knowledge. 

Here are my tips for minimizing the chances of something bad going down. 

1. Conservative clothing

Before you head anywhere, definitely do your research on what type of clothing is worn by the majority of the population. If you are going to a nude beach resort in Ibiza, by all means wear the skimpiest thing you own. If you are headed to anywhere in India, loose clothing is the way to go. Clothing is one of the big determiners for whether or not you are targeted. For any place that you visit that you are unsure of, opt on the side of caution and don't wear anything that is tight, low-cut, shows too much leg, shows bra straps, and is see-through.

Not only will following this reduce the chances of your being harassed by local men assuming foreign girls are easy, but it is also respectful to the customs of the country that you are visiting. Plus, honestly, how well dressed do you really need to be when doing extensive traveling? 

This is how I dress when I travel. I doubt you could get any part of me under all those layers! ;)

2. Sling bag held in front of you 

Since I don't like shoulder bags anyway, this isn't a really big deal for me. I love bags that sling across my torso since I find them more comfortable. They also make it WAY more difficult for anyone to try to snatch it from you.  

The reason that I specify in front of you is that my mom actually had her bag slit on a tram in Hong Kong about a decade or more ago. I have never forgotten that (partly because she was holding some of my money, which I don't count as a theft against me, technically) because the thief was so skilled we never noticed a thing. 

Also, if you are riding in a vehicle that has open windows or sides like an auto or a jeepney, keep it away from the opening and safely on your lap because it will reduce the chances of a drive-by snatch.

Finally, if you are walking in a crowded area, keep one hand on the zipper of your purse. That is where I went wrong when my cell phone was stolen. If your hand is blocking your purse then no one can sneakily unzip it without your knowledge. 

3.  Door stop

I actually got this tip from another blogger who cautions people to always bring a basic doorstop with them. I think this is a great idea especially for private hostel rooms or anyplace that doesn't have a secure lock. You may be way too paranoid, but I would rather be safe than sorry. I very much doubt that anyone wants surprise nighttime visitors...

4. Spread the money

Never EVER keep all your money, credit cards, debit cards, travelers cheques all in one place. If something terrible does happen then you have just lost everything as opposed to just one type of monetary fund. I tend to put things in my backpack, on my person, in my purse, and even in my camera bag.

I don't travel with one of those inside money belt things because I personally find them awkward but if you like them, go for it. I still maintain that spreading the wealth is a good way to go. I actually learned this particular method from my dad.

Also don't open your wallet wide and show the world when you are paying someone. There is no need to advertise!

5. Cultivate a death look

For anyone who knows me, I am a pretty sunny person. Easy to laugh and smile and generally pretty easy to approach. However, this is not the case when I am walking by myself down a strange street in a strange city. Then I look like the meanest, most angry person alive. Just think about what you look like when you are fuming and try to incorporate that look whilst walking. I also will ignore any greeting that comes my way. Attribute this to a life time of dealing with "Hey maam!" "Here maam!" "Friend, come see what is in my shop!" I have no patience for shop dealers and even beggars. I am more than willing to donate funds to organizations and NGOs that will help educate, feed, and give jobs to this population but giving whatever is on me day in and day out is something I can't do. Call me callous but I grew up seeing children begging, men without limbs, woman who were pregnant or with an emaciated child in their arms. It is hard, it is painful, but if you let it in it will drag you down until you can't even bear to go out. 

Without any sort of acknowledgment/reaction, people give up pretty quickly and will mark you as someone who isn't an easy target. 

This is the OPPOSITE of how you want to look. Also notice that I am clutching my shoulder bag in wariness.

6. Be aware

 I know that this one seems the most basic but it is actually the hardest. It is a fine line between pretending to be unaware of all the catcalls that come your way but making sure you mark any sudden/aggressive movements that are coming towards you. It takes effort but the second you let your guard down, something will go missing. If you need to put something down, make sure that it is either tightly between your legs or between you and a friend or you and a counter.  If you decide to take a nap, make sure your valuable are wound tightly around your legs/arms/torso and that they are hidden by a jacket or something.

One of my favourite stories of this is actually from my mom and my dad. I forgot where they were, maybe somewhere in India in a train station. My mom got mobbed by a group of begging children and she, being the wonderful woman that she is, was very friendly and chatted and laughed with them. Immediately after the kids started dispersing, she realized her wallet was missing. My dad ended up rounding all the kids up and searching them until he got to a little girl standing on a newspaper. He lifted her and the newspaper up and there was the missing wallet.  

7. Cross your arms

This is for the women. When you are walking around in a city that you don't feel comfortable in, I would recommend that you cross your arms in front of your chest. This serves to make it harder for anyone to get inappropriate with you. It is also a piece of effective body language that discourages people from approaching you. 

Again, the goal is to make people wary of coming up to you because you don't seem like an easy target.

8. NEVER ride an auto rickshaw alone

This is a mistake I have made. Since I had been living in Chennai for three years prior to the scary incident, I got really comfortable riding autos. My friends and I rode them all them time. When we didn't have a driver (yes, we had drivers. We were privileged TCKs and the price of salary is very low in India), there was always a cheap auto. I was never worried because I knew the city and I was very confident in my being untouchable. I was on the way to meet some friends at the movie theatre. Everything was going well. The auto guy even started making polite conversation with me. It was only when he turned off the main road and into a seemingly abandoned residential neighborhood that I started realizing anything was amiss. He turned off his auto, turned in his seat, and started to tell me that I was gorgeous. He kept repeating that I was a gorgeous girl and even started to rub my leg. 

I did not want him to get violent so I pulled out my phone and kept repeating that my friends were waiting and that I was going to be late for the movie. I even started dialing and showing that I would be missed. I kept it very polite and he stopped and then took me to the theater. That is probably one of the most terrified I have ever been in my entire life.  

For all of those times that I never had a problem, the one time I did impressed upon me the danger of riding in autos alone. I repeat, if you are a girl, find someone to ride with you. If you insist on going in them alone, I would recommend having a cellphone and a convincing story for why it would not be okay to take advantage of you. 

I would also recommend that you be able to do some damage if things escalate.

9. Whistle

This too I got from another blogger but I thought it was a great recommendation. Bring along a whistle on your travels. You could use it to signal for help or, if you get lost, to alert search parties. They are small and easy to carry around and you have nothing to lose.

10. Don't party alone/party in your hostel  

If you are visiting a new city and want to hit the nightlife hard, don't go out alone. In Athens there was a bar conveniently located in the basement of my hostel. I spent all of my party nights there. It was a great place to make new friends out of the fellow travelers. They became a handy resource for exploring Athens since fellow solo travelers tend to bond together.

Always make friends with the bartender. It is their job to stay there all night, so they will always be helpful to know. Also, if you drink in a hostel, make friends with the staff. They will make sure you are safe.

11. Safe hostel/hotel

Before you book a hostel/hotel, make sure to review the security of the establishment. I always choose places with a security camera in the front as well as staff that will be manning the desk at all times. I also try to ensure that there be some sort of barrier to getting in such as an iron door. 

If you are given a personal locker, make sure the locks are secure. If not then buy a new lock and attach it.

12. Make copies

I really need to follow this one more. You should always make copies of your passport and the visa for whatever country you are in. If your passport is lost or stolen, it will be much easier to get a replacement.

Well, that's it for now! I hope that this will serve as a useful guide and that this will help someone.