Felicity Long
Pick-pockets are not a new phenomenon in Europe, but anecdotal evidence suggests that the problem may be exploding out of control.
During a trip to Paris several weeks ago, my family and I were traveling on the Metro when the conductor twice made an announcement that there were pick-pockets on the last car of the train and to be careful.
Everyone laughed nervously -- by the way, the word for "pick-pocket" in French is the same as in English -- but I remember thinking that if they knew which car they were on, why not stop the train and have a police presence waiting for them? This didn't happen.
Later, while standing in line at Gare du Nord for my Eurostar ticket, I struck up a conversation with the other travelers in line and found that of the five of us, four had been recent targets.
One man had his bag containing his passport stolen at that very station while buying chocolates a few days earlier; a woman had had her suitcase stolen at another Paris train station containing her laptop and camera; and my brother-in-law had stopped a young woman from trying to pick his pocket on the Metro platform earlier that day.
As for my husband, he has been the target of numerous pick-pocketing attempts in the last few years. He's not loud or showy, but he does dress like an American (athletic shoes and khakis) and looks like an easy mark.
One notable attempt occurred a few years ago when our entire family, wheelie suitcases in tow, was exiting a Metro station on a narrow escalator, my husband leading the pack.
As we ascended the escalator, a man inserted himself ahead of me and behind my husband. At the top of the escalator, another man pretended to drop something and bent to retrieve it, forcing my husband to nearly fall forward over him, while the man in front of me attempted to extract his wallet from behind.
A savvy traveler, my husband simply wheeled around and boomed a loud "No," at which point both men bolted down the up escalator in their haste to get away from him.
In fact, despite the numerous attempts, no one has ever succeeded in stealing anything from him, and at no time did we feel in any physical danger, as pick-pockets in Europe are not typically violent.
While I am using Paris as an example, similar anecdotes abound all over Europe. A friend in my book group had her wallet stolen from a backpack in Madrid; a fellow passenger on a cruise had his entire tote bag, containing passports and cash, swiped while checking into a hotel in Barcelona; and a journalist had a small passport and money pouch yanked from her neck as she strolled through the Rome airport.
So what should travel agents tell their clients? Certainly, there is no need to avoid the Paris Metros (they are wonderful, and we take them all the time) or crowded tourist sites.
The key is to simply be aware of your surroundings, think twice about keeping your wallet in your back pocket unless it buttons and avoid wearing a backpack in crowds unless you turn it around so it faces you.
It is also a good idea to refrain from hanging your purse or camera case on the back of your chair while dining and don't leave suitcases at your feet beside or behind you while you are making purchases.
At the risk of alerting the gods of chance, I should point out that I have never been pick-pocketed, because I dress like a local, keep my wits about me and wear a cross-shoulder purse that contains just enough walking-around money to get me through the day. Pick-pockets are not generally interested enough in my bag to take my arm off with it, and even if they did, all the real goodies are in the hotel safe.