David’s notes: This was originally posted in July 2007.
I always thought I was good at watching and protecting my stuff when traveling…but a few weeks ago I had a lot of stuff stolen from me.
It all started when I set my backpack on the front seat of my tour bus. That normally is not a problem, but this day it was the wrong thing to do. Soon I began helping people load their luggage and was busy with the hotel checkout for the group. At some point (which no one in the group of 35 people can determine) someone walked onto my tour bus and grabbed my bag off the front seat. I did not discover it was gone until we were ready to roll out of the parking lot. Then it hit me that I’d been had…ughhh. That was a terrible feeling and it took me over a week to get over it.
The only positive thing about this experience was that I was wearing my money belt (tucked safely under my pants) and all my cash, credit cards, and passport were still safe.
Theft is a real thing, keep a watchful-eye and don’t get to feeling so cocky and think it will never happen to you.
During the last six weeks there have been two other people who have lost money and credit cards due to theft. Both events were in Rome. The first happened to a lady who, on her last night in Rome, was riding a crowded bus. She had her billfold in her “fanny-pack” in front of her, supposedly safe and sound. When she arrived at the hotel her billfold was gone!
The other theft happened when a lady left her billfold, containing credit cards and cash, on a bed in a hotel room. When she returned it was all gone.
The moral here is don’t trust anyone. Guard your stuff all the time. By all means tuck your most essential valuables under your clothes in a moneybelt. But hey, don’t worry, I still think Europe and travel are great..however I’ll always be more on the lookout for those people everywhere that cannot be trusted.
Although I was only in Rome 30 minutes and lost my money and credit cards it is a city that will forever stay in my heart. There are so many historical and exciting places to visit and we visited so many.
Immediately after arriving we got on the subway and headed for the Coleseum. As I came up from the underground subway everyone was hurriedly rushing about. I looked up and stopped in my tracks. There in front of me was the magnificent Coleseum and Palentine Hill. I couldn’t move for a moment. Ever since seeing Gladiator I knew Rome was a city I wanted to see.
One of the real highlights, and there are so many, was a beautiful , clear evening under the stars, We sat at a restaurant with candles lit on the table, a glass of wine and not 200 feet from the Pantheon. It was an evening to remember. You could not have asked for a more picturesque evening.
At the end of dinner our young guide took us to a place she and her parents visited many years ago that sold the most delicious gelato I have ever had and I have eaten a LOT of gelato during my visits to Italy. I can understand how she was able to remember where it was.
You have got to see Rome!!!