Annie's Simple Life page....Pickpockets and Scams

[Deleted member 43780]

Lots has been mentioned on here about petty crime in Europe. Mostly pickpockets.

For the most part we (walkers) only have to be concerned in the larger cites...on buses, metro, etc. Does happen to us at times. Be on guard. But enjoy your camino.

Dont be scared. Just be informed and stay alert.

So far only time "they" have gotten me was train station in Madrid. Woman somehow got my small tooth brush/paste baggie out of my pack. Wow. I gave her heck in Spanish..told her I was getting the police....she was surprised and told me she found it on the floor. I walked away.

Anyway, here is some of the stories on Annie's page (scroll down to read the "good" ones):

http://caminosantiago2.blogspot.com/2012/03/pickpockets-and-other-tourist-scams.html

Anyone been victim of petty crime on their Camino??

 

[RJM]

Not me, but several fellow pilgrims in an albergue I stayed in had money stolen from inside their backpacks while they were out and about in the late afternoon and the albergue sleeping quarters were empty.
That's why it is stressed on here in several threads to never leave valuables and passports unattended while walking the Camino. There are many who see pilgrims as low hanging and ripe fruit from which to steal from. That goes back centuries.

 

[Deleted member 67185]

Not me, but several fellow pilgrims in an albergue I stayed in had money stolen from inside their backpacks while they were out and about in the late afternoon and the albergue sleeping quarters were empty.
That's why it is stressed on here in several threads to never leave valuables and passports unattended while walking the Camino. There are many who see pilgrims as low hanging and ripe fruit from which to steal from. That goes back centuries.

A strong +1.

 

[Peter Fransiscus]

That's why it is stressed on here in several threads to never leave valuables and passports unattended while walking the Camino

You don't leave valuables unattended ever .
What is the big difference between your home town and walking some where else .??

 

[Stroller]

No but got approached using the petition scam in Galicia. Quite common I understand.

 

[Dorpie]

Maybe doesn't strictly apply as a "camino" scam but I know lots of people catch the train down to SJPdP from Paris, so here goes. When arriving at Gare Du Nord and needing to transfer to Montparnasse on a fairly tight schedule I was approached en route to the official taxi rank by a motorbike taxi driver, this seemed ideal as I only had about an hour to make my connection. Was only as I was about to put the helmet on that I thought to ask how much this 5km journey would cost? The answer- €70, a lucky escape.

 

[andywild]

The main scams I saw when I lived in Barcelona were
When you pay a taxi driver with a large denomination note they swap note for a fake one and then show you that the note you have just handed them is fake, keeping your real one and then making you pay with another.
Someone would run up to you saying they were sat near you in the last bar/cafe you were just in and their wallet has just been stolen. At this point you will probably do one of two things, either get your wallet out and say "this is the only one I've got and it's definitely mine" or you will unconsciously pat the pocket where your wallet is to check yours is safe. Either way you have just shown anyone watching where you have your wallet.
I usually combat pick pockets by filling my pockets with either custard or wasps.. they are both effective in putting off would-be thieves.

 

[VNwalking]

I usually combat pick pockets by filling my pockets with either custard or wasps.. they are both effective in putting off would-be thieves.

So how do you keep from getting stung in...um...inconvenient places?

 

[andywild]

So how do you keep from getting stung in...um...inconvenient places?

I must admit the custard approach is much less painful...

 

[VNwalking]

I must admit the custard approach is much less painful...

Sour gummy worms. Convenient to snack on while they protect your pockets.

 

[andywild]

Sour gummy worms. Convenient to snack on while they protect your pockets.

I was going to question the effectiveness of gummy worms as a deterrent but I fear we may be taking over a serious thread with our insane ramblings... The last thing I need is Ivar getting annoyed and possibly sending "da Boyz" round..

 

[VNwalking]

IME humor rarely makes the mods' fingers itch.
Being mean and getting all serious and combative, on the other hand.....
Edit - discussion about poles, dogs, religion, or politics are guaranteed to make the mods' antennae twitch...
(I'm glad you're here making us grin, Andy. It make the forum an even happier place.)

 

[andywild]

IME humor rarely makes the mods' fingers itch.
Being mean and getting all serious and combative, on the other hand.....
Edit - discussion about poles, dogs, religion, or politics are guaranteed to make the mods' antennae twitch...
(I'm glad you're here making us grin, Andy. It make the forum an even happier place.)

I'm glad I caught your edit before I posted my question about my Catholic, conservative, pole carrying Labrador that I'm considering taking with me... I think I'll just leave him at home.

 

[WalkingJane]

Lots has been mentioned on here about petty crime in Europe. Mostly pickpockets.

For the most part we (walkers) only have to be concerned in the larger cites...on buses, metro, etc. Does happen to us at times. Be on guard. But enjoy your camino.

Dont be scared. Just be informed and stay alert.

So far only time "they" have gotten me was train station in Madrid. Woman somehow got my small tooth brush/paste baggie out of my pack. Wow. I gave her heck in Spanish..told her I was getting the police....she was surprised and told me she found it on the floor. I walked away.

Anyway, here is some of the stories on Annie's page (scroll down to read the "good" ones):

http://caminosantiago2.blogspot.com/2012/03/pickpockets-and-other-tourist-scams.html

Anyone been victim of petty crime on their Camino??

One thing I learned while in Brazil. Using a daypack - it becomes a front-pack rather than a backpack. Wouldn't work with my REI Camino backpack of course. On the Camino I sent my backpack by bag transport and carried that daypack for water, snack bars, etc.

 

[Purky]

Me and Mrs. Purky had a nice one in Barcelona a number of years back. We were approached by two young ladies, one with a piece of cardboard. She used that as a tray to put between herself and me, thereby elegantly obscuring my view of my bumbag and her right hand. She started to tell a tale of woe and misfortune and wanted me to put some money on her tray.
Good thing I wasn't born yesterday, so my right hand was firmly on my bumbag just after she placed the piece of cardboard between us. And when I felt her hand trying to gain access, I took it and shook it in a very friendly manner. I even smiled broadly (and a bit knowingly) at her and started to explain that I was a bit short on cash at the moment. She tore herself loose and disappeared in seconds with her friend.
Mrs. Purky was slightly surprised at the speed with which they left, until I explained what had happened. But the both of us weren't really surprised when we saw our two young friends being hauled off in a police van just fifteen minutes later. They weren't real pros yet. I did get rid of the bumbag though, too much of a 'the loot is here!' statement.

 

[Deleted member 43780]

I'm glad I caught your edit before I posted my question about my Catholic, conservative, pole carrying Labrador that I'm considering taking with me... I think I'll just leave him at home.

Andywild, I like your idea of wasps in the pocket.

I may fill my pockets full of super glue. That way when they get their naughty dirty hands in my pocket they are stuck there.

Another great idea I have is to fill my pockets full of red paint. That way I only have to search the streets for the person with red hands. He did it!

I am gonna try the wasps idea. So glad you told us about that one.

That will really fix em.

 

[Walton]

We had a pair of hiking socks, deodorant stick and a pair of men's undies stolen from an alburgue in Zuberi in 2016 while almost everyone, except for two females, who left very hurriedly when they were sprung behaving suspiciously while we were at breakfast.
Caught up with them later - they couldn't get out of the cafe fast enough when we entered. Kama! They knew that we knew, so the worry on their mind must have caused discomfort and much looking over their shoulders on the way.
It ruined our trust in fellow pilgrims though.
We have see wallets, phones, tablets ect on beds or chairs while the owners were elsewhere.
Please look out for yourself and others.

 

[Deleted member 43780]

Few years ago at the Los Arcos A'burg someone stole all the clothing off the line and the food in the refrigerator.

Many were upset. Seems the group of Koreans left their clothes on the line over night and had their food in the refrigerator.

All gone in the morning.

 

[VNwalking]

I just stumbled upon this, while doing some reading about focused attention:
https://www.ted.com/talks/apollo_robbins_the_art_of_misdirection/discussion?utm_medi
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/01/07/a-pickpockets-tale

This guy is astonishing - he's not a criminal but a sleight-of-hand showman, whose interest is to entertain and educate. I have to admit feeling a bit spooked (or sobered?) by what someone who's skilled at that can do without people knowing. You can't assume you'll be aware of anything: It all depends where your attention is being directed.

From the New Yorker article:
"He is probably best known for an encounter with Jimmy Carter’s Secret Service detail in 2001. While Carter was at dinner, Robbins struck up a conversation with several of his Secret Service men. Within a few minutes, he had emptied the agents’ pockets of pretty much everything but their guns. Robbins brandished a copy of Carter’s itinerary, and when an agent snatched it back he said, “You don’t have the authorization to see that!” When the agent felt for his badge, Robbins produced it and handed it back. Then he turned to the head of the detail and handed him his watch, his badge, and the keys to the Carter motorcade."

If the secret service guys are fooled, we don't have a chance.
Buen camino...and be careful out there, everyone!

 

[Jnlee99]

Just have to be careful everywhere. I had an iPhone ripped out of my hand while I was using it in Oxford-street, London. Also, in a Camino Albergue, a bunch of us lost our phones when they were left plugged into the outlet overnight.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I even smiled broadly (and a bit knowingly) at her and started to explain that I was a bit short on cash at the moment. She tore herself loose and disappeared in seconds with her friend.

Caught up with them later - they couldn't get out of the cafe fast enough when we entered.

Decades ago Peg and I were crossing a park in Seville and we were approached by a shoe shine scam artist and addressed in English. When it didn't go well for him he threatened us by saying he was going to the police. I turned and started walking to the corner saying, in Spanish, "Come with me. I see a policeman over there." I then turned around and he had completely vanished. He must have been beamed up to a spacecraft as there was no way he had time to have even gotten close to the nearest hiding place.

 

[Purky]

He must have been beamed up to a spacecraft as there was no way he had time to have even gotten close to the nearest hiding place.

A guilty conscience can make you turn invisible at will. Famous Jedi mind trick.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

A guilty conscience can make you turn invisible at will. Famous Jedi mind trick.

That must be it because Peg had no idea of where he went either.

 

[Susan M Fron]

I plan to wear two body wallets, one around neck, one around waist under clothes.

 

[Deleted member 73892]

The most horrible thing that happened to me was being accused of stealing a smart phone: the husband of the women who slept in the bunk above me left his phone charging next to my bunk, between me and my neighbour. I'm an early riser, even at home, and left before sunrise not knowing anything about the theft until I reached Logrono where she found me in an alberque and accused me of stealing her husband's phone - simply because I was up and away early and then they found the phone missing. I felt sorry for them - photos, messages etc all lost to them. I pleaded my innocence but it's left a bad bad feeling that still irks. Ironically, that day, I had my 1 litre alu. water bottle stolen at that alberque in Logrono - I thought I saw someone with it (it has a particular dent in it that I recognised), but I remembered what a terrible feeling it is to be accused of something you didn't do. Don't point fingers unless you know for sure, there are lessons to be learned for us all, even the real theives. I gained more from my Caminos than the value of a smartphone or alu water bottle.
LLN Keith

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Andywild, I like your idea of wasps in the pocket.

I may fill my pockets full of super glue. That way when they get their naughty dirty hands in my pocket they are stuck there.

Another great idea I have is to fill my pockets full of red paint. That way I only have to search the streets for the person with red hands. He did it!

I am gonna try the wasps idea. So glad you told us about that one.

That will really fix em.

Ah, yes....RED.

 

[Anniesantiago]

Hahah! That's my blog and I've nearly fallen victim more than once.
The latest one on the Camino is the group of "deaf-mute" girls who often hang out before Palas de Rei with clipboards. I hollared at one to get away from me once, and that mute girl let go with a string of expletives that would make my grandma blush! lol!

 

[Richmond Gardner]

No but got approached using the petition scam in Galicia. Quite common I understand.

School for the Deaf scam!

 

[Richard Smith]

One thing I learned while in Brazil. Using a daypack - it becomes a front-pack rather than a backpack. Wouldn't work with my REI Camino backpack of course. On the Camino I sent my backpack by bag transport and carried that daypack for water, snack bars, etc.

Putting the daypack on at the front is sometimes a bit obvious, I find slinging over one shoulder and casually holding that arm around it, to bring it a bit forward on the side, works well.

 

[Owen Duguay]

In 2016 I walked Le Puy to Santiago for the first time. I was afraid of losing my hiking boots so I usually took them and put them under my bed. One morning I heard a commotion downstairs. Eventually the pilgrims downstairs came upstairs and asked everyone if they mistakenely taken a pair of boots that belonged to someone else. I picked up the boots underneath my bed and darn they wearn't mine. I must have made a mistake the night before when I took the wrong pair from where all the boots were stored. I was so embarassed . Mine were still downstairs with the other boots. Same color and same compagny Lowa.