Just back from the Italy Adventure

[SonnyEclipseFan]

We put together a highlight video of each day of our trip. If you have any questions, please free to ask.

 

[indoshakespeare]

Did you encounter any scammers at tourist sites?

 

[Figment_Fan]

Thank you for sharing. Alissa (sp?) was one of our guides in Barcelona in June of 2019. She is wonderful. I loved her enthusiasm. I'm hoping for this trip in two years with my wife.

 

[SonnyEclipseFan]

Thank you for sharing. Alissa (sp?) was one of our guides in Barcelona in June of 2019. She is wonderful. I loved her enthusiasm. I'm hoping for this trip in two years with my wife.

I think she was called in last minute to fill-in for Dusty who was called to Japan for some reason. She had a lot of enthusiasm, that's for sure. Mikki was the guide that was based in Roman and added the local touch to the trip. Thanks for watching the video.

 

[SonnyEclipseFan]

Did you encounter any scammers at tourist sites?

Not really. At the Coliseum (sp) they warned us of the beggars dressed in black, hunched over. Our guide Mikki said to look at their ankles and you can see that they really are not that old. The guides do a good job of keeping them away from us. It seemed like Florence was the place where you could be pickpocketed. I was constantly getting bumped and my backpack was being tugged on. We had bought a security backpack on Amazon.

 

[Donalyn]

Our local guide in Florence (Sam) would point people out, saying that guy is a pick pocket, or that one is. Some of them would talk back to him.

 

[SonnyEclipseFan]

Our local guide in Florence (Sam) would point people out, saying that guy is a pick pocket, or that one is. Some of them would talk back to him.

We also had Sam in Florence. That would have been fun to see the pickpocketers being called out. The best local guide was Marco in Venice. Hilarious. Best line of the day "Does anybody know why there are 22 lights in this hallway?" After pausing for an answer from the group, Marco says in a straight tone "Neither do I"

 

[Donalyn]

funny. We had a woman in Venice - her name escapes me right now.

It is a great trip, which explains why they have so many trips each year. We were on the June 11th trip.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

That would have been fun to see the pickpocketers being called out.

Okay this sounds funny. How would they call them out? Like "Hey yo pickpocket I see you!" or what?? I may have to try that

 

[SonnyEclipseFan]

Okay this sounds funny. How would they call them out? Like "Hey yo pickpocket I see you!" or what?? I may have to try that

After the ABD Italy trip we went to Disneyland Paris for 4 days. I see you are going in two weeks. If you have any questions, I might be able to help.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

After the ABD Italy trip we went to Disneyland Paris for 4 days. I see you are going in two weeks. If you have any questions, I might be able to help.

Awesome- thanks! I'll send you a DM so we don't bombard this thread with unrelated stuff

 

[sayhello]

Okay this sounds funny. How would they call them out? Like "Hey yo pickpocket I see you!" or what?? I may have to try that

That's actually the best thing you can do in the case of spotting a pickpocket. Draw attention to them, LOUDLY. Make sure everyone around you knows who you're addressing and what these people are doing. They depend on stealth and no-one noticing them to be able to perpetrate their crime. You'll be saving yourself and others around you a huge amount of hassle. Once you draw attention to them, they will most likely leave as quickly as they can.

Sayhello

 

[Donalyn]

He walked around and would just say to us, "that guy over there with the [insert clothing description], he is a known pickpocket", etc. Sometimes the guys heard us and tried to talk back/counter it (things like "it is all okay"), as everyone in earshot grabbed their purses and checked for their wallets.

We also did Disneyland Paris after our trip.

 

[SonnyEclipseFan]

He walked around and would just say to us, "that guy over there with the [insert clothing description], he is a known pickpocket", etc. Sometimes the guys heard us and tried to talk back/counter it (things like "it is all okay"), as everyone in earshot grabbed their purses and checked for their wallets.

We also did Disneyland Paris after our trip.

I guess the I don't understand why if Sam, the Florence Local Tour Guide can identify who these criminals are, why police can't catch them. You see the street vendors setting up their illegal merchandise on cardboard tables or blankets that can easily be move when the police come. It just seems like pick pocketers are not in fear of the police as much as the person selling you an illegal print of the Florence Skyline.

 

[Donalyn]

Harder to catch in the act, I guess.

 

[2-pointdoe]

We also had Sam in Florence. That would have been fun to see the pickpocketers being called out. The best local guide was Marco in Venice. Hilarious. Best line of the day "Does anybody know why there are 22 lights in this hallway?" After pausing for an answer from the group, Marco says in a straight tone "Neither do I"

We also had Marco and found him to be extremely funny too.