Osama, terrorist attacks and poss danger for aussies travelling to US - let's discuss

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

I have a friend who leaves for New York next weekend with her family and she is absolutely freaking out about this situation. I pointed out that if she googled the statistics, I'm sure she would still find she has more chance of being hit by a bus near her home than by being involved in a terrorist attack on her holiday but it does raise an interesting topic that I thought we could discuss.

I have a client who is in Defence and he has a friend who is quite high up and involved in "secret squirrell business" and he said if he had a child over there holidaying or studying he would be flying them straight home. And that he would not be using the underground in the UK either.

My friend has decided that she will give the subway a miss whilst in New York as well.

Hmmmm - I think she is definitely overreacting and I feel positive that once she arrives that she will forget all about her fears once she sees the Americans going about their daily business without fear.

It makes me sad for her and her family though because it has taken the shine off this long planned trip for them all. The kids are even a little nervous, which breaks my heart. I know once they leave NYC and hit WDW, they will get over it though. Mickey will put joy back into their hearts .

But is she right to be a little nervous? Is anyone else who is travelling there shortly feeling a little uneasy or is it a complete non event to you?

I think it wouldn't bother me, but then, I am not about to go there.

Would love to hear your thoughts.

 

[BecBennett]

I'm the same as you, I can't see it bothering me at all, it would be more likely to concern my family knowing that I was going over there, but hey I went over in the height of swine flu and had no problems and I'd do it again.

 

[HappyFingers]

i have faith

thats the most we can do

 

[battymum]

I have talked about this with my kids, although we are not going until September, we figure we are more likely to fall down the front stairs carrying our bags or have a car accident on the way to the airport.

We are going to New York City and plan to do all the iconic things, walk the Brooklyn Bridge, Climb to the crown of Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building and will pay our respects at the World Trade Centre site.

Sadly, every summer holidays families die, driving up the coast on the Pacific Highway, but we have no hesitation in doing that.

A bigger threat is for DH or I to have a heart attack after eating all the rich and plentiful food that we plan to,

Actually I really dont want to think about it too much, we are going anyway I have looked forward to it for too long! I would reconsider if an official travel warning was issued that would affect our travel insurance. I wouldnt want to get caught with a US medical bill.

You only regret the things you dont do!

BE ALERT, NOT ALARMED!

 

[jacs1234]

I'm going late November, it doesn't really bother me, though it has crossed my mind. If I was going alone without my kids I think it would worry me more.

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

I have talked about this with my kids, although we are not going until September, we figure we are more likely to fall down the front stairs carrying our bags or have a car accident on the way to the airport.

We are going to New York City and plan to do all the iconic things, walk the Brooklyn Bridge, Climb to the crown of Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building and will pay our respects at the World Trade Centre site.

Sadly, every summer holidays families die, driving up the coast on the Pacific Highway, but we have no hesitation in doing that.

A bigger threat is for DH or I to have a heart attack after eating all the rich and plentiful food that we plan to,

Actually I really dont want to think about it too much, we are going anyway I have looked forward to it for too long! I would reconsider if an official travel warning was issued that would affect our travel insurance. I wouldnt want to get caught with a US medical bill.

You only regret the things you dont do!

BE ALERT, NOT ALARMED!

I think you said it just perfectly!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[WAMUMOF4]

This is something we have been thinking about and in a way i agree with your friend at this stage we are still going to New York but if there was a higher alert or the Aus govt starts warning us not to travel to New York we will have to re access.

We purchased our crown tickets to climb up the statue of Liberty some time ago and although our 10 and 12 year old have said that they would rather not go to New York i think it is something they will regret later we have also talked to them about it and we have really come to the same conclusion that we have always had that when your time is up it's up and if we stay away aren't we letting the terrorists win?

Strangely enough terrorists were not something we were worried about last year but then we did not travel to New York!

I would be extremely disappointed if we had to cancel that part of our trip but for right now it's still on our itinerary. Call me sentimental but i can't wait to go up the Empire state building with DH and the kids

Thanks for bringing this up though because it is interesting to know how others are feeling about it.

 

[5ofus]

My folks flew out on Sunday, but they are doing Canada/Alaska rather than the East Coast and major US centres. They had no hesitation, although mum seems to attract these things! The last and only other time she was in the US was in Nov/Dec 2001!

I don't have a trip planned, but I would probably still go. I am a firm beliver that if your number's up, your number's up, whether it's crossing the street or something more news-making.

 

[kylieh]

If you cancel your plans due to the treat then the terrorists have won. If they was going to do more they would of done it by now. It's a bad time for them to do something though as everyone is expecting something. In the UK a threat is discovered and stopped at least weekly, whether they were big or small threats I don't know.

I more concerned ith avoiding Merrylands with the ibrihim family shot ups at the moment.

 

[queenie82]

While there was dancing on the lawn in front of the White House in DC....the emergency services were being sent into Mass Casualty Response Preparation.
They are ALL geared up for an attack. Across the country...across the world.
As I don't have a trip booked I don't know if I'd cancel...but I know I'm not rushing to NYC or ESPECIALLY DC right now.

It is very true there was a major attack planned on London around Christmas that was thwarted...so before the death of the Bin Liner 'situation'...so...it's just that it has come further forward in people's minds at the moment.

I'd probably sooner go to NYC than Merrylands though

 

[aussieangela]

I'm leaving on the 19th June for New York!! Im dont worried one bit!!
I had a bad start to morning with a Roo hitting my car. And that's not stopping me get to work. When you time is up its time to leave.
Im looking forward to my holiday and no terrorist is going to stop me going!

 

[Luisa]

I'm with everyone else, if we start overthinking the minuscule possibility of being in a terrorist attack then they've already won. The more you worry about it, the less you're going to get out and enjoy yourself and YOUR life.

I think they're expecting a massive crowd at the MCG next weekend, all you worry warts might want to avoid it as a potential target

 

[PrincessInOz]

Holy I.R.A!
Talk about Explosive titles, Shuttergirl!


Let's see....
1. Once, I was in central London for 3 weeks during the height of the IRA lovefest with the British. In that 3 week period, there was one bomb scare and a bomb that got detonated by the bomb squad in London.
2. Then I had the misfortune to wander into Bosnia during the full blown civil war that we didn't hear about because we were backpacking and hadn't seen an English newspaper or a television in weeks....did I mention guns and bombs?
3. There was the time I was in a plane and it got struck by lightning...does that also count?
4. Then we were in a plane that got diverted over Siberia and Russia because we were not allowed to fly over Iraq...that must have been the first invasion; not the second.
5. We were in a Moslim country for the second invasion and DH got stopped by a couple of locals asking for his views on President Bush....but let's not count this one...it was, afterall, only DH in the line of fire here; not me.
6. I'm pretty sure that I've been in San Francisco at the time of a pretty minor earthquake. It only measured a paltry 7.1 on the Richter Scale. Barely made the news!
7. Do we want to count the time we were stopped by armed guards in the Yucatan Peninsula because we were driving a car and they thought we were smuggling drugs?
8. And let's not forget that we were on a direct flight from LA to Miami and we flew into Miami Airport in a category 3 storm (downgraded from a full cyclone) and it only took us 10 hours to land.

On reflection, I'm just going to sit at home now and never venture outside; much less get in a vehicle!
Maybe, a spider will come and sit down beside me....is it going to be a redback?
Or perhaps I'll be the chicken that runs across the street and gets mowed over by the zebra crossing!




ps. Anyone who would like to come on holiday with me, send me a PM! We can plan a trip to Tunisia, Egypt and Japan.

pps. I definitely am not counting the time I was in a lift at an office building in Melbourne and the lift did a free fall for about 5 floors before the emergency brakes kicked in. You'll never catch me on ToT!

 

[kylieh]

ps. Anyone who would like to come on holiday with me, send me a PM! We can plan a trip to Tunisia, Egypt and Japan.

I don't think I'll be sending you that PM!!!!

 

[queenie82]

ps. Anyone who would like to come on holiday with me, send me a PM! We can plan a trip to Tunisia, Egypt and Japan.

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

OMGoodness Princess, you cannot be serious? Has all of that actually happened to you ?

You are one crazy lady and I think we need to kick you off our imaginery holiday now .

Hmmm, you are one very lucky lady

 

[PrincessInOz]

OMGoodness Princess, you cannot be serious? Has all of that actually happened to you ?

You are one crazy lady and I think we need to kick you off our imaginery holiday now .

Hmmm, you are one very lucky lady

We got close to the Bosnian border and never made it in.....but the rest.....

By itself, each incident was fairly innocuous...especially when you consider they occurred over a period of 20 years....but put together in a list like that...

Should I stop travelling as a consequence? Absolutely not. Especially when you consider that the closest I came to thinking "this is it" was in the free-falling lift...and that was when I was at work; in Melbourne!

 

[WAMUMOF4]

ps. Anyone who would like to come on holiday with me, send me a PM! We can plan a trip to Tunisia, Egypt and Japan.

Just wondering Princess if you would mind letting us all know the next time your planning on visiting New York just so i can make sure we stay away
Seriously though your experience just go's to show that when your times up it's up and clearly yours wasn't on any of those occasions

 

[BecBennett]

7. Do we want to count the time we were stopped by armed guards in the Yucatan Peninsula because we were driving a car and they thought we were smuggling drugs?

You know I'm always fascinated by this. Did you have to bribe anyone to be let go? DH and I were told by absolutely everyone 2 things about Mexico before we went. 1. Don't drive a car while you're over there, the police like to hit up tourists for bribes, or book you. 2. Don't drink the water.

We were lucky enough to be staying in an all inclusive resort that purified it's tap water, so we didn't have to deal with either problems

ps. Anyone who would like to come on holiday with me, send me a PM! We can plan a trip to Tunisia, Egypt and Japan.

You know, I'd take you up on that offer, they're all places that I'd love to go to. DH and I were planning to make Japan our next holiday destination until the earthquake struck. Now we've put it on the back burner for a little bit...

 

[PrincessInOz]

You know I'm always fascinated by this. Did you have to bribe anyone to be let go? DH and I were told by absolutely everyone 2 things about Mexico before we went. 1. Don't drive a car while you're over there, the police like to hit up tourists for bribes, or book you. 2. Don't drink the water.

We were lucky enough to be staying in an all inclusive resort that purified it's tap water, so we didn't have to deal with either problems



You know, I'd take you up on that offer, they're all places that I'd love to go to. DH and I were planning to make Japan our next holiday destination until the earthquake struck. Now we've put it on the back burner for a little bit...

We hired the car for about 6 days and we stuck with the Hertz brand there. We drove from Cancun to Chichen Itza and headed across over to Merida (and the Mayan ruins down Uzmal way) before heading back down the Tourist Corridor and staying at Playa Adventuras. We were pretty close to the Guatamalan border when we were at Playa Adventuras; which is why the police were out in force. We were stopped and then they realised we were Australian when we showed our passports and away we went. It helped that we spoke a little spanish...well, enough to be polite for the police.
When we were in Merida, we also got "accosted" by the Tourist Police, who wanted to take us somewhere off the main drag of Merida to a shop that sold Mexican souveniers. DH followed them for a bit but once we got off the main drag and away from the people, I insisted we head back rather than following. To this day, I still don't know if those police were legit or not.
On the drive from Chichen Itza to Merida, there was a car stalled on the tollway. We stopped to help them...2 guys and a gal....students from the East Coast of the US. Their car just died in the middle of the tollway. We took them to the nearest tollpoint and stayed until they got some help. I know that money had to change hands for them to get the help they needed...don't know how much....but the guy manning the tollgate wanted some money to make a phone call.

And yes, we bought water when we were there in Mexico.



Japan's on the back burner for me too. We're waiting to see what happens but I think the nuclear plant situation is going to take another year before they manage to pour enough concrete to bury it.