When I travel, I watch my purse like a hawk because it always contains items much more valuable to me than my money, credit cards or passport. I carry my 3 pairs of glasses (distance, prescription sunglasses and reading) in my purse at all times and while I can replace my passport, cancel the one credit card and write off the lost money, I can’t easily replace my glasses and they are more costly to replace than my passport or money. So I always carry a purse, but when walking on the street I always have my purse on the opposite shoulder from the street and walk on the sidewalk as far away from the street as possible. When I cross the street, I take my purse off my shoulder and hold it against my chest.

By the way, I don’t carry my passport in my purse and I always carry one credit card and a limited amount of money around town.

Don't they have optical labs in Europe where you can walk in with a prescription and out with new specs in an hour - as we have dozens of in the US?

Passepartout,
I wish you were there standing with a purse and i was riding by on a scooter (you forgot speed power, Einstein) and yanked your purse from you and you would be standing still while my scooter will spinning wheels without going any further...what is your mass 500LB?

"If an assailant's momentum causes a force of x pounds to be applied to the purse strap (and its owner), the same x is applied to the assailant." - that is, if I remember to apply the said force!

Meaning I am alone in some strange place, completely freaked out, or can't understand what's going on as it takes a split second, and you think I will apply anything?

Or, wait, maybe you're saying the purse snatched off my shoulder will apply the force? Where do I buy one?

Passepartout, it happened. I saw her bruises. You didn't. I don't care if the scenario doesn't fit your version of the laws of physics. How rude of you to basically call someone a liar. If you can't offer good travel advice, what, pray tell, purpose are you serving by participating on this TRAVEL board?

Ziana - there is no concept in physics of which I am aware called <i>speed power</i>. I think you probably mean <i>momentum</i>, and that's exactly what produces the force I mentioned. I never said that the purse-carrier would be unmoved (in fact, I pointed out repeatedly that s/he <i>would</i> be), so that whole line of argument is bogus.

FainaAgain - &quot;you think I will apply anything?&quot; No, I didn't say that. Your very mass produces a resistance to the force applied to the strap which is equal to the force pulling on it. Substitute a spring scale for the strap, and have someone pull on it. There will be a force of x pounds, which you will both feel <u>equally</u>.

MelJ - &quot;How rude of you to basically call someone a liar.&quot; Please be so kind as to point out exactly where I did any such thing. I'm here asking questions.

A reminder whenever and whereever one is travelling..

Friends of mine were on our SF/BayArea BART this last weekend. They were departing the US to fly home. One of them had their backpack stolen while on BART. I don't know all of the details yet but the passport and credit cards were retrieved. Evidently a homeless person going through a trash can found everything. They said that the BART employees were very helpful.

The friends are very experienced travellers btw.

Regarding prescription glasses. Not all prescriptions can be made in an hour or even a day. Mine usually takes a week. I consequently always have duplicate pairs just in case.

Safe travels to everyone.

LoveItaly,
I suppose PassportOut never wore glasses nor he ever owed scooter and I doubt he had a purse...One question left - did he travel? EVERRRRR?

Passepartout, sweetie, threshold is quite high, thank you very much. I just had to suppress the yawns at your boring physics and classics lessons when all Dutyfree was trying to do was give us all a safety reminder. Someone had to point out what a bore you are.

Returning to the subject. Reminded me of a horrible incident in London in 1999 which I have found on the BBC website:

&quot;A murder hunt is under way after a Swedish tourist died following a mugging incident only two hours after she arrived in London.
Maria Wodianitzky, 49, died on Tuesday in hospital after the attack in Knightsbridge on Saturday.

She had just arrived in London with her ex-husband and her 14-year-old son to begin a week's holiday staying at a flat in Kensington.

They were on their way to the flat on a double-decker bus when a man tried to grab her handbag, which she was carrying strapped across her body.

He dragged her across the bus and jumped off, taking his victim with him. Mrs Wodianitzky fell into the road, hitting her head, while the attacker ran off empty-handed.&quot;

So much for Mrs Wodianitzky's total mass helping her out. Do you think she was maybe, duh, taken by surprise?So who really cares about an assailant's momentum of x pounds? The woman ended up DEAD.

In a perfect world, those who say that bad experiences that happened to others were

a) the victims fault (too careless, old, stupid or whatever)

or

b) couldn't really have happened because in their experience it hasn't or hasn't seemed likely to happen

and, they therefore are unable to display or express any human sympathy or empathy, would, in time, experience all those awful unlikely things that poor victims catch the blame for.

If only...

No, Ziana, I don't believe he ever travels. I've asked his alter ego directly several times and the question is always avoided.

He DOES have the RER map memorized though.

I think it is because his Passport Out.
Well, I never minded entertainment here.

I believe you must have me confused with Passepartout, starrsville.

But, let's put your money where your mouth is. How much are you willing to bet that I'm not well-traveled (according to criteria you define)? We'll have a mutually agreed Fodorite hold the stakes.

No contest needed. Just share some first hand travel experience. I don't recall you ever doing so. I'm not saying you haven't - just don't ever recall a first hand recommendation of hotel, restaurant, etc. And, when I've asked, it has been ignored.

And, yes, I do believe Roby is Passy.

starrsville, you've made a borderline slanderous accusation about Robespierre. I think it should be incumbent upon you to prove your assertion or promulgate an apology.

At least, that's what you'd do if you had an ounce of class.

I fail to see the slander. I stated that I do not ever remember reading a first hand TRAVEL experience by Roby. I have also stated that I believe that Passy is the alias Roby uses when he needs to - or chooses to.

My opinion that Roby does not actually travel anywhere will be immediately changed when I read any travel experience that Roby may choose to share on this travel forum.

His expertise with RER is very much appreciated by novice Paris travelers on this board. That advice is very useful.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34677367

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34575297

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34605936

&quot;I fail to see the slander.&quot; Well, you would fail to see it, wouldn't you? In my lexicon, when one accuses another of exaggerating his travel experience, that's tantamount to calling the person a liar. That's slander. Unless you can back it up.

If you read Robespierre's many posts about his time in Paris and Glasgow as a student, and his 13 years with transoceanic airlines, and his Chinese PC importing business in the '80s, you wouldn't be making such scurrilous accusations.

GREAT! I STAND CORRECTED.

Zaina, Roby has indeed traveled to Paris.

That was easy. I wonder why Roby didn't do that earlier?

Of course, that means Passy has indeed traveled to Paris if he is indeed Roby.

Thanks for the links, Roby.

Passy, (I'm so confused. It keeps switching between who is addressing me), I don't remember saying you (as Roby) exaggerated your travel experiences. If anything, the opposite is true. I said I didn't think Roby traveled at all. Roby has cleared that up by posting some first hand recommendations - and giving some background from Roby from years ago.

But, if, as you say, &quot;that's tantamount to calling the person a liar&quot;, was Passy calling the OP and others liars when they shared their first hand experiences - and Passy argued those aren't possible due to physics?

In your &quot;lexicon&quot;, is that the same or different?