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Pigeons
I'm wondering if anyone has the same problem as me, and if there are specific cities I really should avoid. I am phobic about birds, especially tame ones such as pigeons, chickens, etc. Am working on desensitizing myself where birds are concerned, but still have quite a ways to go. I took my first trip last May to Portugal, spent some days in Lisbon and in spite of pigeons was able to enjoy myself. Except for Lisbon, birds really weren't any more of an issue than in Canada where I live. Portugal was awesome. However, I've been told that many European cities are a great deal worse e.g. London, Rome, etc. Does anybody who travels share my phobia, and if so, are there any areas where you have been truly miserable because of birds? (Am tentatively considering the Cotswolds, Tuscany, Provence for a walking holiday next year). Any thoughts in this regard would be much appreciated. I really enjoy reading the messages and reports that others have posted.
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They are no pigeons in most Provençal villages , nor will you see many chickens.
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There are chickens and water fowl in the Cotswolds, but not everywhere you go. Any Cotswolds town on water is likely to have ducks, geese, swans or a combination of all three floating around. Stick to the dry towns, and avoid farmyards, and you should be ok.
Birds aren't a huge issue in Tuscany. There are some chickens in smaller towns, but they are mostly in farmyards, and shouldn't be anywhere near you. The Campo in Siena and the Piazza del Duomo get a little pigeon action, but nothing like Piazza San Marco in Venice. I've been to Rome a lot but don't remember any great amounts of birds. I have a phobia that sucks, too. I absolutely can't bear to be in a car on a bridge, highway, or some sort of decking that is really high above water with low or no walls. AAARRGH! Weidly, the phobia only started to take off within the last 10 years or so. The Lion's Gate Bridge in Vacouver BC just did me in; I wanted to get out of the car and crawl across. Up until then, I had no idea how awful a phobia could be. You have my sympathy. |
Wow. Don't ever, ever visit the Dordogne. I think the places you have earmarked will be ok a long as you stick to fairly urban areas - except there are pigeons in just about every square I've ever been in. Good luck, and if it helps, birds are fabulous creatures. I guess it probably doesn't, though, for someone with a phobia.
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I had an old friend from college who was absolutely phobic about birds. She would asked people to walk ahead of her and shoo them out of the way, if there were birds on the path. You might not like Venice.
I used to fear spiders so much that one could hold me hostage in another room if it were in a hallway and I wanted to get past it. |
After reading StCirq's post I thought I'd add... if it helps.
I conquered my fear of spiders by reminding myself how much good they do by eating flies, mosquitos and other creepy crawlies that I don't appreciate fully. Now, I have realized that spiders are much more afraid of me then I could ever be of them. |
I'm a little phobic about birds too. Just watch out for Piazza San Marco in Venice and Trafalger Square in London! Otherwise, you will probably be OK.
Oh yes, there was the time we were walking to the U-Bahn in the early morning in Munich when a pigeon apparently died in mid-flight and fell out of the air, landing at my husband's feet. |
Oh, Betsy and I thought th~e pigeon that shat on my friend's head was bad~~~~
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Don't worry about Trafalgar Square, they've almost all gone.
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You would hate St. Mark's Square in Venice - they are everywhere. There are also a lot in Trafalgar Square but no where near as many as Venice. Can't remember seeing many in Rome. The places you mention should all be OK. I can't walk across bridges (unless they are over water!) so I too sympathize. Bridges across motorways are completely out but I can cross a bridge in a car!
Good luck, Carolina |
What ever fear one has does cause a problem. I do not like to be in a car when the driver drives really close to a high cliff..which my father and then my late DH would do. I would dig my nails into the palms of my hands I would be so scared.
I also do not like bridges without high railings. The Benicia/Martinez Bridge that goes across the Carquinez Straight (I-680)CA is like that and I absolutely hate to be on that bridge which I was constantly when I lived in Benicia. When I found out several fellows also freaked out about the the bridge it almost helped me. And don't mention moths. I totally freak out if a moth is in a room with me. And yet I love butterflies and have no problems with spiders at all. And Pigeons, I normally don't have a problem but the pigeons in Piazza San Marco in Venice have become terrible IMO. Very disgusting. And yet I love birds in general. But not those pigeons, LOL. Best wishes to you donnabee. |
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Don't worry about Trafalgar Square, they've almost all gone. >>>> not at all true. there are control measures in place but they are a joke. i walk through there just about once a week and i don't see the problem getting any better as compared to several years ago. |
You may want to avoid Venice, or at least avoid St. Mark's square when there. I love birds and love Venice, but the pigeons there were really too too much.
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Hi donnabee,
Stay away from Notre Damein Paris. People actually buy bags of pigeon food. ((I)) |
Thanks so much to everyone for taking the time to reply to my concerns re birds. It seems that if I avoid two or three main cities (or at least the main squares in Venice, Paris and London), I needn't be too anxious about run ins with overly tame pigeons, etc. To tuscanlifeedit: we had actually been considering a walking tour in the Cotswolds and you indicate that there is a lot of waterfowl in this region. Are these birds very tame, and do a lot of people feed them? Is this perhaps not the best area to be thinking about?
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Does anyone else think this is a little strange?? Is she putting us on?
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yes
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Cat Fancier: Maybe yes, maybe no. But it doesn't kill us to answer the question seriously. I've heard of many MUCH stranger phobias that this, and a fear of flocks of tame birds that make bodily contact with humans doesn't sound so odd to me. I also think there are good, rational health reasons to steer clear of the huge flocks of overly "friendly" pigeons in Piazza San Marco.
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Okay I'll admit to being one of the idiots who bought seed to feed the pigeons in Piazza San Marco.
Though some may find this posting strange, the fear is quite understandable. The pigoens in Venice were quite agressive and should be avoided by the tame of heart. |
Now that I think about it, the pigeons in Paris recently DID seem a bit fearless when it came to humans. They would fly very close and thought they were going to hit me a couple of times. That said, I was sorry not to have bird seed when I saw someone feeding them in Notre Dame square.
Will personally check out the aggressive St. Mark's Square pigeons when we go to Venice, hopefully next year! |
I did not think this was a strange post as I know a few people that sort of freak out about birds. It is not typical but not all that strange IMHO.
And seagulls, oh yuck, I remember my friend in HS getting "plopped" on top of her head during lunch hour. The seagulls along the Carquinez Straight can get very overwhelming. And so can pigeons. |
donnabee
I can't give you an absolutely definitive answer on birds and water fowl in the Cotswolds. In my time there, I never saw any huge flocks anywhere near any people. I did some birds in the water and on the shore in watery places, and also some chickens in yards, but nothing more. And I am sorry for those with bridge phobias, but I'm glad I'm not alone. :> |
We were "guilty" of feeding birds in Paris - we carried our day-old bread with us for just this purpose. None of the pigeons, and we saw many, were aggressive at all.
Now, the gulls in New Jersey are fierce! One stole a sandwich right out of my hand on the beach one day. |
Re the Cotswolds: unless you visit Slimbridge Wildfowl Sanctuary on the banks of the River Severn you are unlikely to have any problems with wildfowl. In the city of Gloucester there is a bit of a problem with seagulls from the river becoming overconfident around humans, but I go there fairly often and haven't been 'gulled', nor have I noticed them around the Cathedral precincts which is the only place in Gloucester city centre worth seeing.
Pigeons tend to lurk in almost every town centre these days, roosting in the buildings and scuttling around on the pavements looking for dropped sandwich crusts and MacD leftovers etc, but there's no need to avoid these towns as there are way more people than pigeons and the pigeons are more nervous of us than we are of them - they are certainly not tame. If you hiss at them they flutter out of your path! Ssssssssst!! However in Piazza San Marco this does not work so well as the pigeons outnumber the people and are not scared of us at all. Chickens in the country do not roam free - they will be shut into runs or well-fenced enclosures to protect them from foxes. This will also ensure you will not have any contact with the chickens should you pass some. You will enjoy walking in the Cotswolds, but it might be an idea to avoid Bourton-on-the Water, Lechlade and Bibury because there are ducks and possibly the odd swan around, which have probably become accustomed to being fed titbits by visitors. But whatever you decide, have a good trip. |
John Berendt's description of the San Marco pigeons in his book The City of Falling Angels would make most people have a pigeon phobia! I am not afraid of them, but I do not want them touch me.
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I want to say that bird phobias are real for some people altho for the life of me I can't figure it out. I have a family member (who grew up on a farm) who is deathly afraid of birds, even tiny sparrows. One time we were at an outdoor cafe & a small bird landed near her foot. She shrieked so loud people came running thinking she'd been shot or something. She says she doesn't know why or where this photbia came from.
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While I do not have a fear of pigeons, the ones in St. Mark's square in Venice were just too much - and I got the heebie-jeebies watching this woman let them sit on her head and outstretched arms.
As far as strange phobias - I have an unreasonable fear of lizards, toads and frogs. Just thinking about them makes me shudder, and I can barely even look at a picture of them. |
I think I was scarred for life by seeing the movie "The Birds" when I was a kid...
So far, it has not prevented me from going anywhere but I would do anything to attract them, like feeding them. I also getting the heebie jeebies watching people let the pigeons land all over them. I am happy to know that others share this affliction. |
I am certainly not afraid of birds but growing up around the water in the SF Bay Area I can tell you that getting "plopped" by a seagull is an experience one can live without, LOL.
And pigeons are a pain..I too cannot understand how people can feed them and try to get them to sit all over them. Not for me thank you. I do love birds in the garden etc. Evidently the "new" deYoung Museum in SF is now having a problem with pigeons. An interesting article in todays SF Chronical. |
I wonder what effect the threat of a bird flu pandemic might have on "pigeon policies."
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cmt...
...me too |
I can see how a person would have fear of birds. I like them as long as they keep their distance or if they are sweet and tiny.
I hate aggressive ones that swoop at me, I guess after seeing The Birds too and knowing people who lived at Bodega Bay. If I see them eyeing me it is like they are planning a strategy of attack! One darn bird grabbed my hair and tried to pluck some out when I was dining alfresco in Malibu. Talk about ruining a meal, I had to jump up and the chair fell over and my friend had to beat the thing away. yikes. I get edgy at St. Marks too where the birds treat it as a free for all and get frenetic, I don't even like to think about it, after all they have the advantage of surprise attacks from the air! |
Pigeons creep me out too. In Paris, they were quite obviously after our pastries every time we sat down on a bench to eat. However, my feelings changed a little when we fed one with only one foot. We named him "clubby".
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Tuileries and Opera Garnier in Paris also have a lot of sparrows and pigeons and yes I too am guilty of feeding the birds. At the Tuileries I have the sparrows literally eating out of my hands.
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If you ever get 'plopped' by a pigeon, just thank your lucky stars that cows don't fly. |
I think "The Birds" did a great disservice to our feathered friends....kind of like the shower scene in "Psycho". I thought I'd never be comfortable in the shower again! It's quite possible that some of this bird phobia is linked to viewing "The Birds" early in life......THANK YOU, MR. HITCHCOCK.
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Topping
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Good point, catfancier. I identify with poor Tippy beating off the birdies as they try to pluck out her eyes (quite a visual isn't it).
I still do think of the shower scene in Psycho when I am alone in a hotel room and showering. I think those films get into our psyche more than horror films. |
I can't believe there is anyone else who has the same problem. I travel quite a bit, and it is often a difficult situation. Europe is really almost impossible. Italy is out of the question, and in Paris, the pigeons are even INSIDE the metro stations, where one would think there would be some refuge. I travel to London frequently, and lately, I have asked my doctor to prescribe tranquilizers, which have made it bearable to at least walk to the car from the museums. Places where I have been able to go without any problems include China, especially Shanghai, which has a beautiful river walk. I have been to beaches in various resorts in Mexico, and also in Tahiti, without any seagulls. Good Luck
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