Agree 100% with Francophile...I must always show my passport every time I check in at an European Hotel..Does not matter in what country i stop, is the policy....I used to show my passport while travelling by train, but not anymore...

Ira, the article was only about EU young people, or as Richburg wrote, "...the new "Generation E"--E for Europe, a continent that has been essentially without borders.." for most of the lifetime of these twenty-something people.

I only mentioned about reading the article on the off-chance that the original poster was European, that is, a European troll...

My husband and I have traveled worldwide many times. We always leave our passport numbers with friends and relatives back home and just make a quick phone call when at the U.S. Consolate to replace your passport. Remember to also make copies of each others passport to put in various pieces of luggage always.Take every precaution you can so that your travels are never a disappointment again!

'Best advice, Bev. That's what we do.

oh ferkristsake! use a stinkin' money belt or neck pouch & keep track of your stuff. learn a few phrases of the local language & be friendly. end of story. sheez.

& yes the 'victim' *IS* to blame when they do not take simple precautions when traveling for the safety of themselves &/or their belongings.

Is it not the duty of a police officer to assist a civilian no matter what language they speak? The whole issue of language is irrelevant and diverts attention from responsibility. It is a police officers JOB to help a civilian in need...tourist or local, who may speak whatever language. The officer shouldnt be expected to know English, but should be prepared to deal with a tourist who does not speak Catalan.

I don't know for sure if the original post was written to solicit charged responses for sure. It seems possible, given the inclusion of nearly every hot button topic that I've ever read here.

I had a question(s) though, after reading down through the responses. How do people see efforts to affect change in the tourism industry of another country or place? Is a grassroots effort to "spread the word" the wrong approach, as it seemed this poster may have been attempting.

IF a person did have a negative experience that they felt would benefit from change would it be incorrect to attempt that - in this case a personal attempt to impact toruism levels in the effort to better police response and communication levels within the Barcelona police ranks at tourist frequented areas. I'm sure I'm allowing too much intent into someone else's post, but for the sake of the hypothetical, as we can't, of course, fix this person's problem ourselves...

Maybe the short form Q variation is... is a negative experience any less useful to the casual reader than the positive?