Vietnamese tour guide shows how to avoid pickpockets in Rome

Ly Dat Thu, a tour guide in Rome, said summer is the "golden time" for thieves and pickpockets in this city.

This summer, the number of tourists to Italy has "exploded", with tourist attractions packed with people, Rome is no exception. Ly Dat Thu, a tour guide and head of the Vietnamese student association in Rome, said that summer is also the "golden time" for theft and pickpocketing. "This is the season when bad guys are most reckless. They lie in wait at the train stations and crowded tourist buses," Thu said.

Vietnamese tour guide shows how to avoid pickpockets in Rome — **Don't wear your bag across your back because it's easy to get pickpocketed.** Photo: iStock

To avoid pickpockets, tourists need to be aware of bad guys. "Be careful with 4-5 year old children, usually very pretty girls, holding cups to beg for money," said a male tour guide with many years of experience leading Vietnamese tourists to explore Rome. According to Thu, these are professional pickpockets, "high-level skills" and "when they stand to beg for money, they are also used to picking customers' pockets". These children often go alone, sometimes with pregnant women or a woman carrying a small child. Thu also added that Vietnamese tourists when coming to Rome also need to be careful with "pregnant women". Thu said "pregnant women" should be in quotation marks because they could be people who are pretending to be pregnant, trying to approach tourists to pickpocket.

The next group that customers need to pay attention to are the Gypsies, who often gather in groups of three or five. "This is the most recognizable feature," Thu said. They are dressed shabbily or dirty, ranging from 10 to 14 or 15 to 20 years old. These people often wear a large bag on their belly or pretend to be pregnant. These are "props" used to blind customers and make their work easier.

"They would talk to each other in Gypsy, a language that few people understood. Sometimes they would openly discuss plans to steal in the middle of the street in this language," Thu said.

Regarding the way they operate, the thieves usually stand at metro stations. Every time the train stops (30-60 seconds), the group will board the train together. The area of operation is the cars full of passengers. They will get off the train if the car is empty or if they find it difficult to operate. Thu witnessed many times pickpockets brazenly using their feet or bodies to block the train doors to get on and off.

Train stations near popular tourist attractions and with a high volume of visitors are the most likely to be targeted. On Line A of the Rome Metro, you will find Repubblica, Barberini (near the Trevi Fountain), Spagna (near the Spanish Steps), Ottaviano (to the Vatican). On Line B, you should be wary of Colosseo, Circo Massimo, Piramide and especially Cavour (between Colosseo and the Central Station).

The bad guys usually target Asian tourists, traveling alone or in groups of 2-3, and Western tourists traveling for the first time. The pickpockets take turns distracting the tourists and taking action.

The Vietnamese male tour guide also shared that tourists should be careful with groups of well-dressed women. "This is a group of beautiful Gypsies who are easily mistaken for Western tourists." These people are "less reckless", often unintentionally putting their hands in other people's pockets. If discovered, they will act like they have been "mistaken" and continuously say "sorry".

To avoid this, Thu recommends that travelers keep their passports in the hotel safe, just take a picture of the passport and save it on their phone in case they need to present it. Keep your backpack filled with non-valuable items such as water bottles, tissues, scarves or light jackets. Carry a small amount of cash and keep it in a discreet place, and spending by card is safer.

On the metro, avoid standing near the opening doors because this position is easy to become a victim of robbery or pickpocketing. Thu usually stands on the closed side of the door (opposite the opening area), with his back against the wall. Be careful of people standing behind you and choose the first or last cars because these cars are usually empty. However, at Cavour station towards the central station, the last car is very crowded and has many thieves, so visitors should avoid this car.

Be extra careful on the bus. Keep your phone or bag with valuables in your hand or around your neck.

Tourists should dress simply, as similar to the locals as possible, and avoid showing off by wearing branded items or expensive watches. If you want to dress up to take photos or shop for branded items, it is safer to call a taxi.

The last thing Thu wants to share is not to be afraid of bad guys. "The more you ignore or avoid them, the more they will come at you. The best way is to look straight. The one you should be afraid of is the bad guys, not you," Thu said.

Thu, who claims to know Rome almost as well as a local, is still a target for thieves. The most recent time this summer, Thu was robbed by a pickpocket on the crowded No. 8 bus from Trastevere to Piazza Venezia in the city center. "When I noticed, I just grabbed the pickpocket's hand and glared at him. The pickpocket let go of his hand and I didn't lose anything," Thu said.

Thu affirmed that his sharing is not "generalizing" or intended to create negative feelings, intentionally tarnishing the image of the Gypsies. There are good and bad people everywhere. The male tour guide hopes that the above sharing will help people realize the real situation in Rome and preventive measures. "I hope everyone has a trip to Rome with lots of joy and good memories," Thu said.

According to vnexpress.net

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