#Sharing Thursdays second article, yeah! 🙂
This is my favorite topic, talking about my experience and what to do when something gets stolen. At least during the year 2012 it was. I was robbed 3 times, in 3 different cities, in 3 different countries: Copenhagen/Denmark, Berlin/Germany and Valparaiso/Chile.

In this article I will analyze the situation that happened, which mistakes I perhaps made and how did I solve the situation. If you like the article and you feel like contributing at least 1$ or 1 EUR for it, please donate the money to HoopRelief’s crowdfunding campaign for children instead. Thank you.

Wallet that returned and missing IDs
When I was robbed for the first time, it was in cold January 2012 in Kodbyen in Copenhagen. It was certainly not the first time when this happened, but it was for the first time when it happened in a relatively “safe” Denmark. It was a standard situation that I’m sure you all know. Robbed while partying. Affected by the Saturday night fever, I put my bag on a table and danced without watching in.

Mistake: I left my bag unattended in a super packed club and forgot about it for a while. There are NO MORE SAFE places on this planet!

My wallet was gone. Just the wallet. It was obvious that these guys wanted my cash, but unfortunately they also took my bank cards and documents from Slovakia. First thing that I did was to block the cards, both Danish and Slovak. Luckily there was a police station around the corner, so I went to report the robbery immediately. They were not surprised that this happened. They said that it’s a typical spot where people get robbed in Copenhagen. So watch out and you POLICE, do something about it!

And now comes the more annoying stuff that I had to do. Because my Slovak ID and driving license was stolen abroad, I had to go to the Slovak embassy and report it for the Slovak police. One month later, I traveled to Slovakia to arrange a new ID and a driving license, even thought I don’t drive at all…

And then I checked my “other” messages on Facebook that I usually don’t open. Apparently my wallet was found the next week after the robbery and some person from the club wrote me, but I didn’t see it. I could have saved the trip to Slovakia and fees for new the IDs…

Tip: Always go back to the place where your wallet was stolen. Many times the thieves just want your cash and will leave your wallet somewhere nearby. The policemen from that night even recommended to check the garbage bins in the area. I did, but the wallet was somewhere in the bar.

This also happens when you are suddenly affected by Saturday night fever in Copenhagen 🙂

Stolen iPhone hurts almost like a broken a heart
I bought my first iPhone in April 2012. Until then I had a very old Nokia that didn’t make any sound when I got a text message hehe. I survived with that Nokia for a very long time. But because I wanted to be up-to-date-quick-photo-instagram-cool-person, I bought an iPhone. And I have to say that it was love at the first touch.

Later that year I moved to Berlin to study German. I used to take photos of the German grammar with my iPhone. On one autumn evening in Berlin, I met with my Mexican friend and went to have one beer. We were in a super packed bar Kaptain on Simon-Dach Strasse and I was totally sober – in case you started questioning my party habits at this point. I’m a careful person, even though it may not seem like, but I usually carry a little “belt” bag on my chest. That night I put the bag off my chest on a chair next to me, but still with my hand on it. Suddenly there were lot of people around me and they started pushing me from different sides and one person said that he had to go to the toilet. I had to move. It was one second. My bag was gone, my dear iPhone, Sennheiser headphones, keys, and again bank card (this time only one! The other was one at home) were gone and my heart felt almost like broken. No more biking through Berlin and listening to progressive house. Damn it!

This is how I studied German 🙂

Mistake: I put the bag on a chair in a very crowded and touristy bar. Even though I had my hand on it, these thieves were professionals. As I do my job as good as I can, these people do their job as good as they can. Hard to avoid this situation.

Big Mistake: I didn’t have any insurance…

Tip: Don’t bring all your cards and IDs when you go out (especially) partying. Have a PIN code on your smartphone that it can’t be used immediately after being stolen.

Trust, but don’t be blind
To top it off, one more smartphone was stolen in 2012. After what happened with the iPhone, I decided to buy something cheaper, so I bought a HTC One (hard to get used to this one after iPhone). I had it exactly for one month. Why? Because I was naïve and in the beginning of my South American trip I trusted a nice local guy – a skater ☺ Haha, don’t expect any spicy stories. It happened like this: I spent Xmas in Chile with a big group of French backpackers and on 24 December we met a local skater. He joined the group and for some reason spent Xmas with us in the hostel. On 26 December, I planned to travel to Santiago. I did a quick photo of my next destination using google maps and put the phone in the backpack. The skater offered help with my backpacks. Before we left the hostel I went to the toilet.

Mistake: I left my backpack unattended, even the daypack with my valuables. Who does that? Only a naïve person like me.

The skater brought me to the bus stop, hugged me, said “take care” and waited until the bus moved. After paying, I immediately noticed that my phone was gone. I got off on the next stop, ran back to the hostel, found him, told him that I knew it was him and I wanted to have my phone back. He denied. I told him that I would call the police cause (this time!) I needed the paper for my insurance. He ran away.

Tip: Do not leave your valuables unattended at any times and do not trust anyone. Ok, that’s a bit paranoid, but be careful, listen to your instincts. This guy already cheated the group on the group bus ticket, but I ignored it cause I thought that 3 EUR don’t mean that much for a whole group.

When the police arrived they laughed at me, that this is a typical situation that happens in Valparaiso. They were nice, they drove around with me, sitting in the back of the car, and showed me the poor parts of this street art cowered city. The insurance company returned the money for HTC and I didn’t really miss it at all. I had only a bitter taste for the next couple of days, because this time I knew the person that robbed me. This was a big lesson and until the end of the trip (next 6 months), the only thing that was robbed or lost was my pink bra ☺

Do you see that mural in Valpariso? Isn’t it huge?

Conclusion: What to do when something gets stolen abroad?
Things come and go. Important are other “things” in life. iPhone is a fantastic product, but I traveled without a mobile phone for 6 months and I survived and on top of that, no one annoyed me with calls ☺ I recommend to have a good insurance. It’s worth it. Have a copy of your documents, cards and cash on different places of your belongings. And one more: “No hay que dar papaya” (Colombian saying), which means that it’s not good to show too much of what you have.

Safe travels to everyone!

Read more about my travel stories and tips in the next post from the “Sharing Thursday” series!
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