Originally Posted by
rickg523
Every time I approach a ticketing machine at Termini, I have at least one person ask if I need help. I've always assumed they're looking for a tip. Last time I took a day trip to Orvieto, an older man in a suit even watched my transaction, after I told him I was good, then pointed out to me where the (very distant) platform was. He was polite and not at all pushy, so I gave the guy a euro (from the change I got out of the machine). It was clear that was what he was looking for.
Btw, I saw what Perche described in Milano Centrale last month. I wasn't approached, mainly young women traveling in pairs were. Looked somehow suspicious to have "Travelers' Aid" guys (they all had stickers on their shirts and clipboards) wandering the hall and offering assistance...
On our last trip to Naples, as we were getting off, a very old lady tapped my wife on the shoulder and told her to be careful about her purse in the station.
But, I personally have never felt that pickpockets are really a "thing" in Italy, more of an urban legend. But perhaps, comparatively, we don't present an easy target. Some of Perche's earlier posts had photo and written examples of folks doing things that maybe have kept "urban-ready" travelers from being victimized.
On a side note, on our first time in Termini, decades ago, my wife's butt was pinched so often she was bruised (hyperbole
). It was definitely a "thing" in Rome back in the day.
We're probably beyond the demographic for kind of attention now, but my daughter has never been touched in Rome, and she's been going there since she was 18. What happened?
Really, I was hesitant to post this out of fear of resurrecting false stereotypes and exaggerated risks of pickpocketing and purse stealing. For the last few weeks I had to take a lot of trains out of Termini, often at rush hour when they were so packed that you literally had to push yourself in, like in Tokyo. Everyones' arm was over eyeryone elses' to hold onto a pole. 50% of the people nevertheless had their cell phone out, and were texting. Almost every woman had their purse open, and casually held behind them. Everyone was sort of looking out. It didn't matter.
If pickpockets were approaching it was like everyone had each other's back, but without even thinking about it. It's just normal. It's not tolerated. A pickpocketing group would be noticed and called out.
Nothing ever happens, except for carelessness. It's more common for someone to come up to try to "help" me buy a ticket when I'm in the train station in Union Square in San Francisco, than in Rome. It generally doesn't happen in Italy. I just happened to arrive in Rome at 3:35PM for a 3:50 train because I was running late, and showed up sweating, with a suitcase, looking for the board that lists which track the train leaves from. I guess it looked pretty touristy, and I was surprised to see what I quickly realized was a pickpocketing gang in quasi-uniform.
I'm definitely going to report this to the train station, and I'm pretty sure this gang will be a short-lived gang because I'm sure that others are complaining. I just don't let anyone get into my personal space without expectation, whether it's in NYC, Rome, SF, or anywhere else, but I don't have any paranoia about it.
I arrived to the train station in Venice this evening. I know that it's been all over the papers that a gang of people have been aggressively offering to help people with their luggage, then being threatening. That happens. The police have been cracking down hard on them, and the train station was clean of any such thing today.
As soon as I set foot into daylight exiting the train station at Santa Lucia someone came up to me and said in barely understandable English, "water taxi?" Really, I don't look like a target. But with a suitcase, I think everyone can be a target in July or August. I usually stay away from Italy during these months, and I only travel with one roller and a small laptop bag.
It was just a little like shooing away flies at Termini, and upon exiting the train station in Venice. Nothing more than that. It's nothing to worry about. Just don't say to a stranger, "Yes, I want a water taxi." Water taxis in Venice are more honest and regulated than taxis in Rome. They are probably equal to a London taxi driver as being beyond reproach.
And whether at Union Station in San Francisco, or in Rome, just shoo people who approach you away. I'm not very good at following my own advice. I have a small wallet. I keep a few cards in it on one side, and a few bills on the other. I always have a few 50's which are very hard to cash because most stores have very little change. You have to travel with bills for around the size of what you intend to buy. You cannot hand a taxi driver a 50, and expect them to have change for it. You can in the USA, but it's not possible in Italy. You cannot go into a coffee shop and order a coffee for 1 euro in the morning, and hand over a 20. It will eliminate most of their change to get through the morning.
Somehow, my 50's, 20's, 10's and fives were mixed together in the same pocket as several cards. I pulled out a five to pay for a coffee and croissant in Rome, and dropped it at the cashier. As I turned to leave everyone at the bar started yelling in Italian, "You dropped your cards!" I looked down and my credit card, my debit card, and a 50 were on the floor! That's Italy.