Two Reais and seventy-five cents. That should cover the bus ride back to my hostel in Gloria. It wasn’t a lot of money — about $1.25 USD; however, it was enough for one man in particular to notice me and to have my travel safety threatened.
I’d been warned not to ever show cash when walking around Rio de Janeiro, but I figured they meant large bills. Besides, it was daytime and I was standing at a bus stop full of people. Nobody would take notice.
But someone did. He looked about 53, a weathered face and dark hair. While I don’t remember his clothing or details about his features, I can clearly picture the menacing scowl that took over his face as he stopped dead in his tracks and glared at my exposed wallet. His stance reminded me of a cheetah ready to pounce as he bent his knees and angled his body toward me, his arms raised slightly. One false move and I was a goner. But, would he really jump me in broad daylight?
My skin felt prickly, my heart racing with fear. I was frozen in a moment that seemed to last forever, although it was probably only a minute or so.
Suddenly, my solo female travel instincts kicked in and I took action. Spying a group a local women chatting nearby, I quickly ran over to their group, never turning my back to the man. While I didn’t speak Portuguese, I smiled at them and waved, gesturing slightly with my eyes at the man. They understood, and made a small space for me in the group, where I nodded along pretending to be an old time friend. The man glared a moment longer before moving on his way.
While I was lucky the situation didn’t escalate further than a scare, it did teach me a lesson: Never make assumptions. If someone tells you an area is dangerous and that pick pocketing is likely, take all necessary precautions to prevent this from happening — whether it’s daytime, nighttime, $2 or $200. A better idea would have been to have my money organized in my wallet so that I could quickly pull it out when on the bus, or discreetly grabbing the money without showing my wallet.
Have you ever felt threatened while traveling? How did you handle it?
Photo courtesy of Aurimas Adomavicus.
Jessica Festa is the editor of the travel sites Jessie on a Journey (http://jessieonajourney.com) and Epicure & Culture (http://epicureandculture.com). Along with blogging at We Blog The World, her byline has appeared in publications like Huffington Post, Gadling, Fodor’s, Travel + Escape, Matador, Viator, The Culture-Ist and many others. After getting her BA/MA in Communication from the State University of New York at Albany, she realized she wasn’t really to stop backpacking and made travel her full time job. Some of her most memorable experiences include studying abroad in Sydney, teaching English in Thailand, doing orphanage work in Ghana, hiking her way through South America and traveling solo through Europe. She has a passion for backpacking, adventure, hiking, wine and getting off the beaten path.
