Challenged by Rick Steves’ proclamation that ‘getting one’s wallet stolen is unavoidable when vacationing in Europe’, a boy named Kyle set out on a social experiment. What came out of his little experiment was an unlikely truth: “People are good.” Are they, really?

It all started with an adolescent boy reading a warning on a tour book about the inevitability of getting one’s wallet snitched when traveling in Europe. Determined to get the most out of the trip, Kyle decided to take the queue from author Rick Steves and get the most out of his travel abroad. The adolescent boy bought a wallet for the purpose of using it as bait. He even had the sense of humor and left a note that said ‘gotcha’. He also added in his home address, in the hopes that the thief might have the same sense of humor and make him reuse the wallet for more pickpocket-baiting activities.

And bait pickpockets he did. First, he positioned his wallet so that it peeked out of his pocket. It seemed to wink at any nearby pickpockets. After the wink failed to work, Kyle made his wallet scream at any possible thief in the area, with most of the thing protruding out of his pocket. Still, nobody bought the lure.

In his desperation, Kyle decided to broadcast what any willing pickpocket might get from his wallet. “Uh, Mom, do I still have that hundred-euro in my wallet or did you take it?” Still, no fish in the hook!
Kyle went to five different countries, doing the same experiment and getting no positive result (or should I say negative?). What he would usually get were warnings from all sorts of people, pickpocket-looking types included! The excited and determined adolescent later found himself annoyed and disgruntled by the goodness he found. His experiment was a failure after all. And he did not get what he thought would be the Total Travel Experience.

Well, for those who aren’t in some sort of experiment, better do the opposite of what Carl kept doing. For in the real world, people do get pinched of their hard-earned money. Maybe the pickpockets were smart enough to sense what Kyle was trying to do. After all, this bunch is especially clever with their craft. So grab your cash clip wallets and make sure that your belongings are hidden from watchful eyes and not set out as baits.

Keep safe!

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