One of the concerns raised both by reading on-line posts and from people who have traveled to South America is the very real problem of pick pockets and petty thieves cutting with a sharp instrument your packs etc -either the strap which will cause it to fall off and be easily grabbed or slash the bottom of the pack and items will fall out.
There are a number of products on the market that can help prevent these types of incidents from happening.
I have purchased two items to help protect my valuables.
Firstly - a hidden travel wallet made by Lewis N Clark -
www.lewisnclark.com
This wallet attaches to your belt and is then stuffed inside your trousers - to help make it blend in with your belt is has both a black and brown loop to use. This is compact in size and is designed to only hold a few items - passport, credit cards and bills. Cost around $10.00 CDN
Secondly - the other item is a anti-theft shoulder bag made by Pac Safe:
www.pacsafe.com
I had been looking at a couple of different styles in a couple of specialty travel shops here in Vancouver but was trying to justify the $80 - $100 cost for an item I might not use much after the cruise BUT I got a break today - while out shopping for some non-cruise related items today which I couldn`t find downtown I took the Canada Line to Broadway Station and walked three blocks to Mountain Equipment Co - Op store.
www.mec.ca.
While searching for the items I couldn`t fine downtown and which the Co-op didn`t have either I did come across their travel accessories and while I previously while surfin there web site didn`t find any availability of these bags on line they did have some in store.
Furthermore one of the models regularly priced at $78 CDN was reduced down to $42 CDN and while it is a little smaller that some of the others that I have looked at - I can fit my camera and tablet in it - it also has an RFID pocket to protect your cards from being skimmed.
The model I brought is the Metrosafe 200 GII over the shoulder bag.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
With Christmas over with and it being only 23 days until I leave Vancouver I will start the packing.
More later.
