Safety First
Here are a few tips to protect yourself and your possessions while travelling and at your destination.
Paperwork
Before you go, scan all your travel documents, credit cards and ID, including passport with name and number visible, and email them to yourself. In the event of loss or theft, they can be accessed from any internet cafe. This won't bring your things back, but it will help you recover more quickly to get on with your holiday or business trip.
Laptops
Do not carry your laptop in a laptop bag. (Message to thief: “Hi, I'm a laptop. Come and get me.”) Apart from looking like it contains the obvious, the manufacturer names and logos on these things are also come-ons to thieves.
Theft
Carry a dummy wallet or purse. Put in an expired credit card and a little local currency, and if you get mugged, hand that over. Then make yourself scarce before they realise they've been done!
Hotels
Try to avoid a room above the tenth floor, where the fire brigade may have difficulty reaching you. Similarly, if you're in a part of the world known for terrorist attacks, try to avoid a room in the first few floors, which usually bear the brunt of a car bomb being driven into a building.
Mentally plan your escape
Where are the fire extinguishers? Where are the evacuation points? Follow the emergency exit signs. Where do they lead? How long does it take from your room? Count the number of steps from your room to the emergency exit so that, if you have to leave in dense smoke or pitch darkness, you know how you are going to get out.
In an emergency do not take the lift (assuming they are working), because you may get stuck.
Prepare a small 'lifeline pack' consisting of the keys (or key card) to your room, a torch and your rented car key. Keep it by your bed or near the door. Carry it with you if you have to leave. Many hotel rooms now have self-closing doors. If you do not take your key with you, you can be trapped in the corridor and, in the case of a fire, perish.
