Is it safe to wear a backpack in a crowd?

mparker

Hi All,

I'll be spending a week and a half in Mumbai and a week and a half in Delhi later this month and am trying to decide what secondary bag to take for my daily wanderings. I have a shoulder messenger bag from the Army that is thick canvas with metal connectors and rigid snaps or I have a normal backpack that I use for school. I think the backpack would get knifed for sure... or am I paranoid? And the shoulder bag... well, I just don't want to underestimate the tenacity and skills of India's finest pickpockets and thieves. What should I carry in my day-to-day travels when my large rucksack is back at the hotel? Also, I'm buying a steel cable backpack net to secure my bag in hotel rooms. Is this necessary/wise?

PeakXV

You're being paranoid! In fact there's an almost 100% chance that if something valuable unknowingly fell out of said backpack -you would soon get a tap on the shoulder from somebody retrieving it for you.

You can even take a backpack to a Chor Bazzar(Thieves Market) and expect safe passage.

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Don't go to India ~ Pre-trip Warnings & Misconceptions?

machadinha

What country was that you're visiting? Sorry, but you can get by there without a panzer division. Just carry what you find practical and comfortable, you'll be fine (or if not, you ran out of luck. Pretty much like at home say. There's nothing inherently scary about the place.)

Keep your valuables on your body, and it can't hurt to take your camera and stuff along with you in your daypack on your daily outings, certainly when staying in budget-type places. In very crowded situations or when you feel it's dodgy, you may wanna carry your daypack towards your chest; this applies to any country though, not just India.

Securing your pack in your room seems totally unnecessary to me; you may want to position it so that it's not within reach of any windows, not even for "angling" devices (as in under the bed or so). This certainly applies to e.g. some popular beach places.

You can secure your pack on trains if you like, there are handles provided underneath the seats for this purpose. You can buy a light chain and padlock for a couple of Rupees outside of most train stations, it's just to stop snatch-and-run type action, no one will come by with a boltcutter, and if they would when you're asleep there's little to do about it anyway, so you don't need some heavy-duty lock for it. I like my pack itself lockable for the same reason, again, a light small padlock will do, handy on flights as well.

Seriously, don't fret too much. I noticed your other thread: Is everybody out to get me? ; India is a nice place really, it may take some getting to grips with and getting accustomed to, but if you're gonna be wary of everything, you won't have much fun. People there are generally decent folks, just like you and I.

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mparker

Yeah, I've talked to a couple of people who advised me to take every precaution. Normally I wouldn't really worry about it. I guess my paranoia is a result of my complete uncertainty as to what I'm walking into. I've been all over the world but for some reason can't even get a good mental picture of what India will be like. The responses I've gotten to my posts really have me feeling a bit silly as to my level of concern. I'm traveling alone for 3 weeks and have no contacts in India, so it's a bit of a nerve-frazzling preparation period. I figure once I'm there I'll be alright... it's the planning leading up to the trip. Anyway, I'm glad to hear I'm being unnecessarily worried. Thanks, guys.

machadinha

No problem, and it's understandable, and there sure are some weird and dire warnings flying around about the place. Rest assured that downtown Bogotá it's not A word of comfort: Petty theft aside (and you can get pickpocketed where I live, which is not in India), unlike in many other places direct violent crime against tourists in India is extremely uncommon.

Suggest reading around this site some more, and reading some guidebooks, to ease your nerves. Flying out there all tense with anticipation won't be necessarily avoided (I know I did), but once you're there let's hope that like many you'll find it's really not such a difficult place, let alone a frightening one.

70s-80s overlander

On the one hand I agree with the general comments given thus far: be as alert as you would be in any LARGE crowd [and large crowds are a lot more common in India than in many other places].

On the other hand:
(a) Taking a bag [or clothing] that obviously "looks" military [eg, in camouflage cloth] might not be wise;
(b) "Watching your back" -- ie, being able to swing your bag to the side or even front [thus I avoid backpacks per se] probably is wise;
(c) "Watching your back" includes preferentially leaning against a wall when resting, so that no one can be behind you;
(d) Taking several minutes to focus your camera or to take care of excretion needs is a vulnerable time;
(e) Joining the CRUSH getting on some trains/buses -- even planes is a vulnerable time [thus I routinely take off my glasses before trying to board transport in Asian countries].

A good rule for crowds always is -- "Don't do anything stupid".

Elsewhere on this site you'll see my recommendation to make polite, respectful visual or verbal contact, when possible, with an apparent elder or business person.

At the first sign of a street demonstration, get your bag and you out of there. Now.

Frankly, I don't think you are being too careful. Always LOOK like you know what you're doing, know where you're going. If you've done all the common sense things to avoid looking like an easy target, then, actually, you might find it easier to relax. Almost anywhere in the world it is the easy targets that attract attention from the wrong people.

machadinha

Good point really; it's my reason as well to not like backpacks (as in the big pack you carry). I find a shoulderbag handier also for jumping on moving buses and stuff (and for not knocking innocent bystanders about all the time unwittingly carrying an unseen second you on your back), it just makes you more flexibly mobile, and makes you feel less like the ubiquitous tourist that you obviously are anyway. A shoulderbag is obviously not so great for walking anything more than say from the bus station to your hopefully nearby hotel, so for any remotely serious walking, get a backpack by all means.

For daypacks, if I carry a small backpack/rucksack on holidays I won't wear it with both straps on my shoulders and on my back, rather on one strap with the front end dangling towards me again. To get distracted by one person and having that pack on your back fleeced by the other is a common ruse anywhere in the world.

the opoponax

This stuff, I don't know. Seems a leetle bit overkill to me.

I never worried about someone being behind me. Firstly, if your day bag is at your side or front (I like to keep a hand on mine, as well), and your wallet is not in your back pocket, this isn't really much of an issue. This isn't prison - you're not going to get shivved. Not only that, but in your average crowded public place, yes, there will be people behind you. Generally minding their own business, doing the same thing you're doing. I bet the guy in front of you isn't too worried about your intentions, either. Of course, if someone is suddenly right up behind you invading your personal space, in a relatively uncrowded place, THEN you do want to be extra vigilant.

If I want to do something touristy like look at a map, fidget with my camera, or flip through guidebook pages, I do try to find a discreet area off to the side. You don't want to broadcast that you're a stranger with no idea where you're going or what you're doing. I rip out a few relevant pages of my guidebook rather than carrying the whole book around. Others rip off the cover, deface it with duct tape, etc.

Also, I doubt going to the bathroom (if this is what Overlander is talking about?) is really going to be a safety risk. Well, unless you're squatting at the toilet and you have a lot of small valuable objects in your pockets, of course! Maybe there's some male urinal weirdness that I'm just not aware of, but I felt fine taking my sweet time in any toilet. In fact this can be a good time to double check my map, make sure I remembered to take my ATM card out of my money pouch, and other things you really don't want an audience for.

Really, the usual precautions you'd take in any large city are enough, as others have said. Look like you know where you're going. Don't carry your wallet in your back pocket. Don't flash around valuables or wads of big bills. Be aware of your surroundings. Don't let your daybag out of your sight.

I feel like a backpack is conspicuous, as well -- especially when worn or carried in front. It basically screams I'm A Rich Western Backpacker.

In a tense situation, a polite greeting or making some connection with an elder is a really good idea. As a woman alone, I always tried to keep an eye out for what I termed an "NRI Auntie" -- someone who has a very high level of status in Indian society, who can also potentially help with language and cultural difficulties (and probably wants to chat with you, anyway!). Maybe an "NRI Uncle" is the male equivalent in your situation?

70s-80s overlander

I may be male, but, in any culture, I would always try quietly to catch the attention of the "NRI Auntie" equivalent. In many parts of the world it is the the middle-aged or older woman carrying a briefcase -- which signals that she runs a business. If you sit within visual contact of someone like this she will not let you be cheated, attacked, or abused -- as she has the honor of her people to uphold. Given a choice between trusting the "NRI Auntie" equivalent or the "NRI Uncle" equivalent, I'd always vote for the auntie/businesswoman.

the opoponax

The nice thing about being female, especially in Indian culture which is relatively sex-segregated, is that it was very easy to secure this sort of guardian angel. Not merely in a "this person knows I exist and is not going to let me get ripped off" way, but in the sense of intensive social interactions. Almost in an honorary daughter/niece/granddaughter sense. I had a lot of amazing conversations with older women in India.

Oyar

A bit out of context .. I always carry my wallet in my back pocket. Touchwood .. never had a bad experience .. but then it also could be because its very thick (more out of imp bills & visiting cards, etc )
Its so thick that i myself have difficulty removing it! so i genuinely feel that if someone else were to attempt it - i would feel it.

I once happened to be in a late night train, which arrived at its final destination & I continued to remain asleep (sleeper class). The entire compartment got empty & I was left blissfully dreaming. I could feel somone tugging at my rear .. but because i was enjoying my dream ... I did not realise wat was happening. Finally when the thick wallet came out ... I suddenly woke up & realised what happened. I turned around yelling the choiciest of indian abuses & the 3 teenagers just dropped the wallet & fled as though they had seen a ghost.

It was hilarious... but i was really lucky that i still had my wallet.

edwardseco

Yes, that is not only a risk from theft but simple loss as happened once to me. The cleaner found it and returned it to me..

vmehra24

Carrying a backpack in a crowd is not safe-- for other people that may be recipent of knocks.

Brisso

Four trips for 11 months - never had an issue or known anyone that did. More than once I have been chased down after leaving a dhaba and had small items returned to me.

I also fell asleep for an hour on a Mumbai suburban train with my day pack beside me - it was still there when I woke. I'm not sure that would have been the case in my home town.

Nick-H

This is something I was severely warned against in London, some decades ago --- an indication of the relative safety of India.

I do agree with vmehra24; backpackers often totally neglect other people, seeming oblivious to the extra space they take up. Many times I have suffered from this on London's trains!

I saw a photograph in the newspaper a day or two ago; some foreign girls on some sort of volunteer project, wielding brooms. One of them had her pack on her back. Is she welded to the thing? Does she seriously not put it down even for work? Very odd!

India is a country in which a tourist's daily allowance, even a low-budget tourist, is a lot of money. Temptation on the wrong day can make a thief out of a good person.

There are areas and circumstances where one should be wary of thieves, railways and stations have been mentioned, but, on a day to basis, out on the street, it is safer than London.

Not that India is totally populated by angels! But those who do thieve on the streets are interested in that which is as good as cash: eg gold chains from the neck of a woman. Taking a camera, for instance, would be far too much hassle.

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