how I use the internet

well mostly it uses and abuses me
but ONCE in a while I use it to further my knowledge and expand my experience of the world from this safe little place up high in the mountains

This past summer, my daughter began to talk of traveling to Europe, and to Spain and to Barcelona in particular. Her Spanish teacher has a trip planned for 2010 that Hannah probably will not be able to manage with her studies. I have a blogger friend in Spain so the first way I used my internet resources was to ask her advice re the safety of traveling to Barcelona and how best to enjoy that experience.
The next step was to g**gle the words Barcelona and crime rate.... DING DING! Ding! did I get results! woo hoo
Seems like some folks think that Barcelona is the theft capital of the EU and perhaps the world... I found the brilliant writings of Bob Arnot and ThiefHunters
I take no delight in tearing down another city ( i hate almost all of them equally)
and neither does the author. His travel advisory is both a warning and a tutorial on how to avoid being a victim, and he also takes time to school the authorities on what the negative perception of their city is and will be doing to the tourist trade.

Check it out... Bob and his wife are professional pickpockets who use their skills in a comedy/ educational show that they have presented onboard cruise ships, to help people avoid crime in port. He goes one step further, he steals BACK what the pickpocket took, so that he can get a chance to talk with them about their work... seems like thieves respect someone who can out-snatch them.

I read his stuff for hours, but if you don't have that long... read for a few minutes and be smarter and less likely to be a victim..

AFter talking to my blogger friend I knew I would have to go with My Hannah.
after reading Bob, I knew we would go somewhere safer, Like Israel! Shalom