Our first day in Paris was simply amazing. We began our journey with a stroll through the park near my brother's place. We passed two different ponds the second of which we could rent row boats. That might be a consideration later in our trip, but the banks are covered with lush green grasses and flower gardens of various colors. The path we walked is also used by an equestrian group, so there were plenty of land bombs to look for as we progressed. The ponds were so picturesque that I would swear that some of the Monet paintings were made of the area.
As we continued our walk into Paris, we came across two rather large museums. In between these museums was a small open mall filled with tourists, street performers, souvenir peddlers, and a perfect view of the Eiffel Tower. We took several pictures of the surrounding area, the tower, and other landmarks. From there we headed to the Gallery at Lafayette; shopping.
To get to the shopping area required a ride on the subway. Unlike all of the subways I've ridden, this one does not use rails; it uses tires on a metal track. This made for a very smooth and quiet ride. As we were waiting for the train, everything seemed normal. The train arrived, at at about the last second to board, we boarded by cramming past a few others. When I got onto the train, I instantly noticed that my left pocket, the one with my wallet was suddenly lighter; I had been bumped by one child that was the "bumper" and the second 14 year old girl robbed me of my wallet. The second I noticed it happened, I looked behind me and noticed the older teenager slowly putting her hand into the backside of her large purse; larger than a 14 or 15 year old should have. I realized at that moment the thief was there. I immediately grabbed her purse and yanked a few times to tear it out of her arms to retrieve my wallet. During my rapid attack she pulled out the wallet and dropped it on the ground. In the seconds that followed, she and her partner exited the train looking for another victim of their trade. I was so angry at that point all I wanted was to get off and chase her down. But the train doors were closed and the train was moving. I left her at the station with a loud, angry salutation, "Bitch"! She motioned back I was crazy but this crazed person realized that I had won the battle. I'm also the first guest of my brother's to be pick pocketed. To that I yell BINGO!
That's pretty great timing on your part.
ReplyDeleteMy sister-in-law was really impressed by my timing. In a sense I've been on a heightened alert since arriving to Paris. I'm always on the lookout for would be criminals because in France, they value privacy more than security; opposite of the US. So cameras are not all over the place looking for such activity. In fact, the police consider this a petty crime; absconding with your possessions or worse, your identity. Fortunately my wallet was on the ground after the altercation, and I retrieved it, rather unscathed. Nothing was missing, but my heart was racing, and my daughter was really shaken-up. It affected her whole day, which is one problem the police don't care about either.
ReplyDeleteI wanted revenge, but my brother said she was only 14 at best. If I had gone to attack mode and attacked her, I was likely to come across police attacking me until the situation was explained. That's how these young criminals get away with what they do. Society still considers them too innocent to be criminals until a preponderance of facts is provided. According to a bystander on the train, the worst that would happen to the young criminal is they would be held for a few hours then released. Unfortunately, the real crime I'm told is that these children are working for serious criminals; sort of a pimp. They collect their loot and provide it to a boss. I've been told that some of these children are possibly illegally brought into the country as human traffic, sold as labor, and lead a terrible life. But I still want revenge. And for that, I am troubled.