Purse stolen off lap at restaurant
Should Have Left it in the Hotel—Gisela and Ludvig Horst checked into their Barcelona hotel and immediately got into an argument. Gisela did not…
Thieves in airports
So you’ve made it through security. Does that mean you’re in a secure area? Not secure enough to relax your attention. Thieves have been…
Eat shit
Mala Mala, South Africa— Our mischievous rangers convinced some in our safari group of an old “African tradition” while out walking in the bush….
Alexandra Township
Johannesburg, South Africa— I spent a day in Alexandra Township last month, where half a million people live in organized squalor in three square…
Observations of Japan
Just back from Japan with a few shallow thoughts: I like the Japanese philosophies of beauty and simplicity, love the food, but can’t get…
Confessions of an airport thief
Kharem’s Lucky Haul Kharem, a pickpocket in Spain, sometimes chooses Barcelona’s airport over the rich pickings of the city. When Bob and I again…
Airport danger and the strategist thief
“Did you know you’re wearing mismatched shoes?” a well-dressed Englishman said to our friend, Brooks, at London’s Heathrow airport one day. Brooks was talking…
Freak accidents (involving projectiles and trash cans)
1. Traipsing through another airport—where were we, passing through Chicago, maybe?—we mounted a mile-high escalator, going up. (Which is the only way escalators should…
African safari
Just back from safari in South Africa—21 of us on a family trip. My sister Shari wrote this report: We’re driving along a dirt…
Hiring a professional thief
Great feature article on Bob Arno in the March/April 2009 issue of American Entertainment Magazine. Full of quotes, reads like advertising copy. Terrible website,…
Golden silk orb weaver spider
Mala Mala and Kruger National Park, South Africa— Spiders were an everpresant danger to a number of our safari group, to the extent that…
Ragged right
Coogee Beach, Australia— I spend a lot of time on our hotel balcony because the view is spectacular. The weather is glorious and the…
Necessity is the mother of…
Coogee Beach, Australia—From our hotel, we walk around the corner to The Globe for “brekkie” every morning. We’re regulars on the stools at the…
Singapore ice cream
Singapore ice cream What sounds more scrumptious that “bread ice cream?” Scallion pancakes, Dutch waffles, and durian come to my mind, along with a…
At large in Rome
We spent some time observing this woman in Rome. She carried a child in a sling and walked with another woman. We thought we…
Taxi trickery
After an eventful overnight train journey we were disgorged into a very foreign Sunday morning. Not a single sign in Prague’s main train terminal…
Hotel oddity
To wash, but not to dream… A full-length, fully-opening glass window in the marble shower allows me an expansive view while washing. I can…
Yet another generic paradise
Paradise is paradise, I’m not complaining. Lunch in Naples, Florida Tuesday was a delight. You know: balmy breezes, swaying palm trees, gentle surf lapping…
English as a second language
Heard at the front desk: “Checking out, sir?” “Yes.” “Hope you enjoyed your stay. Your bill, sir…” “How can I owe $670?” “It’s only…
Dutch prostitute raves about Bob Arno
Walking through Amsterdam’s red light district, we reminisced about the three months we lived at the Krasnapolsky, around the corner. As we wandered, Bob…
Windows Mobile 6.5 demo phone stolen at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona
Message to Telsta executive pickpocket victim: don’t beat yourself up. It happens to lots of visitors to Barcelona. So many, that events are starting…
The making of counterfeit fashion
Counterfeit fashion If you’ve been to Europe, you’ve no doubt had to walk a wide berth around a sheetful of counterfeit handbags laid out…
Las Vegas’ most prolific prostitutes
52-Pickup—Las Vegas police are suddenly, aggressively, picking up prostitutes in the “resort corridor” of the city. Armed with a deck—or a list, anyway—of our…
Las Vegas people
There’s no question that Las Vegas attracts an upside-down bell curve of residents, no matter what scale one uses for measurement. We have a…
My 2008 travel stats
Mid-08, I noted my travel stats year-to-date. Here’s how the year wrapped up. I made 105 takeoffs and landings during the calendar year. I…
Gomorrah: The Camorra of Naples
I wonder if Bob and I should have bodyguards, like Roberto Saviano does. We, like Saviano, write about and expose the Camorra, Naples’ infamous…
Bus garden
When was the last time you were delighted by a public bus? This one, in Mykonos, did it for me. The driver had turned…
Violence in Mexico
A few days ago, a foreigner arrived at Mexico City’s international airport and exchanged money there. What he didn’t know was that he was…
Dead zone
Seeking answers, or shared experiences: On a first class cross-country flight last weekend, the trackpad of Bob’s MacBook Air refused to work. His cursor…
Suckers, high and dry
I can’t remember ever having eaten dried octopus, but I’m not saying I wouldn’t. There they were, looking festive, a row of fresh ones…