Let’s level set.
My mother is 85 and lives in Florida.
I’m 59 and I travel the world full-time.
So when I returned to the US for a visit this summer, all types of reverse culture shock slammed right into me. Costco. 4-lane interstates. Cheap gas.
And she asked, “Do you carry a gun?"
The gun question flabbergasted me.
We were talking about safety around the world. As mothers ask, which they should, she wondered if I ever felt unsafe as I traveled the world.
While I do travel with my husband, I often travel alone, making myself a single solo female traveler. But whether I’m with my husband or by myself, I have only ever felt unsafe once.
Robbed at Gunpoint
Two men with AK-47s pointed them at my hiking group and demanded our cash and jewelry.
In Mexico.
Outside of Oaxaca.
That was eight years ago.
Since Then
I’ve been traveling the world as a nomad for the past five and half years. And not once have I felt unsafe.
Not in Thailand, Australia, Argentina, Peru, France, Ireland or The Netherlands.
Or any of the other 60 countries I’ve been in.
Back trails and alleys included.
Now of course in big cities like Paris, Kuala Lumpur, Vancouver, and Mexico City, I do the smart things; I don’t stay out after 11 pm, I don’t walk in unlit places, and I listen to the locals about where to go/not go.
Where I Feel the Most Unsafe?
Wal-mart. Large outdoor concerts in the USA. College campuses. Las Vegas.
So back to my mom and her question, “Do you carry a gun?”
Let’s break down this question. My mom is pretty savvy; she’s still working, able bodied and full of vigor. But somehow, she’s gotten it into her brain that I would be safer traveling the world if I were packing—not luggage—heat. A pistol. A gun. A weapon with bullets.
First, I can’t even imagine the nightmares I’d have to logistically challenge if I were carrying a firearm with me across borders.
Let’s just assume that I could.
I can’t.
But let’s go with the craziness of my mother’s question.
Where Are the Guns?
I did a bit of research on the guns around the world topic. The US is the only country that allows easy access to guns. Switzerland, Czech Republic, Panama, Austria and the Philippines allow “shall-issue” laws which mean that if you pass all the rules and regs, they’ll issue a permit.
Mexico and Guatemala grant constitutional rights for guns, but Mexico only has one legal gun store in the entire country.
The remaining 180 other countries do not have the right to own firearms. (gunpolicy.org, wikipedia)
My mom believes that good guys with guns will protect us from bad guys with guns.
Which begs the question, which do we have more of in the US: good guys or bad guys? Cuz there’s a lotta shootin going on.
Frankly, I don’t want to and I refuse to carry a gun to go get a loaf of bread.
Do Guns Equal Crime?
So back to travel and safety.
Granted, the world isn’t perfect. There’s crime everywhere.
While larceny and burglary are the most likely crimes that could occur to me, and these crimes are prevalent in many of the countries in which I travel, I take steps to prevent them happening to me.
I don't
Wear expensive jewelry
Carry cash that I flash
Use designer luggage
Forget my self-defense training
Or highlight my citizenship.
Or on other words, I limit the opportunity to be a target.
Would carrying a gun around the world keep me from being pickpocketed or robbed? And frankly, would I shoot someone in order to protect my most valued things (total replaceable value of my carry-on items ~$1000)?
No. No.
So, no, mom I don’t own a gun.
Instead, I travel the world to enjoy its safety.
While I may get burgled in Bangkok, I’m not going to get randomly shot in Safeway.
I totally agree with all of this. I always tell people I feel safer abroad because I know most of the people I come in contact with are Not carrying a gun. I also defend going to large US cities because I stay in tourist areas, know areas to avoid, and not out after 11. In place of my wedding ring I usually a cheap ring.
I was asked this same question when I lived in South Africa, by white South Africans, when I told them about trips I'd taken in other parts of the continent. They just didn't have any concept of what it was like to travel outside their own country, and just assumed everywhere was dangerous.
Carrying a gun across borders seems like the most ridiculous thing. All the paperwork, and are you honestly prepared to shoot someone in a foreign country?