Comments on: Dude, Is That A Passport In Your Pants, Or Are You Just Happy To See Me? (Citation: CLB)

By: Daniel Fleek

Daniel Fleek — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 21:10:37 +0000

I’m going to wear a fanny pack the whole time… just kidding. When I was in Mexico a few years back, I had my wallet stolen out of our camp so since then, I always leave valuables behind locked doors. Luckily, I kept my money in two different places so I still had half of my money. Likewise, I will probably do the same in China only carrying what I need for the day and leaving the rest of my valuables in the hotel. I think your idea of carrying around copies and having a copy as a PDF are good ideas as I don’t want to get randomly searched and have no documents to show so that’s the plan I will follow when I go to China.

By: Ashley Tyra

Ashley Tyra — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 06:39:46 +0000

Having proper identification is not something that should be taken lightly. I too have heard many horror stories of tourists not carrying identification and getting stopped, as well as tourists losing original forms of identification. Both situations can have unimaginable consequences—hopefully no one in our group will have an issue with either of these.

By: Fred S.

Fred S. — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 06:16:32 +0000

When I visited Costa Rica 2 years ago, my entire backpack got stolen from the trunk of our car. I was never farther than 20 ft from the car. It was a setup. Almost everything I had for the trip was in that backpack, except for my passport, wallet, and money. Since then, I have been very careful in pay attention to where my important documents are at all times. I was lucky that time. Most of the time I will keep my documents on me unless I am unsure about the place I am going that day and feel I might get mugged. If I do leave it behind, I make sure I trust the place that it stays and is secure. Having the copies of documents is good. And emailing yourself the documents is a good idea. I will do that.

By: Jeffrey Brown

Jeffrey Brown — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 22:25:07 +0000

Having electronic copies of everything is an excellent idea! I will be following that advice for sure but still have not determined if I should carry my actual passport with me. If I decide to, I will definitely invest in something such as a neck pouch to keep it as safe as possible. I never keep anything in my back pockets (always carry wallet in front right) so at least that will not be as much of a concern for me. Any thoughts about other belongings, such as phones and other expensive electronics? Leave in the hotel room, carry in a backpack, etc.?

By: Grant

Grant — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 23:17:31 +0000

Roger that! By the way, I got a nice collared travel shirt from REI once that had a hidden passport pocket, but I’m not sure our trip’s dress code will allow it.
I’ve never lost one, but a friend got his passport pick pocketed right in front of us in Buenos Aires. We grabbed the guy, but he did a handoff to an accomplice. What do you do with the guy when his buddy is now gone? You have no proof, so you let him go and spend the next week at the consulate trying to figure out how you are going to be able to get on the plane to get home. Que pena!

By: Keith Cody

Keith Cody — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 07:58:25 +0000

Since this information is 4 years old, we really do need an update. I’ll ask some of the underclassmen when they get back what methods they used.

I think you should take the precautions that you feel are necessary when you travel. You will stick out, and many travels have a horror story. Find a method that makes you feel comfortable and stick to it. I’ll be carrying mine with me at all time, since it’s the law. Unless I’m doing something dodgy. In that case I’ll leave it in the hotel safe. I’ve made it back to the US from Australia without my passport before. I merely showed my driver’s license and I was in like Flynn.

By: Vladimir

Vladimir — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 06:48:17 +0000

The neck pouch is a good idea. I will also have paper and electronic copies of my passport. You can have two wallets, one which has some cash, which you can throw if you face armed robbers. The second one, with your important cards can be in the pouch, or at least a separate location. Don’t give the impression of wealth and make yourself a target. I have a friend who was robbed in Mexico by four armed men, selected because his buddy flashed his cash and wore an expensive watch. It looks like this is unlikely to happen to us in China and that being pickpocketed or having a hotel room burglarized is what we need to prepare against. We should avoid letting anyone know when we will not be in our rooms. You might want to leave the TV or radio on or on a timer tuned to a local channel when you’re out.

By: Charles Dornbush

Charles Dornbush — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 21:08:18 +0000

I think the safest policy is to keep copies of my passport and important information with me at all times. Keeping the original on my person seems very risky considering getting it stolen will probably to a couple day long affair.

When we have more meetings spring quarter, I think this is an important subject to talk more about (what people’s strategies are, what info they will keep on them, etc.) I also am wondering what the current climate for random checks are post-Olympics.

By: Georgia

Georgia — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 00:01:16 +0000

It’s a conundrum, if you carry your passport it could get stolen, but if you don’t you could get in trouble with the law. I have traveled abroad before never to a country where this was an issue. It makes me wonder what it would be like to live in a country where you consistently had to be ready to prove your identity, especially if you weren’t native. Losing my passport scares me and I hope that everyone is cautious and everything goes smoothly.

By: Kevin K.

Kevin K. — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 21:33:13 +0000

I grabbed this off a US Dept. of State website (http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1089.html) “Chinese law requires that you carry a passport or residence permit at all times; Chinese authorities will not accept a photocopy.”

So it seems that at least for the 2012 edition of this trip carrying your passport with you wherever you go is the way to go. The only thing is the risks involved if you happen to lose your passport or get it stolen you will be in a bit of trouble. But you are also running a risk of these supposed random checks in China, either way there’s a risk. I think I will be carrying mine in my pockets at all times, just to be safe. I’ll probably just have to be prepared to be a bit paranoid when it comes to keeping the document safe.