Planning everything and anything even remotely related to traveling has of course made me consider the possibility of theft on the road. Someone might in some part of the trip try to pickpocket or even mug us when we're out there in the scary world (not saying it couldn't happen at home, it would just feel stupid to prepare to these things here…). The word on the street is that a tourist is always an easy target for would be robbers and what not, since we usually carry valuables with us and we're a somewhat clueless bunch.

However, as always, I come prepared, at least for the pickpockets etc. If someone pulls a knife or a gun on me they get exactly what they want, no questions asked. It is hence the less violent crimes that I plan on preventing by the following methods:

1. Starting with simple precautions, I've added a 20cm string to my wallet, the other end of which I attach to the belt loop on my pants. I'm hoping this will not show too obviously to the crooks, telling them "hey, my wallet is in this pocket by the way!" The idea is that if someone actually tries to grab the wallet, they let go as soon as they encounter a complication.

2. Quite similarly, but more refined, I have a string on my phone as well. The only difference is that there's also a small clip involved, allowing me to detach the phone from my pants should I need it.

3. My backpack has a clever design of its own, letting me open it from the front through a zipper, rather than just from the top through an opening closed by tightening a rope. The zipper is actually so practical, that I'm going to be using it exclusively. The zipper, as well as another one lower in the backpack, can be locked easily with a simple small combination lock. The top opening however needed a different type of solution and lock, but as I managed to lock it as well, the main compartment of my backpack is completely sealed as long as no-one pulls out a knife (again with the violence…). The lock is another combination lock, but it has an 80cm retractable wire that I slid through the tunnel the string uses. After I tightened the string and retracted the wire, the hole became too small for at least my hand to slip through. I also have another type of thin wire, 1 meter long, that I can loop through itself around something and then attach the other end to one of the locks on the backpack.

4. My money belt. I have the normal wear-it-under-your-clothes-and-sweat-like-a-pig-type, which I'm planning on using, but I also have a DIY-version, which I'm definitely going to use. I added a normal wide zipper to the inner surface of a normal canvas belt by sewing. The pocket it creates is just big enough to hold a few carefully rolled bills of American dollars protected by plastic. It also holds a copy of my passport. This easy to build and to use last resort for emergency cash has been in use on numerous trips before and it's coming with me on this one as well.

5. I also have a case for my phone that can be worn around my arm. It's somewhat practical when jogging but not so much anywhere else. I'm still considering maybe taking it with me for two reasons. One, I can store my phone in it when I sleep in dorms or trains. Two, I could wear it around my ankle and store some emergency cash or a credit card in there. Still not sure on this…

6. Last of my serious ideas is about our engagement and wedding rings. We both have two golden rings which we wear at home every day, but should one stop to think about the cost of these small pieces of metal one might not want to take them on a journey around the world. That is why we bought fake ones! They look somewhat the same as the original ones, so we get to wear the rings without having to worry about losing the expensive ones.

7. Anyone not familiar with the Finnish traveler duo of Madventures will surely appreciate this tip: go to a jewel store, buy a diamond, go to a plastic surgeon and have them insert the diamond beneath your skin. If done properly, the risk of infection is very low and it is a simple matter of getting drunk enough and finding something sharp to get back on your feet after you get robbed for everything else your worth.

Personally, I won't be using the last resort. I'm just spreading the word for anyone willing to use such measures.

-Tuomas