If so, would you care to share the tale?
I’ve been assigned the dubious task of writing an article about what to do if you’re arrested abroad (my editor seemed to think that I’d know a little something about this) and I’d like a few anecdotes to include in the piece.
This is for an American audience, so I can only take submissions from Americans.
I’d like to hear where you were, what happened, how it was resolved and, most importantly, what resources you used to get to that resolution.
Events that occurred in Mexico especially welcome, since that’s (by far) the place where Americans are most often arrested. Also desirable are any stories set in Third World countries and places where there is no US Embassy.
I’m also looking for a few anecdotes about being detained and intimidated into a bribe situation, which actually is something I could write about at great length from personal experience, but I’d like to hear others’ stories too.
I’m trying to crank this out in the next few days. If you’d like to help, please email me at the address below. Anonymity, if you so wish, is guaranteed. Thanks!
nope, knock on wood
So far, no arrests. I’ve seen my mother get questioned by the religious police in Saudi Arabia, however.
I dont have any personal stories to share, but I believe I have some friends who do. I will ask around.
So there I sat, crude rope lashing my hands at the wrist, sweat beads dappling my upper lip and defiance gleaming in my eyes as the interrogator added another dank mouthful of cigar smoke to the bluish curtain of humid air around me.
That’s what my story would sound like…but no. The closest I’ve got is a night in a little surfing town north of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. It was pretty late, and some policia came sauntering down the beach. They shined their lights around and told us to get out of the water and get dressed (which, to their credit, was a pretty good idea).
They also arrested a friend who had been trying to subtly change the location of a tiny joint from his hand to underneath some sand. His older brother went to the jail, paid the requisite “mordida” (literally “bite” – meaning: bribe) and the celebracion continued. Luckily the brothers were Mexican and familiar with the system. A savvy traveler could have probably gotten away with a similar bribe, but conversational Spanish (and innuendo and slang comprehension) would go a long way.
How come there are all these stress ads on your blog? They make me anxious
I got a visit from the police telling me how it was Un-Swiss to hang my laundry on Sunday…
Thanks to everyone who commented and emailed. The story turned out quite well. Sadly, it will not be printed until late this summer, so you will just have to fanaticize about how quite well it is until then.