Travel safe: B&B or luxury hotel?

Recently I've written an article about a robbery at the Hilton Hotel of Fiumicino Airport and I happen to think about it now and then. I've read about robberies and I've also been a victim sometimes, but this story has something unusual.

First of all, the fact that it happened in the Hall of the Hilton Hotel is definitely not common. Travelers, in fact, expect to get robbed more at the bus stop, on the tube, near a dodgy train station, but at the Hilton, we (at least, I) would expect some security guards around.

As I've described in the article, after the robbery, the staff of the hotel didn't rush to help the victims, proved reluctant to cooperate and their security guard appeared after half an hour. This makes me wonder: is it possible that at the Hilton is so easy to rob? Is it possible that a worldwide chain employs so unprofessional people?

According to the victim, Mr Carecci, the hotel refused to show the CCTV, so they are still waiting to know the police response.

Are we so exposed when we travel? Also, how exactly does it work at the Hilton Hotel: anybody can come in? Are there not security guards at the entrance?

After the robbery, Mr Carecci run after the thieves, who have had plenty of time to flee. What was the hotel's staff doing that particular moment? Why was the place so unprotected? Do these events happen often?

Finally, the thieves aimed directly at Mr Carecci's briefcase. Usually briefcases contain working-papers relating to companies, pretty much useless to common thieves, that's why pick-pocketers rather prefer personal bags: did they know they would have found a so high amount of cash?

This event is very unpleasant, first of all for Mr Carecci and his family, but quite ugly also for the other business travelers regular customers of the Hilton Hotel.

Is London becoming intolerant to tourism?

Not only tourism, but also simple life in London is becoming harder: "security reasons."

What security? And especially, what's the danger? Now that the excuse of international terrorism is becoming more and more incongruous, Londoners and tourists in the UK are wondering what are the reasons for this increasing hostility and harshness from the police and security services in general.

I had written an article back in April about this topic, when a tourist was stopped and asked to delete all his pictures from his camera. That seemed to have been an isolated case, but unfortunately it wasn't: a photographer friend of mine was asked (read: forced) by the police to delete all her pictures from her camera. Reason? "You can't take photos of buildings?" Um... What??? "But it's my job!" My friend tried to explain. "Sorry, luv." The end.

Yesterday I read an article from Tom Gates, editor at Matador Nights, about his recent misadventure at Heathrow Airport. He was pretty gentle, I would have put in place all the loudest aspects Italians are (in)famous all over the world for. Easy prey, he might have been, but the truth is that security, or whatever officers, shouldn't be allowed of treating people like this.

After CCTV all over the place, a disgraceful anti-terror media campaign, able only to foment fear of your neighbour, the atmosphere in the UK is getting heavier. Good aspect of all this? The late campaign didn't work, people are waking up and human empathy is growing.