How to Prevent Yourself from Being Pickpocketed in New York City

As a young man having grown up in New York City, one of the best big cities in America, you learn a thing or two when walking around the streets of Manhattan. One thing that is annoying is the fact that Manhattan has become synonymous with New York City. Tourists always get this wrong. Manhattan is in New York City but there are four other borough and about 5 million people who live in New York City but not in the borough of Manhattan. Another thing I have noticed is that tourists have a bad habit of getting pick pocketed in New York City, especially in Time Square which is the area most frequently visited by tourists.

Time Square as many of you already have read or seen, is the most glamorous area of New York City. Big lights and billboards pave the streets of Time Square. Big television screen with advertisements fill the sky. Wall Street stock quotes and daily breaking news flashes on the street signs. It is simply a marvelous place to go to, and I still marvel at it even though I have lived there my whole life.

The streets and area in Time Square and in Manhattan are absolutely packed with tourists. You can easily spot a tourist as a native New Yorker because the tourists all have their cameras and camcorders out looking up at the giant skyscrapers and taking pictures and pointing everywhere to their children. The accent is also a dead giveaway. If you are from the South, you definitely talk differently than a person from New York City. You can usually spot a tourist because they are also the people yelling "help" after their wallet has been stolen and they have been pick pocketed.

Crime was pretty bad in Times Square in the 1970s but in the 1990s when Mayor Rudolph Giuliani took office he cleaned up the streets and puts nearly a hundred police officers in Times Square to patrol the area. However, no matter how many policemen you put in Times Square, pick pocketing will happen every day because tourists who visit New York City just don't act smart. Because the streets are so crowded, you have to make sure that you wallet and valuable items on you are safe and secure. Don't leave you book bag open that has your wallet. And don't put your wallet in an easily accessible zipper compartment on your book bag which someone could easily open without you noticing.

Some people bring a pouch and hang it around their waist which is a great idea. Other people put their wallet and cash in a zippered compartment within a zippered compartment in their book bag.

If you decide to put your cash and wallet in your pant pocket, don't wear very baggy pants because then your wallet can be stolen without you even realizing it. Make sure that items from your pockets cannot easily be taken out. If you are wearing loose jeans or pants, DO NOT put your cash or wallet in your back pocket. That is just asking for trouble.

Furthermore, do not stare at the giant billboards and poster with your neck reached to the sky because then you become prey for pick pocketers. Make sure that someone you know is watching you and your belongings if you are videotaping something or taking a picture of something. Also, do not put your bag down unattended because I guarantee that it will be taken before you get back.