How to not get kidnapped or stolen from while traveling.

The first thing people had to say when I told them I was volunteering/backpacking abroad:  What if you get kidnapped? How do you know this is safe? 

Me, not scared, just done after walking miles in the icy cold. Ireland 2012.

I get where they are coming from.. An 18 year old girl, flying out of the country for her first time, not to mention alone, 5,000+ miles away from home, in the big, foreign, scary land of Europe where creepy middle-aged men pickpocket your belongings or throw you in a prostitution ring. Well, if you say it like that then yeah, Europe does seem scary as hell...... but y'all are a little too paranoid. Rachel's top safety tips:

1. Educate yourself about the horrible things that do happen to people who go abroad.
• The biggest and scariest ones: Sex trafficking and being conned by strangers. Yes, it is a very real and serious tragedy but can easily be avoided by being an educated traveler (even if it is your first time) NOT a naive, happy-go-lucky one. Here is a three piece series about safety written by Solotraveler because I feel she has got the point across better than I ever could. READ THEM, THEY ARE IMPORTANT!
• Solo Travel: Stranger Danger Part I
• Solo Travel Danger Part II: Caught in a Con Game
• Solo Travel Danger Part III – Recognizing Danger
2. Watch your bags. Watch your valuables. Keep them hidden. Don't show them off.
• Keep money/cards/tickets/passport in a money belt under your clothes. 
• Keep all electronics in pocket that is either locked or not easily accessible to pickpocketers. 
• Here is an informative article about pickpockets. Just read it. Stop being lazy.
3. Walk confidently and with a purpose like you know where you are going even if you're not even sure you're walking on the right side of the fecking street! Just keep acting like a koool kat 8)
4. Trust your intuition. That gut feeling. Feel the vibes man~
• Is it feeling a little sketchy? Don't ride that wave of doesn't-feel-rightness dude. Trust yourself and get out of there.