I Wish I Was On "Thomas the Train"

“Nothing is a waste of time 

if you use the experience wisely.” 

~Auguste Rodin

Too bad Thomas The Train isn't real...

Sunday night, after a perfect weekend in Reggio celebrating my birthday with my friends, I thought nothing could go wrong.

I was floating on cloud 9 from my happiness.

Then I woke up to the frantic sound of my friend's voice...

It was 5:45 in the morning, we had slept peacefully throughout the entire evening in our sleeper cabin; door locked tight, baggage secured, my purse wrapped around my head.

Michelle’s voice caused me to jump out of my bed.

“Marissa,” she said, “there were two men in our room, and they took my wallet.”

My heart stopped immediately. 

The other women in our cabin woke up. And started to panic.

So many questions went running through my mind.

How did they get in? What did they take?

Where did they go? Where was MY purse?

I rushed out of my cabin, ready to track down the thieves. My purse, which was wrapped around my head had been taken right from underneath me. Michelle’s wallet had been stolen, and a women’s briefcase was missing. 

“They would not get away with this,” I thought. 

But, there was a staggering feeling in my 

heart that  it was an impossible mission.

More and more people began waking up, all of the cabins had been broken into. The train stewards were on their phones, calling the police and searching for our things. 

Thankfully, my purse was found under a bed, everything intact, except for my phone. My body let out a big sigh of relieft when I saw my black purse in Michelle’s hands. And she let out a big cry when her wallet was uncovered stashed away in the bathroom, everything intact except 125 Euro.

For a thirty minutes, I panicked for the first time while living in Italy. I felt completely lost, without any clue on what to do. How could I have not woken up to someone breaking into our cabin, taking my purse from underneath me?

I was angry. Upset. Scared.

We could never properly identify the thieves, Michelle had only seen them leaving our room. And as the the train stopped in Rome, it was impossible to search everyone.

With good fortune, a phone and a few hundred Euro is nothing to be too strongly upset over. They are just material things. But the idea of having strangers so close to me as I lay sleeping is a feeling I would not like to experience again. 

We’ve been warned over and over again about the safety precautions to take when traveling, no matter where we go. 

But never did I imagine a locked door on a train guarded by stewards would be broken into.

Lesson learned. Lesson never to be forgotten.

I think I’ll carry my mace with me every where I go, and sleep with one eye open.