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EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS!!!!My first encounter with international drug laws...BOGUS!
- Thread starter ZeusOGrefugee
- Start date
Somehow, I'm not schocked. Then again I'm old enough to remember Soviet Russia and Eastern Germany, both countries which I travelled through on several occasions. Nedless to say, their border control and security checks were in a league of their own, and the whole system was based on psychological terror, making it as unpleasant as possible. The customs officers were all dressed up like concentration camp guards. They never talked to you, they shouted questions and instructions. Mean looking German Shepherds were never far away, and there was barbed wire everywhere, even at airports. I flew out of Israel recently, and even though they're friendly and highly efficient it takes at least an hour and half to get through the security check. Every piece of clothing is chemically analyzed for traces of explosives, every gadget is scrutinized in smallest detail (they disassembled my digital camera, it was fun to see what it looked like inside), the security interview deals with every little twist and turn in your life. Everything you've done, every place you've been to, every one you've met during your stay. You went to pick up some groceries? Where did you go? Did anybody approach you while shopping? Did anybody handle the groceries for you? Did you make a list of what you bought? Do you still have that list? Do you still carry any of the groceries? Did you keep the receit? I'm not exaggerating, that's the drill. I brought a brand new tent with me because I thought I was going camping, but the weather was bad so I changed my mind. That was a bad move, because when the security officer unpacked the tent he noticed that it had never been used. Why was I carrying a tent if I didn't use it? Was it just to make me look like a happy camper, while I was not? In his book, that was reason enough to spend an extra 15 minutes on double checking every seam of the tent and ask any imaginable question about it. And there's more... I was taken off a train in Chezchoslovakia once by customs police and was detained in a cell for 12 hours, for no apparent reason and without any explanation. In Tanger, I was taken aside by Moroccoan customs police before boarding the ferry to Spain. They demanded me to hand over my wallet, and as I did they took a 100$ from it and said "It's okay, have a nice trip"'. I guess I'm saying that in a far from perfect world, shit can happen, and you better be prepared for it. I would even say that what happened to you was - if not reasonable - logical. Pot smoker tourism in Canada is not more appreciated than sex tourism in Thailand, and that list of cafées sealed your destiny. The same thing could have happened in post 9/11 psycho-America, so no point in nagging about Canada. You need an ID to board a train or a Greyhound, you now need a digital passport to get into the country, or you need a visa. I do have a digital passport, but it won't help me a bit. I overstayed my visa with five days last time I visited the US, which means I cannot return within 3-5 years. There's the land of the free for you. Moose eater, when you talk about the 12 days war, do you mean the Six Days War?
