The rise of ISIS and extremist attacks throughout Europe have inspired the notion that it’s no longer safe to travel. The media will create a moral panic to entice viewers and sell papers. Yes, there have been many high profile incidents in popular tourist areas, however, there have been thousands more attacks foiled which you’ve never heard about.
I am going to share my own experiences of traveling and instances where this modern threat really loomed over me – and try to use these to try and dispel the idea that you should not travel due to the threat of extremism.
The first time I truly thought about it was when I decided to travel to Paris to see one of my favourite bands play. The War on Drugs had announced a show in the Bataclan, and since they weren’t playing in Ireland – me and my girlfriend had decided we may as well travel somewhere to catch them on tour. The concert was approximately a year after the venue reopened, and two years after the city wide attacks which left 130 people dead, 90 of which were killed at the Eagles of Death Metal concert in the Bataclan. I thoroughly enjoyed the performance – however what had happened there was always on the back of my mind throughout the show.
Whilst sightseeing around Paris during the rest of our trip, we had an encounter with the anti-terrorism squad at the Champs-Élysées. We had left the Peugeot store, and noticed everyone being evacuated into side streets and the Metro station at the top of the avenue. We had quickly fled to the Metro station and started our journey back to the hotel for the night. After chatting to a few locals, we were told it was a foiled terrorist attack.
Similarly to our experience in Paris with the Bataclan, the attack on a Christmas Market in Berlin a few years previously was at the back of my mind; especially considering we had purposefully waited until the Christmas Market season before visiting Berlin. We visited many markets, some were more open than others – like the one at Alexanderplatz which just had a few police on standby. Whilst the one at the Gendarmenmarkt in the more affluent Mitte district had heightened security measures in place with armed police patrolling the crowd.
We had also visited the Christmas market that was attacked 2 years previously in Breitscheidplatz square. There was a touching memorial erected to commemorate the 12 victims who were just enjoying the Christmas market season prior to the attack, just as me and my girlfriend were 2 years on.
Whilst booking a trip, the idea of being caught up in an incident like one of the ones mentioned above can seem terrifying, and although it’s unlikely to happen, you can’t help but dwell on it. And if you are away and there is an incident – your family will likely panic assuming you were caught up in it. I was in West Germany at a football game when news broke of a van attack in Münster. My phone was out of signal due to being in a crowd of 50,000+ people at the football in Köln, but my Dad was trying to contact me to check if I was okay. It’s human nature to worry about your own wellbeing and those that we care about; but it is also human nature to connect with other humans – and those perpetrating these attacks regardless of their motivations have a shared aspiration of dividing us as humans. And if we stop seeing different parts of the world because of them, they ultimately win.
Don’t let the fear stop you.