DVD player stolen from luggage in airport
Finally, I am back in California, 2 miles from the beach, it is nice and rainy outside...I grab my suitcase to start unpacking and when I am done, notice something is missing! My new Sony portable DVD player from Virgin (900QR). I have all the cables, electric cords, etc....but the player is gone.
When I left Qatar (thank God), I went to the airport a few hours before check-in to drop off my luggage, then left to do some other errands, so maybe my luggage was sitting somewhere where some moron thief was able to jimmy the lock open and dig through it. Do they x-ray luggage in the airport? I'm guessing they do. Looks like he used a screwdriver to open the lock.
I'll just chalk it up to one last f-you from Qatar.
Oh, and to update you all about my QR 6000 "red light" traffic violation...
I went down to traffic to pay it, and the ninja lady looked at the video and said "no need to pay, you didn't run the light, you only turn right! Only QR500! Go upstairs, see Major, he change to QR500!" Cool!
So I go upstairs, wait in line to see Major, he looks at the printout and the note Ninja lady wrote and sent me to Admin bldg, where some young punk dude was sitting at the desk with his feet up, chewing on a twig. I showed him the papers and he did his best to ignore me, so I went back to the Major, waited in line again, and this time the Major wrote on the paper which I brought back to the punk.
This caught the punks attention; he took a form out, filled it all out with my info, stapled everything together and said "one week". Cool.
So, this being Qatar, 2 weeks go by and the fine is still on my car at QR 6000. I am leaving the country in a few days and need to pay it so I can go. I had to think....stay in Qatar and try to get the fine corrected, or just pay the thing and be free?
Needless to say, after 3 years in Qatar, and tired of Qatari paperwork, I happily paid the QR 6000 and left the country.
I still don't get it though, everybody involved admitted I didn't run the light, they have video of it, and they all helped me o the paperwork to get it corrected to QR 500.....so what was the problem? Why bother posting this question here, we already know the answer. It was in Qatar.
JD
"Free at last, free at last..."
you are free at last.... enjoy the beach.....
You won't fully enjoy a swing unless you raise your feet from the ground......
the best way to keep theives from going through your luggage and taking stuff is to NOT lock it!! Guess they figure anything worth taking is locked up. I've never had anything stolen from my luggage in over 20 years.by using this method and yes, I DO carry valuable stuff in that case...
A good friend helps you up when you fall. A best friends pees their pants laughing and trips you again!
A point to note if you’re checking in luggage is that many of the travel accessories that are sold as luggage security items (locks, cable ties, security seals, etc) do not actually work to protect your luggage. You’d think for the money spent on these things it would take time to break into a bag, but it’s as simple as several seconds with a paperclip or even a pen. And people wonder why there is a problem with luggage theft. This site shows how the criminals do it: http://www.securoseal.com/main.php?id=318. The same site has also got news stories from around the world on airport and luggage related crime here: http://www.securoseal.com/main.php?id=325 – so it's worth a read if you’re planning on taking a trip soon.
I honestly doubt about luggage thieving in Doha Airport.
It could be elsewhere, any transit or even at home.
I had one friend working in one airport and he told me that luggage handling ppl is quite habil opening locks without forcing. The normal place to make it is while boarding the luggage on the plane, as there is nobody watching inside the "tummy" of the airplane.
But again, I honestly dont think it happened in Doha Airport, too risky for this poor people as per the high price they have to pay if catched.
By the way, I remember one time when arrived home, that when I open my luggage I found a nice A4 paper inside written as: "Luggage checked in Munich Airport" (my transit airport)
Remember that in some countries, in some airports authorities are allowed to open and check your luggage even without your presence.
War looking for peace,
is like fornication looking for virginity.
Jdylan..
At Doha International Airport, their luggage handling system is almost fool proof. All areas of TBF is under camera surveillance. so nobody will try to mess with baggage and it is almost impossible to take something outside the airport..So Don't blame Doha for atleast this one...
Wait a minute, you can't lock luggage except with a TSA lock! Maybe that's why it was jimmied. Sorry about your DVD player and fine, but you're right, it was worth it to get out hassle-free.
Mandi
jdylan, did you have a transit at Heathrow airport ? Because that is where most of the luggage thieves are.
It might be a good idea to get the bags insured. I always get my check-in luggage insured during air travel.