Although I have no empirical evidence, my impression is that traveling increases your chances of an accident. There may be many reasons for this. Probably the most likely is that during travel we engage in new activities for which we are not physically or mentally prepared. Rushing to get to a destination, being jet-lagged, or simply being in new and unfamiliar surroundings can increase stress, which affects brain chemistry. Unfamiliarity with the roads, the weather, the local customs, the food, and other factors can predispose the traveler to having an unanticipated and unfortunate experience. For the young traveler, it may be participation in exciting and challenging activities such as white-water rafting, rock-climbing, para-gliding, or bungee-jumping that ends in disaster.
Where tourists congregate, there are bound to be lots of accidents. Here are a few items reported in the media about tourist accidents and “misbehaviors” over the past few days in New Zealand:
We’ve had some experience with the heavy rains in New Zealand lately and can sympathize with these young tourists:
“Four tourists in Nelson are lucky to be alive after their campervans were washed away when the Waimea River burst its banks this morning. The tourists, a female from Germany and three men from the United States, had parked their converted Nissan campervans under the SH60 bridge near Appleby to shelter from heavy rain. But at around 9am this morning, the river began to rise and submerge their vehicles. Half-an-hour later the swollen river burst its banks and washed away their vans and most of their possessions. “Once it breached its bank, it came swelling in. I awoke to the sound of trickling water,” says one of the tourists.”” 3 News. See the video here: http://www.3news.co.nz/Tourists-escape-as-campervans-wash-away/tabid/315/articleID/283123/Default.aspx
Here’s one about foreign drivers (see previous post about driving on the wrong side of the road):
“Police in Omarama have handed out speeding tickets to overseas tourists demonstrating ”unacceptable behaviour” over the past week. Senior Constable Bruce Dow said two Chinese nationals were both issued with $630 speeding fines and $150 fines for failing to keep to the left-hand side of the road at 6.45pm on Monday.” Otago Daily Times
Lots of stories about car crashes, but this one is unusual:
“A 17-year-old tourist was having surgery this evening after being impaled in the chest by a fence post when the bus he was on crashed. The teenager was sitting by a window at the rear of the 20-seater bus when it left the road in the Fitzgerald Glade near Rotorua and hit the wooden fence about midday. A batten smashed through the window on impact and impaled the teenager under his armpit. Westpac Waikato Air Ambulance pilot Grant Bremner said the teenager remained conscious throughout the whole ordeal. “It entered through his chest under his arm, and it’s almost out through his back. “He was still conscious and still aware of what was going on, obviously it was painful,” he said……The fence post remained in him while he was taken to hospital, Mr Bremner said….It’s believed the tourists were from China, and were heading to Rotorua at the time of the accident.” Otago Daily Times
And about falling asleep in strange places:
“A night out for a Swedish tourist ended with a 7am phone call to police when she found herself locked in a Queenstown bar after she fell asleep in the toilets. Senior Constable Chris Blackford said the 19-year-old called police on her cellphone yesterday morning asking for assistance in getting out of the bar. He said the bar’s management were happy to assist in releasing her.” Otago Daily Times
And the list would not be complete without a story about UFOs (even if not about tourists):
“Paihia man Rob Clarke has no time for theories about little green men and swears the strongest thing he drank was a cup of tea – but he’s stumped by the lights he saw travelling across the sky on Sunday night. Mr Clarke went outside his Te Haumi home about 9.40pm to see if rain was coming. Instead he saw a pair of lights travelling slowly across a clear sky from south to north, starting in the direction of Opua and disappearing some three to five minutes later over the hill towards Russell. They were travelling slowly enough that Mr Clarke was able to call his wife outside, who was equally gobsmacked. The lights were bright and while it was hard to judge their height they did not appear to be higher than a regular aircraft. The lights were not from a plane because there was no sound; nor did he believe it was a satellite, because there were two lights which at one stage moved closer together.” The Northern Advocate. Note to American readers: “gobsmacked” is an expression used by people living in Britain and the Commonwealth nations, which means flabbergasted.
We are quite excited about this last story as we are headed next to Pahia.
Wines and Wetlands 