Of course the hats. The baseball cap that says "CVN-65 USS ENTERPRISE" or the one that says "Don't mess with Texas" - It's a toss up as to which is more popular in Madrid these days.

Also popular are the "Phi Slappa Slappa Keg-O-Rama 99" and the "Hazzard County Softballers" T shirts.

This thread has turned terribly wrong...

Another dead give-away that you're not a tourist is shorts, especially when worn in April or May. Everyone knows how much a true Spaniard loves the cooler weather and fights to wear shorts as early as possible in the year. The baggier and longer the better too. And, finally, you should always carry a very large map with you and take it out on every street corner. That will let everyone know that this is your territory...

-GG

Yep, I'd say wearing shorts over untanned legs around the city center is a key factor, and they should always be wore with sport shoes....

Hey Cali, just what is a fanny bag?

If you want to know what a fanny pack is AND practice your English, just look for an American in Madrid over the age of 45 and ask "What is that thing around your waist?"

One surefire way to spot the "I've-completely-assimilated-myself-to-Spanish-culture-even-though-I'm-only-on-an-eight-day-EF-Tour" crowd is the "check-my-underwear-sticking-out-the-top-of-my-too-baggy-carpenter-shorts" guy. And yes, they almost always have a baseball cap or visor on. I also like the female version, a.k.a. "Too-tight-tacky-khaki-shorts-girl". Very hip, except for that nasty panty line and cottage-cheese-white legs. Stick in a camera around the neck and you've got a party.

Um, ok Pim, let me see if I can define 'fanny bag' a little better for you...

A fanny bag is one of those purse-type bags that are clipped around people's waists. Men and women wear them...sometimes just in a subdued black, other times in loud, vibrant colors...always sticking out looking like they have a second stomach, never fashionable...I, myself, have refused many an offer to use a fanny bag.

I vote for a messenger bag or something like that, which you can put over one shoulder and around in front of you (so the strap crosses your chest). That way, it's harder to get pulled off of your arm & your stuff is always in front of you! (If I have valuables with me, I always wear the under-clothes money belt though, with all of my important stuff in it.)

Sorry, Cali, if I stepped on your toes with the description!!

-GG

I have begun using one of the microfiber healthy back packs which are small, kidney-shaped bags with lots of inside and outside pockets for organization. Many catalog order places like LL Bean sell them. The main pocket can be secured with a wire bread tie or a small lock if needed. They can also be carried in front like a newsbag.

I always use a fanny pack, however, when I am on an expedition type trip that requires me to be alert with free hands. They are a marvelous creation and come in a variety of sizes and materials!!!

I'm with you, GranadaGirl, about the choice of bags. When I was a little girl going into NYC with my mom (a Long Island native), she always took a bag with a long strap, and hung it over one shoulder and across her chest. Some people have suggested that there is a danger in having the strap across you, because if someone tries to pull it off, they are basically strangling you--but hey, at that point, I would hand the bag over and be done with it.

I keep my passport, cash, traveler's checks, credit cards, etc. in a pouch that I can wear either around my neck (under my shirt) or around my waist (tucked in near my hip, under my pants or skirt). I found one with an adjustable strap, so that I can make one bag fit both ways.

In my plain black leather bag with long straps, I keep maps, guidebooks, etc....also my camera, which I have to be willing to lose if it gets stolen. I take a relatively inexpensive 35mm zoom camera. I don't know whether I would bring along a digital next time.

Keep your used film in your suitcase back at the hotel/hostal, in case your bag gets taken--you don't want to lose more photos than you have to.

And keep your arm tucked along the top of your ZIPPED bag...pull it in close to your body, and be alert to being jostled in crowded places. I have also done the safety-pin trick with zippers, or used tiny locks on daypacks, and haven't had any problems. Neither will stop a determined thief, but might give a pickpocket pause.

Really, it doesn't matter what you carry as long as it's able to be closed and you keep your money and passport under your clothing somewhere.

I also have a leather belt (the sort of wide black belt you would wear with jeans) with a zipper running the length of the inside of it, and I tuck a copy of my passport and a bit of cash in that too.

Hey Tara,

That leather belt w/ the zipper is really cool!! Where'd you find that? I'll have to find one for my next trip!!

Didn't mean to insult you, sel, with the fannybag issue...I guess I just haven't found the right one yet to suit my tastes!!

-GG

Hola GranadaGirl: my fanny pack is not traveling with me to Spain for the same reasons you mentioned.

I agree that being alert is the best thing. There is no best bag, but one has to be very careful with the passport! Since I am traveling with kids, I know I will constantly be distracted and a prime target. If we get picked, I do NOT want to loose credit cards or passports. My solution is to have almost nothing for them to take except kleenex and maps!!

We have attached extra, zippered pockets inside our short and pants to avoid this. They will have to strip us to get our passports!!!!

We leave Thusday and are hoping that we do NOT experience this cultural aspect of the cities!!!

Well, after all that, here I am back from Spain (& can't wait to go back, but you knew that already ) & feel compelled to report that we had absolutely no problems at all in this department! Not only did we have no problems, we didn't even see any sign of pickpocketing/purse-snatching problems anywhere we went. Maybe we were just lucky. Or as someone else suggested, maybe it's because we weren't in the high tourist season. We were in Madrid, Granada (during fiesta time no less), Ronda & hill towns, Seville for a hot minute, bus stations, train stations, all usual tourist places.

In any case, I'm not from NYC but I spend enough time there & I'm basically a city girl anyway, so maybe there is a "don't mess w/ me" vibe that I project even when standing on a corner looking at a map (which I think is really sort of unavoidable sometimes). Or maybe because we are Asian Americans & dykes we confuse theives who would rather deal w/ more stereotypical white Americans w/ the white sneakers & fanny packs? I don't know, but anyway, my partner carried a small backpack, plus the important items in her neck pouch (usually on the *outside* of her T-shirt) & I carried a diagonally -strapped bookbag w/ zipper & flap. I started out w/ a neckpouch but quickly abandoned it, ironically, because it made me feel like a ridiculous tourist to be pulling it out of my shirt all the time! I put money & credit cards in my pockets instead.

Overall I think I can say we felt quite safe & secure all the time we were there. I never felt threatened in any way (with the possible exception of driving on some of those mountain roads in Andalucia when big trucks come hurling around blind curves, but that's another story) & found almost everyone we dealt with to be very courteous & hospitable.

Thanks again for all your advice, everybody!