I wouldn´t write about this, except I see a need for it . . . so here we go, travelers!

Be aware! I can´t tell you how many tourists I spy here in the Andes of Peru who are completely, utterly and totally unaware of themselves and their packages, backpacks and purses. Really, I promise I will find at least one tourist today while I´m in Cusco who is oblivious and I´ll take a picture. Click here for an example of how not to be. When you travel, you must be aware. Without a sense of awareness, the truth is that you´re a target for thieves.

Got a great camera and lens? That´s awesome. Make sure you don´t flaunt it around. People living in high-tourist areas often do not have the resources to buy a camera like yours. If you must sport it around your neck, do something to disguise it. I suggest slinging the stap over your shoulder crossways and push the camera to the side of your body. Then put on your sweater or jacket. The camera will be easily accessible, yet less visible between the folds of your clothing. Make sure you know how to use your camera before leaving home. I see many, many photographers with a furrowed brow who are too busy trying to figure out their settings and are unaware of what is going on around them.

Um, wear your money belt under your clothes. Yes, I still see people tromping around with their money belt latched around their waists, on top of their clothing. If your money belt is visible, you are asking for trouble.

Walk around with a sense of awareness. Thieves are only looking for the easiest of pickings. If you are walking around loudly talking to your friends, camera out, while chomping a croissant, hands full and carting around a huge pack with lots of stuff dangling from it and completely unaware of the persons in the crowded street who are next to you, then you are once again asking for trouble. Besides, those people are just downright annoying to everyone, locals and other travelers alike.

Check out the sights. Be unobtrusive in the country where you are a guest. I would say try not to wear khaki shorts at all costs, but that´s just me . . .

Matt and I went to Applebee’s a few nights ago to say hello to an old friend of his who works there.

We waited at the bar until his friend got off work. The bar faucet was gushing out steaming hot water at full blast, draining out of a teeny, tiny little sink that never filled up. The water was on when we sat down, so who knows how long it had been on before our arrival? The entire time, the lone bartender ran around frantically texting, I-phone in hand, screaming every detail of the Ebay bid she was trying to win.

Finally, after about fifteen minutes, when I could stand it no more, I said gently, “You know, I come from a place where we have to conserve water. Can you turn the faucet off? Please?”

I should mention that this bartender seems to be a very nice lady. She’s a friend of the friend we were there to meet. She talked about how she had signed up for a bell-ringing shift for the Salvation Army. We even had a few beers together later in the night, where she apologized a second and third time about the faucet. I cannot help but wonder if she apologized because she realized the need for water conservation or if her reason revolved around the social pressure of my pointing it out.

Just one state over from South Carolina, where this runaway faucet event occurred sits Atlanta. Lake Lanier is it’s main water source. Just one year ago Lake Lanier was so low from drought, mis-management and overuse that Atlanta measured it’s quickly dwindling available water supply in terms of weeks and officials declared an emergency.

Only when the faucets run dry will people realize that there is no more water. We’ve got the technology at our fingertips, literally, so that we don’t have to lug water from wells anymore. But this technology has contributed to our mindlessness.

I’m not perfect; I’m here to educate and bring awareness. Guess what? Everyone is from a place that has to conserve water.