My first trip to Paris was not long after the Charlie Hebdo killings and the subsequent march through the city streets led by the leaders of the G7 in early 2015. I remember seeing a lot of police, protest signs and various barricades set up throughout the city.

On my most recent visit, security has been further increased though in a different way. I saw less police than my first visit. I saw no protest signs. 

Every time I entered a large department store, my bag was searched. On some occasions, my body was scanned with a handheld scanner. At the airport, I was pulled aside for additional screening. 

At a well-known hotel, I had my backpack taken and placed in another area as I wasn’t a resident there and was only going for a drink. It was all done in a very polite fashion though it did have me wondering how they screened their in-house clients each day and if they scanned their luggage before allowing it into their hotel suites.

The Eiffel Tower was a place I had previously walked straight under and taken photos before paying to climb it. Bags were checked after payment. Not this time. It is now fully enclosed in wire fencing with cameras perched at regular intervals. The entry way is a maze to go through where the search then takes places. It is no longer possible to simply stroll straight underneath.

I am now in Copenhagen. Here, there are large concrete barricades erected in an offset pattern in areas where there is high people traffic. It is to prevent cars ramming ramming through these areas. They are painted green and have writing on them in gold with a heart. It is a start in making them a little more aesthetically pleasing since plain concrete would not look quite right with the rest of the city. 

I am impressed with how various cities are attempting to cope with the terrorist threat while trying not to make it all consuming. There is no simple way to protect everyone and they aren’t always going to get it right. It’s a lousy situation and impossible to allow for every eventuality while keeping the areas easily accessible for law-abiding citizens.

If we all want to be protected, we must be tolerant of the extra time it takes for security checks. If we have other suggestions to make places more safe, we should make them to the relevant authorities rather than sit back and complain. It is easy to be an expert from an armchair. We see it all the time with our sporting teams.

Yes, sometimes I’m scared. I try not to let it bother me too often but an element of fear, at times, in our current climate is normal. I am referring specifically to terrorist activities not to wars between countries. These are usually fought within rules. Still causes a lot of destruction, lives lost and general devastation for many generations to follow, but they are not quite the same for a few reasons. One being that terrorist activities and rogue nations do not tend to use these rules. 

I was nervous at Jubilee Station in London as I was making a transfer there and the line I needed was various levels underground. I had only just walked across London Bridge earlier that day and saw some of the remaining wreaths laid out from where a car rammed into some pedestrians. I felt like I was going into the bowels of the earth and remember thinking “If something happened, how would I get out?” I looked for the exits as I went down and I make sure I wear shoes I can walk a long distance in when I know I’m going to be on a train. 

I practised the same thing living in Japan, always have comfortable shoes as you never know when an earthquake may make transport inoperable. It is a way of life there and no-one thinks twice. Everyone and each company has an earthquake disaster plan and emergency supplies. Yes, terror activity is different but some practical measures are similar if disaster strikes. 

Is it great to live like this? No. The alternative, to me, is worse. It means the terrorists will have won. I”m not sure what exactly they will have won but I know I will have lost something very important to me. My way of life.  

In the meantime, as difficult as it can be on occasion, we must do what we can to continue to live normal lives and not let any terrorist activities fundamentally change our behaviours beyond being more alert than what we have been in the past. 

This is one of the reasons why I will continue to travel. 

And wear comfortable shoes.

* Thanks to Billy Joel for the title to this post. My thoughts are with all those impacted by the recent attack in London and those who continue to recover from the various attacks (both terror and war-related) around the world. Recovery has no time limits.