to it a few years ago in Berlin. My advice to any of our visitors (we have lived all over Europe for a bunch of years, and are currently in Vienna) is to never stop to sign a petition, never take anything like a flower or rosemary sprig when offered, never try to exchange money with an individual outside of an official currency exchange, and never pay the gypsies begging on the sidewalk. Just keep walking and ignore them.

American tourists are too nice & polite and really get taken advantage of by organized gypsy criminals in Europe. Our European friends always make fun of Americans for being so naive with the gypsies.