There was a moment — a very brief moment — when I considered whether an attack might occur at Winnipeg Stadium during Women's World Cup matches. After all, less than a year has passed since a person the Canadian Prime Minster called a terrorist went on a shooting rampage at Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
Yet oodles of Minnesotans, me included, went to Winnipeg for games there. When I'd had that almost idle thought months before my trip, I told myself I would study the stadium once I arrived to know the exits. With the excitement of the game, I did no such thing.
That seems to be the way most of us handle notions of terrorism hindering our travels. We might consider unlikely scenarios, but we rarely act on them.
A recent survey conducted by Twin Cities-based Travel Leaders Group found that most people won't let extremists keep them from traveling abroad.
The question posed was this: "Because of recent terrorist acts taking place in popular international destinations, are you less likely to plan an overseas trip?" To that, 78.3 percent said they will continue to roam the world, 19.3 percent said they prefer to travel domestically, and 2.4 percent said they are now staying at home. The company queried more than 3,000 travelers in the survey.
I tell people traveling abroad (worried or not) to read up on the countries they visiting and to register their plans so U.S. personnel can track them down if necessary. You can do both at www.travel.state.gov.
Honestly, I didn't do any of that before heading to Canada. I was too focused on the excitement of soccer — known as the beautiful game — to consider that something ugly could get in its way.
Send your questions or tips to travel editor Kerri Westenberg at travel@startribune.com, and follow her on Twitter @kerriwestenberg.
