Have you ever smuggled?

[Boris Bajic]

The story about the women in Peru got me thinking...

1. I once drove to Morocco through France and Spain and it wasn't until we were well down the Atlantic coast near Rabat that I remembered I usually had an eighth of black in the hollow, spherical gear knob of my 2cv.

It was still there... forgotten during a drive south of many hundreds of miles to its likely country of origin.

Wrapped in clingfilm and smeared with handcream to cover the pong.

2. Hitching from Kehl to Basel I got a lift (1982) in a big Mercedes from a guy who kept asking if I was smuggling. Very upright-looking business type. Amazing 450 SEL. Outrageous stereo. I was an easily-impressed teen with long hair and scruffy clothes.

We crossed the (fairly soft) border into Switzerland and before dropping me off in the city, he asked again if I was smuggling anything. "No", I said, quite hurt to be suspected.

"I am", he said. He had the sort of look that suggested it would have been my luggage if we'd been stopped. I never hitched across a border after that.

Has anyone else smuggled anything deliberately or otherwise?

 

[Milo]

People are hardly going to admit to the drug smuggling on a public forum if they have any sense.

 

[Over The Hill]

Took an illegal lettuce from Canada to USA (or was it the other way). But I got away with it.

 

[tyred]

I grew up in a NI/ROI border area and it was commonplace until the Irish Customers were removed from the border.

 

[fossyant]

Brought back a pair of Oakley M Frames from the States without paying VAT and customs - had been worn. Same goes with trainers !

 

[Aperitif]

Fnaar did, with some caged birds.

 

[Boris Bajic]

Fnaar did, with some caged birds.

He couldn't resist; they were going cheap...


Ooops. Wrong joke. Sorry.

 

[VamP]

Erm, maybe..

 

[Markymark]

A 'friend of mine' enjoyed some of the local delicacies in Amsterdam. As he was driving back to Calais, he remembered (some memory loss is common in Amsterdam) he had some local produce and that he’s driven through two borders already to get back to Calais.

On remembering he stopped at a service station for some munchies and planted the produce in a decorative plant pot alongside the table counting himself lucky he didn’t genuinely forget and take it back to the UK.

He’s often wondered if it’s still there growing nicely for the locals to have a little prune when pulling into a service station near Calais.

 

[PK99]

Just the odd budgie or two.

My wife is an expert peanut smuggler.

 

[helston90]

I was smuggled once, for the England to France leg of a French exchange in school one of the teachers lost my passport in his desk somewhere, so a bit of 'miss counting' 30 students onto and off've a coach, and on I got, I managed to get back the same way.

When flying down from Scotland my hand luggage was rejected by customs as it had a tin of haggis in it- apparently this particular make had too high a water content to be allowed on board, so to prove a point I went back to check in, requested my bag to be brought back from the hold and loaded it in there. It only cost £5 for the tin but it was the principle- they told me other makes would have been fine, just not this one!

 

[Beebo]

A non married couple, who are friends of ours, had their adult toys, naughty DVD's and sexy undies taken away at Dubai airport.
They were lucky, sex before mariage can see you locked up over there.

 

[ayceejay]

When in Holland my son developed a taste for that Gouda with herbs in it (I forget the name) he bought a huge chunk to bring back to England but the customs said it was not allowed. I think one of the funniest things I have ever seen is the poor bugger trying to eat it all at the customs counter.

 

[mcshroom]

Before the quantities were relaxed for imports from the EU, our parents used to bring back a years supply of filter coffee*, Austrian cheeses and wine to cover between holidays. We even had large storage chests under the back seats of the camper van which we nicknamed smugglers chests.


*British filter coffee at the time was rubbish in comparison to German/Austrian stuff.

 

[Hardrock93]

... I usually had an eighth of black in the hollow, spherical gear knob of my 2cv.

I liked the story, Boris, but is it wrong to admit I have no idea what an eighth of black is?