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[starlagurl]

I had an interesting experience at the border this weekend:
Here's how the discussion went:

"Where you are you off to tonight?"

"Cherryfield, Maine"

"What for?"

"To visit a friend."

"How do you know this friend?"

"I don't know."

"What does this friend do?"

"He owns a blueberry farm."

"It's not the right time of year for blueberries. Are you folks pickin' blueberries?"

We burst out laughing. "No! Hahahaha!"

"Do you pick blueberries a lot? When's the last time you picked blueberries?"

"Um, I think I picked them in New York, when I was five"

"Oh, so you were illegally picking blueberries, then?!"

"Nooooo.... hahahaha! It was a pick-your-own place, you know what I mean."

"It's not funny. Please get out of the car, we have some questions for you."

"Alright."

More here:
http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entri...66920/tpod.html

Do you have any similar stories? Put 'em here!

[jeremystravels]

So you were trying to steal our blueberries? That is a great offense in this country. :-D

[starlagurl]

Yeah, we laughed all the way to Maine about that one. It was so crazy.

[huckabmm]

Repost from elsewhere:

I've never tried to bring through anything illegal but once coming back from Mexico I declared a lot more alcohol that you are officially allowed to bring back (1L I think) - it was for my underage friends. Anyway the customs guy looked at my sheet and then down at my boxes of liquor and said "Son, is that all for you?" and I said, in my best poker face, "Why yes sir, it is" and then, to my complete surprise, he goes "Carry on"...it was epic

[aopaq]

My story isn't half as funny or interesting as the great attempted Blueberry Heist but happened when I was coming back after a trip to South America. I had no problems getting through customs and immigration in Miami but when I landed in Toronto and was just about through the last check, a customs person asked me if I had "anything I shouldn't have." I had to think for a second about this question and then laughingly said "No". But as I exited, I couldn't help wonder how many people said "Yes" and then described their illegal contraband (guns, drugs etc.) to the guard.....

[seal]

I was given the 10 question interegation at the Vancouver Border Security when entering for my trip last year, and went along the lines of this:

"Welcome to Canada"

Thanks

"What are your plans"

To visit BC and Newfoundland

"What are you planning to visit?"

The See more of vancouver, and catchup with friends

"How do you know these friends"

From staying meeting then while here last time.

"Ok, thank-you have a good trip"

[starlagurl]

That's a smooth entry, but what did you say to them the first time you came???

[stereobread]

Coming into LAX after a month in Mexico with just a small, carry on backpack for luggage I was repeatedly asked (in a disbelieving and amazed but surprisingly friendly tone) if that was really all the luggage I had with me.

My favorite border crossing was when the gruff, Turkish guy in full military fatigues carrying an assault rifle suddenly turned into the friendliest person in the world on seeing my US passport. "You are from USA? America and Turkey are allies!!!!" He just seemed so happy about that fact. I was traveling with a girl on a Hong Kong passport at the time and after he got done ecstatically welcoming me he told her to hold onto her passport and tried to guess her nationality. It took him 5 tries but eventually he got it. Funny guy.

I wasn't there at the time but my parents tell about the time they got lost near my brother's place in Blaine, WA right near the border. They made a wrong turn and saw a border crossing up ahead so they made a u-turn and headed back the way they came. Immediately a border patrol car came speeding up to pull them over and ask them what they were doing there. Apparently elderly people who don't want to cross the border are a terrible threat that requires immediate attention.

[seal]

That's a smooth entry, but what did you say to them the first time you came???

The First time, you mean I was staying for 6months? As that was pretty straight forward as they just wanted to know what sort of thing I was looking at doing on my Working Visa.

I was just a bit suprised this time around that they wanted a little more detail on what I was going to be doing.

But some friends of mine, they got asked who was paying for the trip, how much money they had in cash and on their creditcards/eftpos cards, and exactly what they were going to be doing.

As for my trip this year i am now having to do just that as I have heard the new protocol for America is a detailed itinerary of what and where.

[starlagurl]

Yeah, it's getting a little out of hand... Does your itinerary have to be written down? Or can you just tell them?

When we went to Maine, they asked us for our Googlemap print out!

[wisconsin_fan81]

So, in regards to borders...I was on a train crossing the border between Austria and Switzerland 5 years ago. Now Austria. Switzerland. Not exactly disputed territory. Not at war. Not a notoriously violent part of the world. So I am sleeping as peacefully as I can in one of the "sleeper chairs" the Eurail offers. Now anyone who has been on one get my back on this- somewhat akin to a dentists chair without the super bright light and the drill? All of a sudden, startled awake from a slumber I had to fight, kick, and scream to win over, I am looking into the barrel of a M16. Figuring I'm still dreaming, I think I may have actually ignored the guy for starters (I know, stupid...er..nervy American). Upon further examination of the situation, I figure it's a good idea to listen to what the kind gentlemen has to say. Whatever he has to say. He and his partner Mr. equally frightening to wake up to, are Border Patrol, which I decipher from the extremely Germanic "PASS- POHTE" that he barked at me (that was not German spelling, only for effect). So I hand over my passport, which he analyzes with all the care of some Frankenstein mix of Grissom from CSI and a silverback Gorilla. He hands it back, moves along, and finally, I reassume my position in the dentists chair to try to attempt to go back to some fascimile of sleep. Now this is a BORDER- which has 2 sides. And at the end of the train depot- within visual distance, heck, within talking distance, of the first 2 Border warriors, are their Swiss brothers. Not 10 minutes after what I assumed was an Austrian Robbery, the train lurched to a halt AGAIN, and I'll let you guess what I was awoken to....I don't know if they were bored, of if the Swiss border just did not believe that the Austrians got it right, but they thoroughly double checked. If the train attendant on this route was carrying a rocket launcher, I would not have been suprised.

[starlagurl]

Wow, that's frightening! Did you ever figure out why they all had their guns out?

[wisconsin_fan81]

Wow, that's frightening! Did you ever figure out why they all had their guns out?

Not sure. That happened on another train my Wife and I were on when it stopped in Bratislava, but THEY were looking for someone because they pulled him off the train! Tight security maybe? General boredom? not really sure.

[semi-backpacker]

I was given the 10 question interegation at the Vancouver Border Security when entering for my trip last year, and went along the lines of this:

"Welcome to Canada"

Thanks

"What are your plans"

To visit BC and Newfoundland

"What are you planning to visit?"

The See more of vancouver, and catchup with friends

"How do you know these friends"

From staying meeting then while here last time.

"Ok, thank-you have a good trip"

I've crossed into Canada several times, last time through Niagara Falls and I don't believe I was asked more than where are you staying? Very smooth. I've also never had any issues at the Mexican border and I've crossed on foot through Tijuana, Algodones, and Nogales, and the conversations have been no longer than 1 minute. My scariest border crossing was on an overnight train from Spain to Paris, but only because we were four girls dead asleep in our cabin and woken up by loud knocking and yelling. Once the guards came in though, they were very nice and possibly flirting withe one of my friends...LOL

[durnadupa]

Crossing into Canada on our way to Montreal, we had this pleasant exchange with a Canadian border guard (who by the way, was quite an attractive female).

Guard "Do you have any liquor or cigarettes with you"
Friend "No"
Guard "Do you have any explosives, knives, weapons, or guns with you"
Friend "No guns...other than these" Cue to him pulling up his shirt sleeve and making a muscle.

Guard did not appreciate it, and we got the car searched.

[semi-backpacker]

Yeah, never a good idea to play cute or too smart with the border guards. Just answer the questions, smile, and proceed is the best idea

[raniroo]

A few years ago I was travelling between Vancouver and Seattle. It also happened to be my birthday. At the border crossing on the US side, the male customs guys were quiet stern and after putting everything through xray and asking a few questions, they said "Welcome and have a Happy Birthday"...

When I looked at my entry stamp they had also written Happy Birthday above it (in my passport)!!!

[starlagurl]

Aw, Rani that is a cute story. Those were the Americans that did that?