Today I thought I'd share a few of the sites I've found that can help you prepare for the worst. Prepare to read about being robbed, kidnapped, beheaded, gassed, drugged, molested, scammed and generally preyed upon. It's probably best not to tell your parents about today's entry.

As scary as some of these sites may make international travel sound, it's always important to maintain perspective. I don't use these sites to scare myself out of travelling. Instead I gather what helpful safety tips I can and just block out the rest.

It is entirely possible that you will be drugged by dastardly villains while aboard a Slovakian train. Of course, you might also have a baby grand piano fall on your head while you're walking down the sidewalk in Des Moines. With a little preparation you should be able to avoid both. (Don't befriend Slovakian villains and be sure to look up occasionally.)

It's common travel advice to check the your respective country's State department to see what travel advisories and warnings are in place for the countries you plan on visiting. (At least as far as America goes, an advisory and a warning are two different things. However, it's not really important to know the difference unless insurance companies become involved.)

I find it useful to not only look at your own country's advisories, but also a few similar countries. What the American government considers dangerous, the Australian government may not.

The important thing to remember with governmental advisories is that the political body is out to cover its own butt. They want to warn you of any possible problem so that if it should happen to you, they can always give the old, "We told you so" and lessen the lawsuits.

The U.S. State Department
Australia Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade"
England's Foreign Travel Department
Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs

Robert Young Pelton, famous for writing The World's Most Dangerous Places, has a website full of useful information. Come Back Alive is sure to give you nightmares of what could go wrong, but it's important to keep in mind that it is written by a guy who normally chooses to visit places like Algeria, Iraq and Sierra Leone. He writes with a lot of humor and there are a lot of tips that are handy no matter where you choose to go. He's quick to point out that you're much more likely to be hurt in a car accident than by violent crime. Another interesting figure for American's is that while the Yanks might consider Columbia or Afghanistan to be a dangerous spot to visit, when Europeans are polled, they tend to list places like Florida and New York as the spots they think they'll most likely meet their maker. The site isn't real well laid out. Just go to the online version of "Come Back Alive" for the good stuff.

If after reading through all of these sites you feel too scared to travel abroad. Try going to USA Today or turning on your local news for some down home scares. "Cell phones could kill you!" "She was mauled by a rapid squirrel!" "Solar radiation from the sun could cause bladder cancer!"

Now, does Vietnam still sound that scary?