A nitwit traveler with obviously too much booze befuddling his brain, recently walked around the ancient city’s streets shouting and doing the Heil Hitler arm gesture. He was attacked by angry Germans because they didn’t want to be reminded of the bad old days. He’s now facing legal problems.

Just a couple of weeks previously, two clueless tourists from China were jailed for doing the same in Berlin. In addition to angering the natives, it’s also against the law to do the hated salute anywhere in that nation.

There’s a lesson to be learned here for senior wanderers. When visiting foreign countries, always obey the local laws and other restrictions. If ignored or you insist on showing off your stupidity, it could get you in trouble. Watch your language, alcoholic drinks, dress codes, sanitary regulations, curfews and other behavior constraints.

It’s already happening on the highways with driverless cars. According to the news service report, predictions are that within a dozen years, human pilots will be gone from some airliners.

Expectations also are that ground-controlled commercial flying will be safer. Sophisticated automated functions would eliminate the human error factor, such as live pilots making wrong decisions and physical impairment suddenly happening in the cockpit.

One of the predictions is of reduced ticket prices, considering that today’s airline pilots get hefty salaries, expense accounts and benefits. The scientific beancounters estimate the savings would be as much as $35 billion annually. A sad note about pilotless airliners for crews is that membership participation in the mile high club would also be greatly reduced.

According to the news service report, the 2,000 passengers on the luxury liner were recently required to stop all activities throughout the ship from sunset to sun-up. The ban was because of potential attack on the ship by buccaneers.

The emergency action was just for 10 nights out of the 104-day round-the-world journey. The feared pirate danger areas are while the ship sailed in the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden and the Suez  Canal. So, if any passengers see the Jolly Roger hoisted, it’ll be yo ho ho and a bottle of rum, ye landlubbers!

Your travel4seniors.com editor kept a safe distance from this pair of friendly-looking crocodiles while on a recent African safari.