Missing Alabama student in Barcelona

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03/20/2026 11:52

Subject: Missing Alabama student in Barcelona

Anonymous

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This hits so close to home and my heart. My son recently was at the exact same popular nightclub Shoko on the beach in Spain. They had a table, it was hot and packed. He left his phone and friends, went outside to get fresh air thinking they’d let him back in because of purchased table. The bouncers refused because the line to get in was 200 long. So he was separated from phone, apple wallet and friends. He had no cash for taxi, no maps spoke no Catalon. After four hours of wandering around Spain he finally found two girls who spoke English who gave him directions to his hotel where he arrived safely scared but exhausted and went to sleep.

Back home in the states I could see on Life 360 that he hadn’t moved from the club in 7 hours. Waited for the club to close and when he didn’t move, knew there was a problem. Had his friends scour the beach for him in the dark in groups worried he was in the ocean because it was so close to where his phone was pinging. Finally heard from him after 15 hours when the club reopened and he retrieved his phone at 3pm Spain time. Was so upset he didn’t find a way to contact me sooner. It was the longest most terrifying night of my life.

That same night one of his friends wallet and phone were stolen. He was also held up by knife point in Italy weeks later. If you have a child studying abroad or visiting foreign countries, you must drill into them street smarts, a few important phrases in the native language, have names and phone numbers of the kids they are with, name of hotel, flight info, rules for check in or please do not let them go. We made mistakes by not doing those things. It’s not Disneyland. They can not go anywhere without their phone. They need their phone in a safe interior pocket at all times and CASH! Such a lesson to learn. Thankfully my son was not drunk so that he couldn’t function. If he had been, my heart lurches and breaks at the thought. This child could have been my boy. I am shaken to the core. This should have never happened but it so easily does. It’s so easy to be caught up in the excitement and glamour of a foreign country. Kids will be kids. Such a beautiful boy who sounds like he was a really great kid. Praying for this family with all my heart. Devastating.

Land the helicopter Mom. Spain and Italy are both far safer than the US. Kids do stupid things sometimes, but they land on their feet and it’s important for their growth. It sounds like your son was fine. Give him room to grow and don’t smother him. You are not doing him any favors!

There’s something different about your kid being so distant and in a place where they may not speak the language and be familiar with the culture. The Europe of today is not the Europe of the past.

I’m the helicopter Mom. Hard agree with you. As someone who has been to Europe multiple times over the decades, it is a much different place than 20-30 years ago, so much more dangerous. But even then it wasn’t safe. I was chased down a back alley by a man with a knife not far from the Spanish steps, barely made it to safety. It’s why I knew to keep a watch on my kid. Even then I was waaay too lax for the first few weeks. He was flying all over Europe on cheap plane tickets, staying in hostels and I had no idea with who. His Barcelona incident was a huge wake up call. Thats why I’m here to give my hard earned advice to other parents so tragedy can hopefully be averted. We were so lucky. But the truth is it can happen even here in the US. It’s important to teach your kid to be vigilant and street smarts and equally as important to keep track of the ones you love. Watching out for their safety is not controlling them. Huge difference.

I personally want to thank you, "helicopter mom" - although I do not think you are being that - you actually seem like "excellent mom" and a really good person for sharing your experience to help others.

She's not an excellent mom. She thought she could problem solve by doing 24/7 surveillance from across an ocean instead of talking to her kid about safety, street smarts, being an American broad, etc. Lots of ways to be a good parent through teaching and preparing. Zero help to send them cold and use Life 360 as some sort of false safety net.