"have you seen Taken?"

So my Germany trip has come up in several conversations with friends and family. Everyone is really excited for me until I inform them of my plan to travel solo after the program ends; this is the response I get 80% of the time, "really? have you seen Taken?". I hadn't seen it until a few days ago, and after seeing the movie, I can't help but feel insulted by my friends. If you haven't seen the film, it's about two young, naive tourists that get abducted and sold into sex trafficking. Now I know that traveling can be dangerous even if you take every precaution imaginable, but the way these girls were abducted is just ridiculous. Upon arriving to the airport, they agree to share a cab with a stranger, not the best idea, but not too risky. Well not only do they lead him to the place they're staying, they give him the room number. I am not that stupid; that has been my campaign for my parents ever since they saw the movie. If I had known the contents of this movie, I would have advised my parents against seeing it. Now they are petitioning me to allow my sister to go as a travel companion. I was really excited about being a "Lone Ranger", but I must say the idea of having someone to share the experience with is starting to be appealing. I am very independent, but I do enjoy social interaction with a good friend.

Things I learned from the movie:
-don't give out your room number (other travelers take this as far as advising you to request that the front desk not even say your room number out loud)
-even if the stranger is an attractive Parisian, don't trust them (common sense, but looks can be deceiving)
-always helps to have someone in the family with "global intelligence" connections (I'm afraid I'm missing this key component)