Safe travels Martyn! I have a feeling that you’re an experienced and “traveling smart”.
Similar to other stories above, I’ve stared down the wrong end of a rifle twice, once in a remote area of the Yucatan Peninsula (Mexico near Belize) and once in the Czech Republic (border crossing into Germany). While these were real government soldiers and not some ruffians, it was still unnerving to say the least!
These days our travels are restricted to mainstream airlines and condos, not backpacks and a thumb.