Is it worth it?

[Bueller]

Since we've moved on to motorcycle sightings in this thread, when I first moved to Brazil I saw a 125cc bike towing a car down the freeway. More than two passengers are illegal in Santa Catarina, so sometimes Mom will hide the (3-4 y.o.) tyke under her shirt while Dad drives.

[LastLion]

Yaa they are good at sandwiching the small children in between mom and pop, that is what I saw in Cali. son on the tank, Dad driving another little munchkin squished between mom and dad!!!

I know if some liberal feminist saw that here, it would be LESS THAN a heartbeat before the child protective services were klnockin at your door!

Although I moto pulling a car, who would have dreamed it! Obviosly they had no tripleAAA!!!!!!

[Cubafro]

tHE SANDWICH MOTO THING THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT IS COMMON IN DR and they call it MOTO CONCHO....There it is pretty normal to see 5 to 6 persons (adults and kids or jut adults) on a 125cc bike....
At the same time it's pretty dangerous because the drivers never respect the stop sign, priorities.....They're driving like if there lifes were in danger and of course they put your life in danger...
My first trip in Navarete(north of DR) I was so surprised when I took a motoconcho to see the driver stopping and taking 2 girls with tiny skirt ...In general I would have said NO but guys just having those round trasero seating in front of me with those kind of skirt where you could easily see everything was worth it
BTW I ended up with one of athe girls in a bar ...I moved on later without doing anything because she was a prepago and I'm scared of that(diseases or a supposed gringo or indigen novio frustrated).....Don't like trouble


CUBA

[KPunch2]

Originally Posted by slyry75

How common do you think this is? I think I'd still feel safer there then in Baltimore, which is 10 minutes from where I live. I guess you just have to keep your wits about you. My rule of thumb is never argue or resist someone who has a gun.

You got that right. There is an NWA song that comes to mind..."who's the man with the master plan? A ****** with a m-f'ing gun!"

It doesnt matter where in the world you are, just use common sense and alway be aware of your surroundings. It also doesnt hurt if you learn a few Krav Maga moves to Chuck Liddell anyone that comes your way.

[slyry75]

She tells me that groups of guys are waiting late at night to steal from people as they walk home.

- Tim

Well, that's something to look out for when you're coming home after a night of clubbing.

[Clay]

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/...8NFTHT80.shtml

"The fact that one of the victims in the second car had survived an assassination attempt three days earlier."

Botched Assassination Caught on Camera traffic camera records confused hitmen killing the wrong people on Colombian street

Bogota - Colombia, Feb. 24, 2007
---------------------------------
(AP) It was like a macabre twist in a film noir: Confused hit men on the lookout for two men in a white sedan gun down the wrong people. Then they spot their intended targets, in the same traffic jam 20 yards away. And kill them, too. And it was all caught on a traffic camera.

It happened midday Thursday in the southwestern city of Cali.

The assassins struck as lunchtime traffic congealed.

Running up alongside the car, they blasted through the windows of the white Mazda. Trapped in traffic, trapped in their car, the passengers never had a chance.

Only after the shooting was over did the gunmen realize their intended targets were in another white sedan stuck in the same traffic jam.

Footage from a traffic camera shows them run forward and fire through the windows of the Honda. Darting away through the stationary cars, the hit men run to a waiting motorcycle and escape.

"The mode of killing has all the hallmarks of drug-related assassination and the fact that one of the victims in the second car had survived an assassination attempt three days earlier," said Gen. Luis Moore, commander of the Cali metropolitan police.

Moore said police caught one of the alleged assassins shortly after the shooting.

Colombia's third-largest city, Cali is in the midst of bloody clash between rival drug capos that has left hundreds dead.

Originally Posted by clay

Colombia's third-largest city, Cali is in the midst of bloody clash between rival drug capos that has left hundreds dead.

Clay - Thanks for the link and this is just one more reason why Cali is the most dangerous city in Colombia and perhaps the most dangerous city in the world per capita. For many years now, Cali is considered by many as the Narco capitol of the world with Medellin riding shotgun. When I am in Colombia, my primary concern is staying out of unlucky places or being in the wrong place at the wrong time, crossfire, a Bomb, etc.

The problem is we Gringos forget sometimes that we are in one of the most volatile countries in the world. We start feeling complacent then BAM! I just heard a car bomb! You are forced back into reality. Over the years, Honkytonk, Clay, Lostagain and other high-standing GT Vets posted about this warning others. Danger is everywhere sure, but the political situation in the areas of northwestern South America as so that one must take appropriate precautions.

Recently in Rio de Janeiro, three french volunteer workers were gunned down in their own apartment...

http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/bre...breaking52.htm

Three French aid workers killed in Rio de Janeiro

Attackers stabbed to death three French aid workers in an apartment in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, police said today. The bodies of two men and a woman were found today in the apartment in the Copacabana Beach neighbourhood after an apparent break-in and robbery. Police believe a safe box was stolen from the apartment. One official said the non-governmental organisation helped former drug addicts. Rio has a murder rate of about 40 per 100,000 people per year, which is one of the highest in Latin America.

Yesterday in Rio de Janeiro, a roof collapsed killing two and injuring dozens of people. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6398181.stm

[NunoEFSilva]

Boy! After that one the Northeast slums seem downright peaceful!

Nuno

Nuno -

I take precautions and with that said, I´ve yet to have any major problems other than random attempted muggings, assaults, petty theft, breaking and entering and what-have-you, and I would make an educated guess that in the overall scheme of things northeast Brazil is in general a safer place for expats or Gringos to live and the Beach in this region ~ with their clean Caribbean aqua-blue water, the environment of Beach-Bum-Lazy carries over within the local communities. The attitude is "island lazy" like perhaps Isla San Andres, if some of you know this Colombian territory in the Tropics. But these days I hear Recife is now one of the most dangerous cities in Brazil (per capita) and the local Recife Police are becoming corrupt, perhaps more than most other areas in Brazil. ...So I´ve read and heard.

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Today, I´ve had the chance to review this thread and I thank Honkytonk once again for bringing the danger issue to the forefront for everyone to be fully aware of when traveling SOTB. That stated and for the record, I´d like to take this opportunity for all of you to review our Copyright Warning not excluding our Travel Advisory and this is implemented by design in the Terms of Service (which every user agreed upon before entering to and reading the GringoTalk Forum) for review on every readable page of this website (Gringos.com).

Disclaimer: Traveling in certain areas of Latin America, especially Colombia, can be considered dangerous and Gringos.com accepts no responsibility for your safety. Take precautions when traveling in any foreign country.

[NunoEFSilva]

There's also a treasure trove of security tips and advices (and not just for Brazil) on the board. As a (rather simple) example see " Brazilian Travel Guides":

Originally Posted by NunoEFSilva

Stay Safe

Originally Posted by NunoEFSilva

Travel Safety

Funny thing: I never, ever got problems SOTB - just dumb luck?
(That also raises a point of legitimacy on my posts on safety: am I real?)

Nuno