Gringoes.com: So I visited a lot in Brazil, here are my thoughts

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Gringodude
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Joined: 06 January 2009
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Posted: 01 November 2011 at 13:45

Otima parada 172 coming to theatres near you, I mean it could happen to you..haha..

Nobody is going to be told ahead of time if there going to be robbed or not. It's just a more frequent occurring issue, in Brazil. Not to mention how you act back home, it doesn't even rely on what you wear. It's a different life, zona sul or not you're living close enough, definitely a lot safer than jacareipagua...

Just because you ride the bus too, doesn't decrease the odds of it happening.

Keeping the BrazilianLifestyle

"Have a great day everyone" - Ray
"You know who you are, now go and reflect!" - Esprit

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sven
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Posted: 01 November 2011 at 14:07

Originally posted by Gringodude

Just because you ride the bus too, doesn't decrease the odds of it happening.

And just how are these odds? 10%? 20%? 90%? or is it like 0.0001%

There are more than 20K buses in Rio alone, doing 6 trips a day. With 1 robbery every 4 days. How does that affect my chances?

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Gringodude
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Posted: 01 November 2011 at 16:35

Before I go and needlessly research anything, let me get this straight.

Are you disagreeing with the idea that Brazil is more dangerous than America or say the Netherlands? Either way they're more or less the same? I want to understand your objections, then I'll go statistic finding...

Keeping the BrazilianLifestyle

"Have a great day everyone" - Ray
"You know who you are, now go and reflect!" - Esprit

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sven
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Posted: 01 November 2011 at 17:16

Well, in the netherlands we see a lot of robberies lately, especially on jewelry stores. Last week a couple of bomb squad guys where blown up by a bomb some idiots placed on an automatic speed trap.

I have been robbed twice in the Netherlands, at knife and scissors point, had my car broken into in New York (they stole a pack of juice and some donuts).

I hear of gang shootouts in LA.

Personally I don't see all that much difference between Brazil and any other country. Sure there is more crime here, but it's mostly very localized.

There certainly are areas one should avoid, if alone, at night, but these places you can find in most big cities around the world.

Sure there is more crime in Brazil, but what I want to know is what my chances are of getting robbed when using my iPhone on the bus (or train).

So, what are my odds: "10%? 20%? 90%? or is it like 0.0001%"

I bet it's much more like 0.0001%

Actually, "roubo a transuente", 59K cases in 2010, mokes it 0,0118 or 1.18%.

Remember that purse snatching and taking a cellphone from someones hands and running away is also considered "roubo".

"Latrocinio" or "roubo seguida de morte" was at 62 last year.

Bus robberies where 568 last year. Considering 20K busses, 6 rides a day and 365 days, you'd have 1243920 rides and in 568 of those a robbery occured, I have a chance of 0,0456621005% to get robbed on a bus.

I'll take my chances

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Kitten
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Posted: 02 November 2011 at 21:24

Originally posted by sven

I dress no different from "life back home". . . . Sure, you can have some bad luck and get robbed. That doesn't make it much more dangerous than other places I know.

A tip: Lose the wooden shoes and you will not only stand out less, but be able to flee potential crime scenes even faster!

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cara0910
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Posted: 13 November 2011 at 15:36

Originally posted by sven

Originally posted by Bubbles

You would need to spend at least 3 months in one place to get the feel of it. If you have just returned you have also gone at the most quiet (tourist-wise) time....

At least it wasn't one of those americans or japanese "doing europe in two weeks"

Funny...because some of my Brazilian friends have 'done Europe in two weeks' or some similar amount of time. I think 70% of the world's tourism is in Europe, and they don't make the Eurail passes for nothing. I think this describes most tourists in Europe, and I frankly see nothing wrong with it. If (when?) Europe crashes in the coming months, I'm sure Europeans will be more than glad to host as many people as they can as domestic demand will tank.

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expt2233
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Posted: 13 November 2011 at 16:44

Originally posted by Brazilianick

All together I was in Brazil for 2 months. I went to Salvador, Rio, Sao Paulo, Belo Horizonte, Ouro Preto, Fortaleza and Prainha do Canto Verde (my favorite place of all). I will write more later, but I just had to drop a few words before I have the time to write more!!!!! Many gringos on here, who claimed to visit Brazil, are freaking liars, or they went there 20 years ago, in their dreams! Brazil is NOT dangerous! I walked alone, by myself, at night in Rio, Sao Paulo, in Salvador, and I was fine! No one ever even looked at me weird. Not to mention that I am blond, with blue eyes, dressed in Abercrombie and Fitch! Brazilians do not dress like homeless people! Some here advised me to tone down my clothes. Boy were they wrong! I saw a lot of Polo, Lacoste, Calvin Clain, even Gucci and Dolce and Gabbana. Many Brazilians have cars! The cars I saw in Brazil were mostly BMW, Woltswagen, Audi, Chevrolet, Ford, etc. Food in Brazil is amazing. It is very easy to shop. There are a lot of grocery stores, and food is not that expansive at all. Restaurants are a bit pricey, I admit. Salvador was the dirtiest, but full of culture. It was totally worth it visiting it. It is colorful, and beautiful. I especially loved Praia do Forte! What a paradise! That place was actually pretty clean, and tourist friendly! Rio de Janeiro was so calm. I stayed in Leblon for 12 days and walked on Copacabana, Ipanema, went to Botafogo, and visited Zone do Norte. I went to a mall in the north part, and visited Niteroi as well. In all of these places, people were nice. No one scared me. No one even looked at me. If some people did look at me, they were girls who thought I was hot. hehehehe (or gay guys). I left my glasses in one place, came back, they were still laying there. I left my backpack in a restaurant. Came back, the receptionist lady was holding it for me. Nothing inside was touched. I dropped my canon camera on a beach, because I was carrying it rolled in the towels, and a guy behind me picked it up for me. I had the easiest time making friends, relating to people. They loved the fact that I did not act fussy or sophisticated. I accepted everything, even the things that made me feel uncomfortable, or out of my comfort zone. I just laughed them off. Brazilians loved the fact that I tried to speak their language, knew about their culture, loved their music, and even watched their novelas. I made friends in Brazil I will never forget! I will visit them all again this December! I will write more about my experiences in Brazil, but the point of this (not so short) post, is that I wanted to say that many of you here were wrong! Many of you scared me and dramatized over how dangerous it is there, or how people are mean, or how everyone will take advantage of me! BULL sh*t! I wonder if any of you even went there!

Brazil IS dangerous.

Instead of relying on your impressions of a massive, continent-sized country that were formed over the course of 8 WEEKS, try looking up some stats.

Murder rates in Rio, Sao Paulo, Salvador and other cities are extremely high.

Police violence is out of control in Rio.

Traffic deaths are extremely common.

I'm not bashing Brazil, but the use of impressions and anecdote.

Cariocas always say, 'there is violence everywhere man!' Uh yea, the question is, HOW MUCH?!

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expt2233
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Posted: 13 November 2011 at 16:48

Originally posted by sven

Well, in the netherlands we see a lot of robberies lately, especially on jewelry stores. Last week a couple of bomb squad guys where blown up by a bomb some idiots placed on an automatic speed trap.

I have been robbed twice in the Netherlands, at knife and scissors point, had my car broken into in New York (they stole a pack of juice and some donuts).

I hear of gang shootouts in LA.

Personally I don't see all that much difference between Brazil and any other country. Sure there is more crime here, but it's mostly very localized.

There certainly are areas one should avoid, if alone, at night, but these places you can find in most big cities around the world.

Sure there is more crime in Brazil, but what I want to know is what my chances are of getting robbed when using my iPhone on the bus (or train).

So, what are my odds: "10%? 20%? 90%? or is it like 0.0001%"

I bet it's much more like 0.0001%

Actually, "roubo a transuente", 59K cases in 2010, mokes it 0,0118 or 1.18%.

Remember that purse snatching and taking a cellphone from someones hands and running away is also considered "roubo".

"Latrocinio" or "roubo seguida de morte" was at 62 last year.

Bus robberies where 568 last year. Considering 20K busses, 6 rides a day and 365 days, you'd have 1243920 rides and in 568 of those a robbery occured, I have a chance of 0,0456621005% to get robbed on a bus.

I'll take my chances

Sven, at least you are using stats.

Who are you, where do you live, and how do you live?

If you are one of the 25% of Rio's favela-dwellers, life is dangerous.

If you happen to be one of the 8,000+ people killed by the Rio police (yes, 8,000+ !!!) in the last ten years, life is dangerous.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7tDB7hHnqY

It's important to consider where the violence is and who you are.

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Gringodude
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Posted: 13 November 2011 at 17:02

And to add the importance of any facts vs generalization. What would be your point?

Keeping the BrazilianLifestyle

"Have a great day everyone" - Ray
"You know who you are, now go and reflect!" - Esprit

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jplap
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Joined: 23 February 2011
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Posted: 15 November 2011 at 06:18

Originally posted by sven

Actually, "roubo a transuente", 59K cases in 2010, mokes it 0,0118 or 1.18%.

"Latrocinio" or "roubo seguida de morte" was at 62 last year.

Bus robberies where 568 last year.

Hey Sven, interesting topic, but where did you get your numbers from? The best I could find googling is from the Instituto de Segurança Pública (ISP), which publishes monthly and yearly totals here ISP web site

If you go to "Estatisticas de Seguraça Pública..." -> "Balanço de Incidencias..." you get these numbers for 2010:

Roubo a transuente: 63346 (71066 in 2009)
Latrocinio: 156 (221 in 2009)
Roubo em Coletivo: 8202 (8930 in 2009)

The numbers for 2011 are (of course) not out yet, but they do have the monthly tallies available on that site.

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