Which countries have you traveled to where you felt the least safe in?
#46
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Didn't exactly feel unsafe, but definitely the places I most felt the need to keep my wits about me: Nigeria and South Africa (though I'd return to the latter in an instant for work or vacation).
It's funny to see Manila mentioned here. Not that I doubt people feeling unsafe. But having lived there for six years, I got very used to knowing where to go and not go and what to watch out for. But I guess that happens with most places.
It's funny to see Manila mentioned here. Not that I doubt people feeling unsafe. But having lived there for six years, I got very used to knowing where to go and not go and what to watch out for. But I guess that happens with most places.
Last edited by Thunderroad; Feb 19, 2016 at 7:19 pm
#47
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#48
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I was in Bali twice over last 6 month and I would surely hear about such case. I have not.
Last edited by invisible; Feb 19, 2016 at 7:23 pm
#49
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I spent several months in Muanda. Never felt threatened at all. There were a bunch of vacant hotels that had been ransacked by the military. They had even gone so far as to steal the wood in the door and window frames. Squatters had moved into them. But I never felt threatened. Used to walk from Banana Base (on the river) up to Muanda (couple of hours walk) on Sunday afternoons.
#50
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At the same time, when we went back to the country where I was born for a month long vacation the several hour drive from the east to the west of the country was probably the most nerve wracking experience I had. And I was not driving - my brother did. But despite the fact that he was driving very safe, the whole experience caused my wife to had nervous breakdown to the point that she wanted to go directly to the airport. Needless to say, we survived.
Last edited by invisible; Feb 19, 2016 at 7:29 pm
#51
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#52
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#53
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Perception and personal experience are often far removed from reality. Based on personal experience the most unsafe place I've been is Montreal because it's the only place where I was involved in a physical confrontation but a sample size of one is of no value.
Perception of risk is cultural. I don't like to admit it but it takes me a couple of days to adjust being one of the few if not the only white person in an African supermarket or bar. Sorry if it offends but in the U.S.A. anywhere you are the only white person and everyone else is black is probably somewhere you don't want to linger.
The media also play a role. Working in Eastern Europe has caused friends and family to think I'm risking my life in a corrupt and dangerous region. The biggest danger in most Eastern European cities are sidewalks that are in poor repair. It can be risky wandering back to your hotel after a long liquid dinner in Bucharest or Sofia.
Perception of risk is cultural. I don't like to admit it but it takes me a couple of days to adjust being one of the few if not the only white person in an African supermarket or bar. Sorry if it offends but in the U.S.A. anywhere you are the only white person and everyone else is black is probably somewhere you don't want to linger.
The media also play a role. Working in Eastern Europe has caused friends and family to think I'm risking my life in a corrupt and dangerous region. The biggest danger in most Eastern European cities are sidewalks that are in poor repair. It can be risky wandering back to your hotel after a long liquid dinner in Bucharest or Sofia.
#54
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I've traveled all over the world. Italy, specifically Rome was were I felt the least safe. Grouped in the hostel I stayed at. Everyone we met was pick pocketed. The sites there are great but you have to be very careful. I felt super safe at Vatican City, it's like night and day from Rome. India was also quite an expierence. It was exhausting traveling in india.
#56
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I'm a 6'1", 175lb, 53 year old white male who lives in the USA. I've visited 91 countries in most corners of the world. When I visit a country, I tend to 'devour' it, by riding motorcycles and scooters, driving rental cars and walking a lot in the cities.
Top of my list of dangerous countries is the USA. There are plenty of cities that I would not be caught wandering around in late at night. My most recent experience was a drunk on Bourbon Street trying to pick a fight with me while my wife was shopping in a store.
Beyond that, I have never really felt endangered in any country, but there are certain places where I have felt a bit nervous and was extra-aware:
Cairo
Johannesburg
Bogota
Albania
Santiago
Rio de Janeiro
The west bank of Israel and certain quarters of Jeruselum
Mexico - I've been hassled by the police there so many times I stopped going about 10 years ago
I'll be visiting Beirut in a few weeks, so I may have another one to add to my list
Top of my list of dangerous countries is the USA. There are plenty of cities that I would not be caught wandering around in late at night. My most recent experience was a drunk on Bourbon Street trying to pick a fight with me while my wife was shopping in a store.
Beyond that, I have never really felt endangered in any country, but there are certain places where I have felt a bit nervous and was extra-aware:
Cairo
Johannesburg
Bogota
Albania
Santiago
Rio de Janeiro
The west bank of Israel and certain quarters of Jeruselum
Mexico - I've been hassled by the police there so many times I stopped going about 10 years ago
I'll be visiting Beirut in a few weeks, so I may have another one to add to my list
I've also grown up within the American "gun culture" and have no knee-jerk fear of guns, but rather a healthy respect for what a gun can do in the hands of an idiot (or in the hands of a good person).
That said, in the last 8 years, my travels have taken me to 47 countries. When traveling, I will walk miles every day if time permits. I freely admit that if I were a 100lb female (or even a 300lb female) this would be a much riskier proposition; and I apologize on behalf of the entire male sub-species for this state of things in the female world. But I digress...
I've walked trough the poorest slums in India, Lesotho, Bangladesh, Colombia, Guatemala, Kenya, Honduras, etc, etc...and yes, even the US. In the US, I've walked while CCW, but it made no difference. You keep your eyes open, greet the locals, observe their reactions. How people respond to you will tell you if you're at increased risk. Change directions frequently and if needed, bend down and pick up a large rock or stick. Yep, just walk down the street with a big ol' rock in your hand. Pretty much by definition, criminals don't want to work for their rewards, and a man with a weapon of any kind is just too damn much work. A guarantee of safety? Hardly. Your goal is to tip the odds a bit more in your favor.
But to answer the OP... Caracas, hands down. The city is consuming itself. It's a shame, because the rest of Venezuela is stunning.
#57
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140+ countries and counting.
I m in my 30s, and there really is only one country that I've been genuinely afraid in, USA
honourable mentions for feeling uneasy - Russia, Bahamas, Mexico, France, Spain, Italy, Dominican Rep, Panama, Brazil, South Africa, Kenya - obvisouly not entire countries, just specific cities/situations
I m in my 30s, and there really is only one country that I've been genuinely afraid in, USA
honourable mentions for feeling uneasy - Russia, Bahamas, Mexico, France, Spain, Italy, Dominican Rep, Panama, Brazil, South Africa, Kenya - obvisouly not entire countries, just specific cities/situations
#58
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26 years old, physically fairly imposing, walk around a lot and always take public transport, 80+ countries visited:
Tops for me would be:
South Africa
Jamaica
Brazil
That being said, I haven't visited most of Central America or the worst places in Africa (Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania) yet, so it will be interesting to see those places.
What makes a place seem physically unsafe to me seems to be a combination of:
1) Lack of accountability for actions (murders etc have a high chance of being unresolved)
2) Easy access to weapons
3) Culture of violent crime
#1 is why I don't find the US that bad. Don't get me wrong, it's not high up on the safety list but I didn't feel threatened at all walking around Oakland or the Bronx at night. Maybe I've just avoided the worst areas or had good luck. #3 is why a place like Cambodia, which seems like the kind of place that would be on par with Jamaica, never seemed threatening to me. And that includes Phnom Pehn at night.
Even the places I listed seemed reasonably safe to me, i.e. I never once felt that I was in immediate danger. In Jamaica I saw someone get stabbed downtown from a bus, but that seemed more like local conflict instead of economically motivated crime. I never felt that someone was going to stab me for my phone for example. I mainly listed them because they're the kind of places where I need to be more alert and avoid doing some things I would normally do.
Tops for me would be:
South Africa
Jamaica
Brazil
That being said, I haven't visited most of Central America or the worst places in Africa (Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania) yet, so it will be interesting to see those places.
What makes a place seem physically unsafe to me seems to be a combination of:
1) Lack of accountability for actions (murders etc have a high chance of being unresolved)
2) Easy access to weapons
3) Culture of violent crime
#1 is why I don't find the US that bad. Don't get me wrong, it's not high up on the safety list but I didn't feel threatened at all walking around Oakland or the Bronx at night. Maybe I've just avoided the worst areas or had good luck. #3 is why a place like Cambodia, which seems like the kind of place that would be on par with Jamaica, never seemed threatening to me. And that includes Phnom Pehn at night.
Even the places I listed seemed reasonably safe to me, i.e. I never once felt that I was in immediate danger. In Jamaica I saw someone get stabbed downtown from a bus, but that seemed more like local conflict instead of economically motivated crime. I never felt that someone was going to stab me for my phone for example. I mainly listed them because they're the kind of places where I need to be more alert and avoid doing some things I would normally do.
#59
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The media also play a role. Working in Eastern Europe has caused friends and family to think I'm risking my life in a corrupt and dangerous region. The biggest danger in most Eastern European cities are sidewalks that are in poor repair. It can be risky wandering back to your hotel after a long liquid dinner in Bucharest or Sofia.
However, my worst experience on this recently was surprisingly in San Francisco, including on the streets off of Union Square. I was shocked by how bad the downtown sidewalks were. A number of people at my meeting commented on it at the time and we discussed the financial status of California state and local governments in recent years.
#60
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Unsafe sidewalks can be problems in China (although Shanghai is pretty good on this), Malaysia, Thailand, etc.
However, my worst experience on this recently was surprisingly in San Francisco, including on the streets off of Union Square. I was shocked by how bad the downtown sidewalks were. A number of people at my meeting commented on it at the time and we discussed the financial status of California state and local governments in recent years.
However, my worst experience on this recently was surprisingly in San Francisco, including on the streets off of Union Square. I was shocked by how bad the downtown sidewalks were. A number of people at my meeting commented on it at the time and we discussed the financial status of California state and local governments in recent years.
Bangkok sidewalks! Wow!