Originally Posted by
VidaNaPraia
It's all good....until it isn't. And the turnabout can happen suddenly. Gringos driving in Brazil are like sight-impaired Mr. Magoo of the cartoon, stumbling through danger after danger without being aware.
Suburbs can be dangerous, as your Carioca can explain. Carjacks in the area you mention are "not that uncommon". Don't think you are in Kansas...or Arizona...where you can safely pull over to the side of the road. On and on. Incidents make the back pages of the local papers in Portuguese that we locals may see; publicity's not good for tourism.
There is an uncommon advantage having a native with her learned sense of danger and Portuguese language ability sitting next to you as well.
It's good general advice, but please don't lump experienced travelers here with your average "gringo tourist". As said I've traveled all over the world including more dangerous places and I was indeed raised in a somewhat more dangerous place. We will be fine and indeed will have local advice and support.
And to get back on topic, I think that international organizations such as FIFA and the IOC will be putting a lot of pressure on Brazil to up their game in policing to make sure there are no bad headlines about tourists getting jacked during these events. It may be better to correct the social problems that lead to high crime rates, but I'm not sure we can count on that happening real soon.