Eldest daughter making choices for foreign placements to Spanish speaking countries as part of University course.
Has no interest in Spain itself, preferring Lain America-the Erasmus programme (while it still exists, has reciprocal arrangements in Lima, Guadalajara & Mexico City.
She favours Mexico & to be frank, that gives me the willies (particularly Guadalajara). I’m not prone to being a protective worryguts, but sadly very little I read about modern Mexico is reassuring. Too much Don Winslow & current affairs reporting to be honest
Anybody know first hand or know folks who do, who would strongly advise yay or nay about either of the Mexican Cities above? The stay would be for around 6 months , likely in 2022.
Many thanks, peeps.
ATM: How safe are Guadalajara and Mexico City?
by 21 Comments
Have no personal experience, but I have heard that some of the crime issues in Mexico are overstated, just be prudent at all times and don’t wander around alone late at night. I would share your concerns if it was my daughter though. They are huge cities, there will be lots of crime, but also nice areas that are visitor friendly. A quick google search turned up this comparison:
https://www.nomadichustle.com/mexico-city-vs-guadalajara/
I was in Mexico City and Guadalajara last year. Guadalajara is really wonderful – vibrant and really pleasant/great food and friendly people.
Mexico city on other hand felt intimidating and worth avoiding. A sprawling mess.
I would imagine she’ll want to get involved as much as possible in one of the more successful drug cartels, in order to really learn about the country and its culture. I’m not sure to what extent the Erasmus programme facilitates this and it might be worth sending a facebook friendship request to Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada in advance of her stay.
Would suggest you get her to watch Narcos Mexico or El Chapo for linguistic tips before she goes as accurate pronunciation of words is sure to help her fit right in:
“Drohgs” (for drugs)
and
“Gohns” (for guns)
seem to be very widely used
Thanks for your takes on it guys, much appreciated.
Jim, like most major cities there are places to avoid in Mexico City while there are tourist areas (obviously more expensive). If she has a level head on her then she should be able to avoid the danger zones. Shame as it ruled out going to mariachi bars when I was there.
Mexico City in daytime is really vibrant. Lots to learn and see.
Is it just me, or aren’t today’s posted OPs showing up on the Forum side; only in the “Recently Posted” column, mods?
@Junglejim I asked a friend who has a Mexican girlfriend. Broad suggestion would be Mexico City would be safer, Guadalajara has apparently gone downhill quite a bit lately. If you have more info regarding specific areas,she may be able to give more advice.
@dai interesting take as I found the reverse. So much so that I would like to revisit Guadalajara with my wife.
When was that?
When I was living in Zimbabwe, friends and family sent me newspaper cuttings of all these awful goings on. As I sat having another sundowner they didn’t seem to reflect my life.
It is all about where you go and who you go with.
A decade or so ago my – frankly, a bit dizzy – friend K did an overland trip from Ushuaia on the southern tip of the mainland (via a stop at the Falklands) to Tijuana. Through countries you only hear bad news of – Bolivia, Venezuela, Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Mexico. I’m not aware she can even speak any Spanish. They all looked fantastic and her photo album is incredible. She’s full of tales of welcoming friendly locals wherever she went.
She had no trouble at all, apart from occasionally having her arse pinched which, frankly, could be arranged if she came up to Cambridge.
She had more aggro trying to get from Tijuana to LA, in order to fly home, than in the rest of the trip put together.
So, just keep her wits about her and she’ll be fine.
@fentonsteve Have been to Ushuaia and La Paz and though both are quirky I never felt unsafe.
Lima was slightly threatening but from a pickpocket viewpoint which I think is fairly prominent in Latin cities – Barcelona being the worst in my experience.
Sadly no-one pinched my arse!!
K is is the spitting image of actress Mini Driver, and is London Irish. First time we met I was carrying a suitcase, which I involuntarily dropped, and I developed a temporary stutter.
Perhaps if you looked like, say Leonardo DeCaprio, you’d have had your arse pinched.
Had my arse pinched once.
Don’t worry, I got it back.
(….wrong thread)
I remember walking through a big open market in Kinshasa with both hands deep in my pockets and even then some kids were trying to reach in.
How safe is London? New York? Constantinople? It depends doesn’t it. The more young adults like your daughter travel the safer it gets for all of us or have all you hippies on here forgotten that about yourselves?
Red… Red star… Red
Everywhere in the world has areas where it’s not all that safe for a stranger to be on their own, particularly at night. If somewhere feels dangerous, it almost certainly is. A person who keeps their wits about them is safer than someone who doesn’t.
This is of course true, but in North America (which Mexico is part of) guns are way more prevalent. Go in the wrong area of London, Manchester or Liverpool and you may be assaulted or mugged (or worst case knived I suppose) , go in the wrong part of Chicago, Detroit or Guadalajara and you may lose your life. Most crime in these cities is gang related and targeted, but it can sometimes spill out into normally safe downtown areas. e.g. someone was shot dead at a food court in Toronto a few years ago in a mall just a few hundred yards from large student populations. You would have to be very unlucky, but it can happen. Something like that is extremely rare in Europe.
* in some parts foreigners or tourists can be targeted, so extra care is required at all times, never go anywhere you are not sure of.
Been to Mexico a few times. Mexico City is a fantastic place, loads of museums, art, music and so on. We didn’t feel any less safe than in any big city really. We used Uber to get about. There are a few places you’d avoid just as you would in London or New York. The Mexican people are very friendly and helpful.