I’ve seen people advising people to go Mexico to get their teeth done.
While this saves so much money, yes, even with the cost of the flight.
As someone who lived in Mexico for several years and keeps tabs on whats going on there, is immeshed with everything and understands how it *really* is not just how it is for a tourist... and keeps up with embassy and us state department travel advisories and news reguarding there (not just international but local).
I find it really weird that she did not warn American people about the danger of going to specifically the city she mentioned.
This is the one city that, when traveling from Mexico City, to Puebla, and then to Cancun or Tulum to get the coast- we literally *take time out of our trip* to go *around* Guetelajara. We avoid it at all costs.
This is not a safe place. To go. It’s worse than Miami, you hear the horror stories of girls getting kidnapped out of bars and such in Miami yeah, it’s that on steroids in Mexico, *especially* in the Northern sliver that is below California.
A lot of young Californian people like to make the trip down to Tijuana to see the beautiful sites and vacation cheaply, drink Mexican cervesas and party.
But you are a target in these areas North of Tijuana and in Tijuana.
I hate to say it, but especially if you are lighter skinned, or, white. Yeah.
Because to them, if they see any indication you may have money, or find out who you are or that you do have money, or have a nice purse, or a nice rental car, a nice suit case even.
They will do *whatever* it takes, to get what they want.
A lot of the tim though, the most lucrative asset, is women, young pretty white girls in particular.
Please do not travel through Mexico alone. Don’t cross the border. Fly in. And do not travel through the air port or leave the air port alone, do not get on a bus alone, and do not use taxi’s, do not talk to any strangers or go near to them. And do not rent a flashy rental car, have flashy jewelry purse clothes, or suit case. You need to keep a very low profile, and be with someone who a) knows Mexico, the language, and how to navigate it safely aka, a local. And b) is bigger and stronger than you, preferably a man.
You cannot carry weapons in Mexico and this is part of the problem, you can’t protect yourself.
The cops will not protect you here, they don’t view Americans as their responsibility, they view them as Americas responsibility. And majority, of the cops are very very corrupt, working for the cartel, etc. They hold machine guns and perform a rudimentary stop, tell you to get out of your vehicle and randomly search it (this has happened to me) and they take everything they want. Ceasing it, claiming you cannot have it.
There is nothing yhou can do because they have machine guns dude.
If you try to mail a package across the border, everything in that package will get stolen. You will just receive an empty box.
If you don’t carry you bag on, you do a normal luggage check you bag etc, you will find items missing from your suit case when you get it returned to you, or it may come up stolen or missing.
But yeah, Guatelajara is like the sex trafficking capital. Not even joking, and the closer you get to the coast from that point, is worse. Do not go to the rural coasts.
I don’t know, just, if you go on the Embassy website, or the State department website and look at the travel advisories, you will see the warnings are very serious. And they keep you up to date about civil unrest going on in these cities, riots, etc.
The riots are very bad in mexico, some cities have been taken over by the cartel and its very very dangerous. Or there is essentially war happening on the territory.
In Mexico, you do not drive from city to city you take a bus, because if you are alone in a vehicle, you will be targeted. They will run you off the road, seize your vehicle from you with a gun to your head. And leave you stranded and that’s if your lucky. There have been reports of finding tourists beheaded, or, finding their vehicles left in the middle of a rural road near Tijuana, with all the doors open, all the tires slashed, and the two tourists in the vehicle were never seen or found alive again.
Literally just went for a drive, and never returned because they drove int he wrong area.
It’s very dangerous in certain areas even within the nicer cities, and you will not be able to know this without a local who is very very knowledgeable of this specific area.
You also need to understand not to drink the water, or eat food that is prepared with the water like fresh fruit, vegetables, lettuce. There is other ways to get these items and prepare them yourself but not from restaraunts. Don’t use the ice. Get bottled drinks only.
And, lastly, do not go to certain gas stations, once again only a local will know this but. If you are driving in a destitute or rural area, and there is a gas station that looks, like no people are at it. You are an absolute idiot to go there.
You will be greatly mistaken for doing that. They will approach you, take your credit card, take you car. And if you go in the store, they will take all your tires very very qauickly they have it down to a science, by the time you get back out.
The government also killed 42 students for rebelling against the government during the time I lived there. Things have gotten *worse* since then not better ok. It’s very very bad. I went to the same school these students went to.
In Mexico the government by law, can kill you for committing whatever they *see fit* as an qualifiying as an act of treason or rebellion against their government. And very corrupt leaders, killed them, and laid them out like bodies in a row. Absolutely horrible.
And that’s in the nicer cities. Ok. So, Mexico City, The airports, the coasts, and Guetelejara, and even in some parts of the nicer cities, you should not go to. There are specific ways of navigating mexico that if you do not know them you could actually get yourself killed. And you need to stay in hotels with metal bolt locks in their doors, iron bars on the windows, and are not close to the street. The more security and walls, the better.
It is not a safe place for a white girl to go alone...
I know people probably understand this but, it just seems flat out irresponsible as she is a local to mexico and knows what is happening there, to advise people to go to Guatalejara of all places.
If you are a local you get used to it and love your home, and I am like that too I love where I lived.
But you need to warn people it’s not safe for just anyone to Willy nillly travel through, as a tourist like you would through the United States on a fun road trip. People have done this in mexico and literally did not come back.
So yeah, just, be smart about traveling to foreign countries, do your research. And be SAFE. Especially in places like this you think like, “oh i can just run to the store really quick by myself, no big deal” because you feel comfortable like say you’re a tourist in Cancun. The second you step off the resort, you are in danger, and are a target, could get held for ransom or sex trafficked. Like “oh I’ll just get in a taxi just this once” no. Do not ever get in the taxi’s.
Don’t break the law, because you don’t want to meet the Mexican police. It’s like meeting a member of the cartel, because they are. And they can do very corrupt things to you being in that position of power. A simple speeding ticket, can turn into something much worse. You pinned yourself there. And in places like Tulum and Cancun there is no one around to see it’s just trees, in absolute pitch black darkness.
It’s just not just pretty beaches, it’s also miles and miles of just dense tropical forest that is unlike anything we have in the United States.
And the beaches are far more rustic for this reason, you need to be knowledgeable about sea life that is dangerous. Like dont walk out in the rocks with your bare feet, if you get a cut u will get infection and get very sick. There are certain poisonous things you can step on. There are poisonous insects, snakes, lions, toucans, scorpions, and giant lizard things i forgot what theyre called but. These are all things i’ve seen while staying at a top tier resort. Yes, a fucking lion got on the property and it was terrifying. It’s not cute. It’s very bad.
And another thing to note is, the roof things that are made of hay, are stupid and dont stay in a bungalow with hay thatch roofs. Rain and lizards and bird boop and lizard poop gets through, the ac is poor in there cuz no insulation, its damp and muggy. It’s not ideal. Just stay in a regular building.
