It's true that gold has always been a "safe" and it always will be, but gold is very special : being a commodity but not being really a commodity, being a currency but not being really a currency, and so on...
Gold & real estate have NOT always been "safe". In fact, just as you said, if you bought gold 35-40 years ago it is only now that you will be recouping your money.
Everyone has to know their own circumstances and what will be best for them when the sky falls. I personally think being mobile in a crisis is much more important than hoarding gold or being locked to a property.
As Sara has said, markets have crashed before and people persevere.