Has It Always Been So Bad?

[scotttswan]

I've never been robbed here (well by the supermarkets but we're not counting them right?)

I was almost robbed coming home from the cinema near the abasto, but i spotted them making a b-line for me and my wife, i quickly ran through oncoming traffic to cross the road and get out of immediate danger.

 

[gpop]

I've never been robbed here (well by the supermarkets but we're not counting them right?)

I was almost robbed coming home from the cinema near the abasto, but i spotted them making a b-line for me and my wife, i quickly ran through oncoming traffic to cross the road and get out of immediate danger.

o_0 so the option is to either die (assuredly) in mad traffic or potentially die and loose your stuff to a thief... but maybe you live and just loose your stuff?

sounds like you came out on top. kudos on not dying and keeping your stuff



i'm not going to die to try to hold on to things, i wouldn't put my family in harms way to try to avoid a daily fact in this city either.
my thinking is that if i don't like my situation then i should change it. removing myself from that which bothers me is probably the way to go as opposed to resisting a no-win situation.

 

[Pensador]

I've never been robbed here (well by the supermarkets but we're not counting them right?)

I was almost robbed coming home from the cinema near the abasto, but i spotted them making a b-line for me and my wife, i quickly ran through oncoming traffic to cross the road and get out of immediate danger.

I had one experience about 3AM walking alone two teenagers started following me. I knew what they were thinking, after about 2 blocks of cat and mouse I turned around abruptly and started running right for them as fast I could. My thinking was why wait lets get this on.. i got about 20 meters away they took off like cats in two different directions. End of story...

Best close call I had was in Mexico city, I will never forget that one. Left our hotel at around 11 PM to hit the clubs and 3 teens come up on me and a friend. I turned around and looked at them as they approached. At the time I was benching around 400 lbs regularly. The first one got a look at me and just hesitated long enough that the other 2 got a look. LOL it was too funny looking back. They started looking at each other sort of confused. Like well do we or do we not ...just all nervous. I saw that and told my friend while facing them, we have might have a problem here. I started moving towards the the thugs. Well that minute of hesitation cost them dearly. Out of the hotel came the armed security guards pistols in hand. I stood their watching the security guards chase them down the street smacking them on their backs and on the backs of their heads with their pistols. I enjoyed every second of that...

Being as big and as fit as I have been all my life I have always looked at criminals like dogs.. show no fear let them think they have a real bad ass on their hands I can pull that impression off and back it up when I need too. Fortunately I have not had any arms pulled on me yet not sure how I would handle that.

 

[Patagone]

Being as big and as fit as I have been all my life I have always looked at criminals like dogs.. show no fear let them think they have a real bad ass on their hands I can pull that impression off and back it up when I need too. Fortunately I have not had any arms pulled on me yet not sure how I would handle that.

You won't know until it happens. I always thought that I would give over whatever I have, especially as I live a minimalistic life and value it more than my, well, valuables. But when the gang tried to take our loaded bikes away, my GF started shouting and the leader pulled out a gun, I did not do as expected.

When you spend a few years on your bike, it becomes literally your home, your kid and in my case, also my office. So instead, as a reaction, I pulled out the small pepper spray -that I had bought in San Diego to scare off the infamous Mexican dogs- from the little sidepocket of my handlebar bags, stepped forward and pointed it in the dude's face. He clearly recognized it, let go of my GF and ran away, me following him, trying to find rocks on the way to throw to him and his cronies, as the pepperspray actually didn''t work anymore after sitting there 2 years.

So they ran back to their free barrio and we continued our journey, unscathed in a material way, but with quite a big dent in an emotional way.

 

[Noesdeayer]

FYI All_
Today's La Nacion has a very interesting color coded "Crime Map" of CABA
showing- the neighborhoods with heavy "Arebatos-- Street Rip Offs with and without use of weapons and violence etc.
Take a look.

 

[mc kenna]

This happened so long ago that even having long hair was wrong, at least here in Argentina, so we are driving to the coast with my dad and by some miracle i was driving and of course the ol' man giving instructions as i was a rookie behind the wheel at that point, it is late at night in the summer on this lonely stretch of highway between Tres Arroyos and Claromeco when out of no where here comes this big a$$ pick up truck high beams on and started to tailgate me(, during those days diesel was one tenth of what gasoline cost,) so'' black top pirates'' would steal anything with a diesel engine... of course our truck had the slowest diesel engine ever created, out running these guys was out of the question, i slowed down, they slowed down, this went on for a few kilometers, i sped up, they sped up but always tailgating me, luckily my dad had moved his side view mirror and the rear view in a way where i would not be blinded by the high beams, i signal the guys to pass and nothing, they would stay back righ on my tailgate, and getting closer and closer, the ol' man tells me, what ever you do, stay on the pavement even if it is on the wrong side of the road,( i guess he figured they were getting ready to start ramming us)which was pretty standard procedure back then .by now my side mirror is off too and the whole cab is brightly lit up by their lights, next thing i know the ol' man pulls out his 45 from under the seat offering a full profile view of the gun to our companions, and i'm thinking... oh great if we shoot first we are saved as i hardly ever saw the ol' man miss a shot, as he is turning around to take aim the lights went off completly , i heard them down shift once, got around us and sped away with no lights on, as this is happening i noticed i missed my turn off so i slammed on the brakes which got me a good a$$ chewing , but right after i got the official '' you did good boy, didn't panic''and also'' not a word of this to your mother'' which i disclosed some 20 years later
The moral of the story,
was it wrong to have a loaded pistol in the truck without the propper paperwork and permits? yes , yes it was
did the pistol save our property from being stolen a possibly our lives?yes, yes it did
did i need a change of undergarments? no not quite but damn near
So remember kids, when you are out there, doesn't matter if it is 1880 1980 or 2080 your cell phone will not save you , also always carry extra underwear

 

[GMXam]

FYI All_
Today's La Nacion has a very interesting color coded "Crime Map" of CABA
showing- the neighborhoods with heavy "Arebatos-- Street Rip Offs with and without use of weapons and violence etc.
Take a look.

I find that map hard to believe. Palermo is this bright white area of security amongst all the subte lines? What about on buses? There must be a high number of pick-pockets that don't get reported.

 

[GMXam]

This happened so long ago that even having long hair was wrong, at least here in Argentina...

I always imagine your stories being told in the voice of Sam Elliott

 

[Girino]

So remember kids, when you are out there, doesn't matter if it is 1880 1980 or 2080 your cell phone will not save you , also always carry extra underwear

Yikes! I usually do very fine in emergency situations, but I have never been in a criminal situation, yet. And I almost literally shit in my pants when I see firearms, even when they are legitimate guns from police officers.

One way or the other, these experiences scar you for life. This is what I am afraid of.

 

[Ceviche]

I wonder if there are any long term expats that were not at least once robbed in Argentina?

I have never been robbed or approached to be robbed.

However, all my facebook friends fro BA ( locals or expats) every now or then keep posting, they lost their cell phone..please send me yr numbers ( though I wonder how come none of them keep a back up of the damn address book)