For those who live in Sto. Domingo or Santiago

juancarlos

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Sep 28, 2003
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How has the increase in crime affected your daily routine? Do you still take daily walks during daytime?
I read there was report on CDN based on the opinions of those who live in some middle and upper middle class neighborhoods in the Capital. Most stated they had reduced their walks to the morning hours and they had increased the use of security devices for their homes. Do people feel that the increase in crime will continue at a fast pace?
 

ERICKXSON

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Dec 24, 2002
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www.creambay.com
i really doubt that the crime will keep rising police is a good job in my opinion i feel totally secured however precautions are always taken this is a big city and big cities are known for crime etc etc.
 

Naufrago

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Sep 1, 2004
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Living here in SD for 5 months now, walk everywhere within walking distance, which for me means about a 2 mile radius from Gomez and Independencia, try to stay in nice areas, but I'll walk down Duarte, and in villa consuelo and villa juana, when visting family, or shopping. Just like in NYC, I keep my eyes open, and try to look confident and don't look lost. No problems yet. walk mostly during day. but i'll walk locally at night, eyes open.
 

Spirit7

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Aug 26, 2004
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Increase in crime is overblown.

Santo Domingo is one of the safer cities, as most of the Dominican Republic, compared with New York, Washington, DC, Madrid, Paris, London, Rome, LA, Chicago, etc., etc., all places I have lived in or visited extensively.

There has been an increase in high-visibility crime but I promise you it is overblown and you can still move around fairly worry-free. Of course, luck
may run out and you may be a victim but the chances are lower here, I think.
 

juancarlos

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Sep 28, 2003
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Naufrago said:
Living here in SD for 5 months now, walk everywhere within walking distance, which for me means about a 2 mile radius from Gomez and Independencia, try to stay in nice areas, but I'll walk down Duarte, and in villa consuelo and villa juana, when visting family, or shopping. Just like in NYC, I keep my eyes open, and try to look confident and don't look lost. No problems yet. walk mostly during day. but i'll walk locally at night, eyes open.

In five months you have certainly moved around a lot and have gotten to know as much of the country as you can, even driving to other cities, I've read. I'm glad to see you walk too and that way you get a real feel of the city and its neighborhoods. One hardly walks in Los Angeles. I still do for exercise, about two or three miles almost evryday, after work. Of course, I choose a major avenue close to home where I see other people walking and there are street lights. Most LA streets are deserted, except for cars and walking after dark is not recommended. So, from what I have read here so far, it seems to me that, in general, Santo Domingo is still safer than Los Angeles.
 

Chirimoya

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2002
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I walk my son to school every morning, weather permitting. The brisker pace on my walk back home is my exercise (the last 15-20 mins of a 45 min round trip). I also want him to have the habit and experience of walking to school, which was almost universal when I was a school pupil in the 70s, and is almost obsolete now, deviant even, at least among the urban middle and upper classes.

Although that paragraph refers to Santo Domingo, it could have been written about any of the cities I have lived in throughout my life. However safe it is (and my hometown has to be one of the safest places on the planet) pedestrians are now an endangered species. No wonder so many children and adults are obese. (A little walk can make a big difference: I lost 8 lbs in the first two months and I didn't have to diet :D ).

Sorry, I know that wasn't the real point of the thread. Security-wise I don't consider this morning walk at all risky. Having said that I don't carry anything with me, only the house key if there's no one else home.

In general I'm more on my guard than I used to be, as a result of anecdotal evidence that there is more chance of being robbed these days. Several people close to me have been mugged at knifepoint and gunpoint in the last few weeks. Two of them were in conchos and one was walking home from the supermarket.

A woman I know says she no longer takes her children to Parque Mirador Sur, even if she were to go with no valuables. Her feeling is that it is no longer safe enough. I hope she's wrong.

I know some will disagree with me on this last point, but it helps to be as inconspicuous and low-key as possible if you want to avoid being singled out as rich pickings.
 

Naufrago

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Sep 1, 2004
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I've heard about similar mugging incidents, and I don't want to mislead anyone into walking around as much as I do, unless your ready to handle a situation. I don't want my wife walking too far alone, I know I'm a chauvenist pig. But even in NYC, I didn't want her walking alone at night. Last weekend I flew to NY, left at 4am, back on monday at 3am, left my car at the long term parking lot, and found it to be really convienient. My In-laws were very worried that I would be attacked en route at such an hour. I refuse to live in fear, I may die in panic, but will not live in fear. Been held up twice in my life, in NY a guy held a knife at me and asked for money, I told him I didn't have anything, not even a wallet. He said "OK" and walked away. In Boston Three drunks surrounded me, on a deserted street, I pulled out a hunting knife, held it right up against the one close to me and kept on walking. When I was younger, I was in the Army Special Forces, and while that was over 20 years ago, I still have the attitude. I imagine that I can handle anything, in my mind if attacked I'll be a combination Bruce Lee/007. The attitude can get you far. I used to carry a Gun and/or a knife but now I imagine that I don't need them, and I think I'm safer for it. It's a higher level of confidence. You should always be aware of everything within your range of sight, and steer clear, or leave an escape open. Don't let anyone get too close. There is absolutely no reason to talk to anyone in the street, especially if they approach you, keep walking.
 

hugoke01

New member
Dec 31, 2004
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Believe comparisons of crime rate incorrect

I normally live in Madrid an I'm sure that the crime rate in Madrid is maybe 10 times lower than in Santo Domingo .Madrid is about twice the size of Santo Domingo and believe me people aren't get killled like in Santo Domingo where gangs are ruling complete "barrios" or what I daily read in the Listing Diario and the Nacional is completely incorrect information ..
Spirit7 said:
Santo Domingo is one of the safer cities, as most of the Dominican Republic, compared with New York, Washington, DC, Madrid, Paris, London, Rome, LA, Chicago, etc., etc., all places I have lived in or visited extensively.

There has been an increase in high-visibility crime but I promise you it is overblown and you can still move around fairly worry-free. Of course, luck
may run out and you may be a victim but the chances are lower here, I think.