New safety tip specifically for female travelers; I know this may sound a bit far fetched but there has been a new trend in theft when regarding women- stealing their hair. Women, that are usually alone or easy targets, are being assaulted so that thieves can cut off their hair and sell it as hair extensions; the "better" (straighter, longer) your hair is, the more money it will fetch. Much as you may be doing now, I laughed when I heard something so ridiculous...until I was leaving a restaurant at about 6 p.m. (it gets dark early this time of year) and a local tigere walked by me, stroked my hair maliciously, and said in spanish "careful morenita, women with long are being assaulted now....". Ladies please, even if you are a local, be especially weary of going to a "shabby salon" late in the afternoon/approaching nighttime because that is prime ground for catching women wearing their hair down and freshly done. If you should be assaulted, God forbid, just comply with the thieves and let them cut your hair. you can grow it out again, but you certainly cannot get your life back or erase the memory of being possibly raped by these thieves.
- Thread starter Chris
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Safety in The DR
None that I've heard of - it is the sort of thing papers here would pick up on. For example the 'gold' ingot sellers are back in Puerto Plata this Xmas & that is in every single local paper & blog.
Reuters reported a hair thief in Australia 18 months or so ago but..............it wasn't taken from heads & it wasn't to sell
Man jailed for stealing women's hair | Oddly Enough | Reuters
I'd be interested to hear if LaElitePre-Med does have examples. I still think cellphones, watches, cash etc are much more likely objects of theft in the DR.
Reuters reported a hair thief in Australia 18 months or so ago but..............it wasn't taken from heads & it wasn't to sell
Man jailed for stealing women's hair | Oddly Enough | Reuters
I'd be interested to hear if LaElitePre-Med does have examples. I still think cellphones, watches, cash etc are much more likely objects of theft in the DR.
I don't have any examples, but, when I think about it, it might just be happening in Haina (a little pueblo where I was staying for the two weeks that I was in DR);and although I don't have any specific examples, it's widely talked about all around the town and even I even heard about it when I was walking around in Acropolis, so I didn't want to discredit the thought entirely; plus, hearing that tigere repeat what I'd heard so much (while wearing a nasty little smirk) certainly didn't help to soothe my fears. It never hurts to be cautious ladies, I was always told a woman's hair is her crowning glory...
It is just possible that the tiguere was trying to frighten you witless so that he could self-appoint as your 'protector'. They're known for little games like this
. So he picks up on a story he'll know you've heard and reinforce it.Being in the beauty industry, I know the price of hair extensions, wholesale. They are very expensive. What we call strands are groupings of about 20-25 hairs bonded together. These hairs are then applied to a persons own real hair. It usually takes 200 "strands" to complete a full set of extensions. Now the price of those 200 "strands" ia anywhere from $150 (cheap) to $500 and up, so long hair is VERY valuable, and if one could find a market to sell this in, they would be making a-lot of money. This hair is normally obtained from women in india, who are too poor to leave $ in their temples as an offering, so they sacrafice their hair. Then the priests collect it and sell it. This happens all over the world in poor communities. I would suspect, as cunning and clever as the theives are in the DR, if they got word of this, it would seem like easy money to them. I would be cautious anyhow, just in case, because if they are not doing it now, im sure they will be soon, as the demand for hair is growing by a rate that cannot be kept up with by their conventional gathering methods.
It would appear that this IS now happening in Puerto Plata, so thanks for the heads up :ermm:, LaElite.
Puerto Plata Digital
being safe
well learned my lesson. bars on the windows, sure, do i check them no, i paid for boarding for my dog and it cost me a robbery,. when my dog is here at my building no robberies,..... dog gone bikes gone all you should see the tears... car radio gone, another car entered, tip... keyed enterance and keyed exit... top lock cant get out the door if they broke in the window. cant carry too much either... laptop what else...
well learned my lesson. bars on the windows, sure, do i check them no, i paid for boarding for my dog and it cost me a robbery,. when my dog is here at my building no robberies,..... dog gone bikes gone all you should see the tears... car radio gone, another car entered, tip... keyed enterance and keyed exit... top lock cant get out the door if they broke in the window. cant carry too much either... laptop what else...
keeping it real
one good idea is to wear cargo pants and distribute the money around the pockets. Use safety pins to secure the pockets.
Walk around with a poker face. Be as local looking as possible.
Get a money belt if desperate put money in ur sock .
About buying real estate right now...the economy is in flux, think about renting 4 a while. Eat in cheap places locals frequent. Dress down. U dont need a computer and fancy camera. Go 2 an internet cafe and get a cheap disposible digital camera. Honestly half the stuff u bring on vacation u will never use.
Its funny all the time i spent in the dr and i cant remember a single argument that turned into anything... maybe its just me. Statigically faking not knowing spanish and being a lost gringo can help in an argument " Americano no intendo" make ur pronunciation really bad.
once i had a cheap watch ripped off my arm by a female. And i had another attempted theft of a braclet. These were one of the few times i had on jewelry.dont wear jewelry.
in fact leave all valuables at home. If u have valuables hide them. be vigilant of doors and windows. Stay in tourist areas. Do as many things as u can on ur own. I did some electical and cement work...the guys at the hardware were very helpful. Make sure AC s are properly cemented in dont trust the person who installed it. Check all bars and doors.by forcefully pulling on them If u have an AC hole that ur not using cement it in with blocks. cement broken glass at the top of walls. Secure all outside rooms. I found a vagrant sleeping in a room in my backyard once.
I used an inflatable boat in which i kept my valuables allowing me to swin with the boat near me.
When swimming try not to let water into ur mouth the dr has a rather primitive sewage disposal system. If u have a short stay in dr try using pepto bismol as a preventative to getting travelers diarria.
Dont leave valuables unattended.
Find out before u come if ur room has a room safe and how big it is.
Get a cheap local cellphone.
Becareful of who u befriend.( maybe that nice english speaking guy didnt leave the US voluntarily ). Only exchange money by urself and at a real store not onthe street or with somebody who is doing u a favor.
After a time these ideas become a part of u ....ur now living life like a dominican...u r a local now.
one good idea is to wear cargo pants and distribute the money around the pockets. Use safety pins to secure the pockets.
Walk around with a poker face. Be as local looking as possible.
Get a money belt if desperate put money in ur sock .
About buying real estate right now...the economy is in flux, think about renting 4 a while. Eat in cheap places locals frequent. Dress down. U dont need a computer and fancy camera. Go 2 an internet cafe and get a cheap disposible digital camera. Honestly half the stuff u bring on vacation u will never use.
Its funny all the time i spent in the dr and i cant remember a single argument that turned into anything... maybe its just me. Statigically faking not knowing spanish and being a lost gringo can help in an argument " Americano no intendo" make ur pronunciation really bad.
once i had a cheap watch ripped off my arm by a female. And i had another attempted theft of a braclet. These were one of the few times i had on jewelry.dont wear jewelry.
in fact leave all valuables at home. If u have valuables hide them. be vigilant of doors and windows. Stay in tourist areas. Do as many things as u can on ur own. I did some electical and cement work...the guys at the hardware were very helpful. Make sure AC s are properly cemented in dont trust the person who installed it. Check all bars and doors.by forcefully pulling on them If u have an AC hole that ur not using cement it in with blocks. cement broken glass at the top of walls. Secure all outside rooms. I found a vagrant sleeping in a room in my backyard once.
I used an inflatable boat in which i kept my valuables allowing me to swin with the boat near me.
When swimming try not to let water into ur mouth the dr has a rather primitive sewage disposal system. If u have a short stay in dr try using pepto bismol as a preventative to getting travelers diarria.
Dont leave valuables unattended.
Find out before u come if ur room has a room safe and how big it is.
Get a cheap local cellphone.
Becareful of who u befriend.( maybe that nice english speaking guy didnt leave the US voluntarily ). Only exchange money by urself and at a real store not onthe street or with somebody who is doing u a favor.
After a time these ideas become a part of u ....ur now living life like a dominican...u r a local now.
Or keep it simple and do as we did: sell everything and move out of the D.R. It's 9:29 in the evening no windows bars the patio door wide open and tomorrow we will play golf. Life's a bitch
But the locals DON'T walk around with poker faces. Really they don't. Dominican faces are highly expressive, palpably registering joy or sorrow.
And if the advice is to try and 'pass' for a Dominican.......do you not realise that Dominicans can spot a non-Dominican instantaneously? Many of the expat residents can as well.
It looks like i have an admirer...hi lambada.
No lambada I cant pass 4 a dominican lol. I ment to blend in ...to be more like a local but not a local.
As an outsider who may not know all the nuances of dominican life a non reactive poker face when confronted with an unknown can be helpful.... in the right situation. But when in a more known situation ....a smile can be nice too. Amazing how I must parse my words.
They way u r following me around kinda makes me feel that u like me. Shucks.
No lambada I cant pass 4 a dominican lol. I ment to blend in ...to be more like a local but not a local.
As an outsider who may not know all the nuances of dominican life a non reactive poker face when confronted with an unknown can be helpful.... in the right situation. But when in a more known situation ....a smile can be nice too. Amazing how I must parse my words.
They way u r following me around kinda makes me feel that u like me. Shucks.
Which neatly brings us to another tip for staying safe in the DR - not jumping to hasty conclusions .
.Still had our property in Canada and one in Florida too so it is warm all year round if we want it. Plus, I think the meaning of warm weather differs from one person to another.
Guns
There is a lot of good information in this thread as long as one does not let the advice make them paranoid, only suitably cautious.
Several of the replies mention carrying and using guns. The problem with guns is that when you carry one almost nothing good can come of it. The best you can hope for in an incident involving guns is to avoid the worst outcomes. I speak as a long time gun owner and former police officer. When you use a gun in an attempt at self defense the likely outcomes are one of the following:
1. You will kill your assailant and end up facing a long, very expensive and uncertain legal outcome. Dominican prisons reportedly make US prisons look like resorts.
2. Your assailant will be better armed and more skilled and will kill you.
3. You will discover how difficult it is to kill another human with the result that he takes away your gun and uses it on you.
4. You will kill an innocent person or a bystander. It is very difficult to shoot accurately when your adrenalin is raging.
5. You will accidently shoot yourself or someone else. Mitchner wrote that in the "Wild West" of the US 4 or 5 people were killed by accidental gunfire for every person killed by Indians or outlaws.
6. If your not a permitted resident you may be arrested for illegal possession, resulting in Dominican prison, hefty bribes and deportation.
Its much better to toss your money and run like hell, scream, beg etc. than rely on a gun for protection. I would say that the chances of needing to do any of the above are very slim if you are reasonably astute. Most Dominicans are very honest, friendly and helpful and you are safer almost anywhere in the DR than in a US city (except when driving!).
There is a lot of good information in this thread as long as one does not let the advice make them paranoid, only suitably cautious.
Several of the replies mention carrying and using guns. The problem with guns is that when you carry one almost nothing good can come of it. The best you can hope for in an incident involving guns is to avoid the worst outcomes. I speak as a long time gun owner and former police officer. When you use a gun in an attempt at self defense the likely outcomes are one of the following:
1. You will kill your assailant and end up facing a long, very expensive and uncertain legal outcome. Dominican prisons reportedly make US prisons look like resorts.
2. Your assailant will be better armed and more skilled and will kill you.
3. You will discover how difficult it is to kill another human with the result that he takes away your gun and uses it on you.
4. You will kill an innocent person or a bystander. It is very difficult to shoot accurately when your adrenalin is raging.
5. You will accidently shoot yourself or someone else. Mitchner wrote that in the "Wild West" of the US 4 or 5 people were killed by accidental gunfire for every person killed by Indians or outlaws.
6. If your not a permitted resident you may be arrested for illegal possession, resulting in Dominican prison, hefty bribes and deportation.
Its much better to toss your money and run like hell, scream, beg etc. than rely on a gun for protection. I would say that the chances of needing to do any of the above are very slim if you are reasonably astute. Most Dominicans are very honest, friendly and helpful and you are safer almost anywhere in the DR than in a US city (except when driving!).
Funny you mention that Lambada. Sometimes Dominicans think my 100% Dominican husband is American. We were in a market and they were talking about what junk they could sell 'the gringos'. You should have seen their faces when he answered them with an attitude. I think it's a combination of being with me, who they refer to as un vaso de leche, and his American clothing. He has to wear dress clothes to work all year in the casino, so when he's there he dresses down and comfy unless we're going to a restaurant or mall.
And even I can spot the tourists a mile away. But I also have to say that I've seen some Dominican women in stores who I would have sworn were upscale gringas. There's a whole different world inside the nice malls.
Yes, I leave all my pretty jewelry home when I go there. Last summer one of our Dominican nieces [23] spent a month here with us, and she was amazed at the jewelry Americans wear without fear. But let me tell you, she knew which stores she wanted to go to and which brands she wanted to buy. Classy girl.