Crime is out of control

I’m going to level with you: living in Caracas is a huge safety risk. There is really no sugarcoating it. I knew this before I got here, but I can honestly say I have never been so frightened of going outside, or even being in a car outside, in my life — and I grew up here.

The first thing that hit me was Monday’s weekend violent deaths report. This is not a new thing, I remember this report coming out in the paper and being covered on the news every week, what was incredible about it was the actual statistics and the killings that were singled out. Over the weekend, 44 deaths due to gunshot wounds occurred in Caracas alone. In 2009, 48 people on average died of gunshot wound EVERY DAY in the country.

Two people were killed while watching the circus. Yes, you heard that right. They were sitting watching a show, and they were shot to death. One was an 18 year old sitting between her mother and her sister. Her mother reported that the girl simply collapsed on the floor. They thought she had fainted. Then they saw blood, and they thought she had simply hit her head when she fell. They took her outside to recover, and realized she had received a gunshot to the head.

Another news story reported the most terrifying thing I have ever heard: three armed men boarded a full bus at 6pm while it was stopped in traffic. They held the driver at gunpoint and instructed everyone to get off the bus, except for 3 girls, whom they proceeded to rape right there. This happened on Monday.

My cousin, whom we’ll call Lara Croft (because she’s gorgeous and a total badass), filled me in on the day-to-day fears. She said she couldn’t even go out dancing with her friends in her usual places: shootings had occurred in every single one of them. The only safe thing to do nowadays was to stay home and hang out with friends over a pizza.

She was also telling me how awful traffic was in the mornings (not new), and how she couldn’t even use her blackberry (to email, text, ping, or talk on the phone) because any action that may give outsiders the indication that she has a phone may attract bikers who rob cars in traffic. She mimicked a biker simply knocking on the car window, and just asking people to hand over the phones, and you HAVE to do it.

Lara’s friend’s ex-boyfriend was robbed while he was in his car. He gave them everything: the phone, he iPod, and got out of the car to hand over his truck, all to save his life. The robbers’ response was “oh, you must be a daddy’s boy and money just doesn’t hurt, huh?” right before shooting him dead.

Driving on the highway is now a billion times more dangerous with the motorcycles being allowed on the road. It used to be that motorcycles were outlawed from riding on the highway, but President Chávez got rid of that by stating that the roads belonged to all who wanted to use them. Consequence: more crime.

In the past couple of days, several motorcyclists blocked off the highway and proceeded to rob 15 cars before riding off. This same traffic jam created another opportunity farther down the highway for other motorcyclists to seize the day and rob more cars.

This is probably an obvious one, but just thought I’d let you know that stopping at stop signs or red lights at night is a total risk to your safety, so you should not stop. Just proceed with caution.

One of my friends, whom we’ll call Tori Amos (because she’s an awesome musician and she loves Tori Amos), has family in the countryside of Venezuela. She emailed me to let me know that her uncle had been kidnapped over the weekend, had a heart attack shortly after, and was left on the side of the road. I was so sorry to hear about her uncle, and so appreciative of her concern.

My grandmother has become quite depressed at the crime levels. They have never been this ludicrous.

I usually tell my friends that if they ever wanted to visit Venezuela, the best time is RIGHT NOW, because things are just getting worse down here. Traveling to touristy areas with tourist groups or agencies should be fine — they know where to go and where not to go. Trips to Canaima, La Gran Sabana, and other places in the Amazon rainforest are amazing. My cousins go there for vacation and I’m dying to go with them. Those are safe as long as you go with people who know.

The beaches in Venezuela are among the most beautiful in the world. The best place to appreciate them is in Margarita Island. Make sure to sign up with a reputable resort or travel agency and take the tours around the different areas. Tons of shopping and pristine beaches.

As for trips to the Capital City, Caracas, go with a native, or don’t at all. Even booking a hotel might be tricky: it’s not like New York City where you just find the most stars and just walk around. This place is insanely dangerous, and you should get help from someone who knows.

While I ran my errands to get my Venezuelan ID, and to accompany my mother to get government papers done, guess where my husband Brian was: safe in my grandmother’s apartment. I would never risk his life just so he could see downtown Caracas. There is WAY too much animosity towards foreigners, and the President has made sure to create as much polarization as possible. It is just simply NOT a good idea for foreigners to venture out to the city and rogue it out as if they were in Vancouver, Canada.

This is very scary and again, there is just no sugarcoating it. I wish I could tell you that I might be blowing it out of proportion and it’s really not that bad, but I’m afraid that saying this might mislead you to think that I might be exaggerating. I am not.

Having said all that, Brian and I have had a wonderful time with my family, and I have been recording a lot of video so I can show you a little bit of what Caracas is all about. Stay tuned for those!

Here’s a little taste. Sunday was a beautiful day in the city, and we caught a majestic clear view of Mount El Avila. It was absolutely breathtaking. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

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