so that is the laundry on the corner.

So we should try the other laundry that is on the same side of the street as Hotel Debret? At least no negative stories about that laundry yet!?

The other possibility is that one of those fucking favela bitches who work there stole it for a boyfriend. Just a heads up...avoid this fucking joint like the plague!!!!It´s not about the money...it´s what 40 bucks US..but it´s the principle and i hate fucking thieves. The one thing that eases my mind is knowing that these fucking minimum wage, earning 240 reais a month, will have to go home every night to fucking some favela dump like Rocinha where they can enjoy all the ``luxuries`` a third world country has to offer!!!

Thanks for the heads-up but I think the rest is a bit unnecessary. People aren't living in the favelas thru choice. Also, there are a lot of decent people living in the favelas, people who help ensure you have a good holiday such as apt cleaners, girls in Help and I'm sure the people who serve you in lanchonetes.

I understand you're pissed about the shirt but I'd be more annoyed about the owner allowing it to happen and I'm sure he doesn't live in a favela.

To be honest I'm surprised there isn't a lot more crime. How long do you think the newspaper kiosks would last at home with their wares on the outside? I know in Ireland teenagers who probably get a lot more than R240 in pocket money would be stealing the DVDs and magazines for kicks.

I understand you are quite pissed and rightfully so about losing the shirt. But like Ardgneas, I am surprised there is not a lot more crime. A good story to go with this bad. I just returned to Rio from a trip to Europe and I lost a 5 euro note. I had it in my pocket to exchange and just lost it. Searched my hotel room high and low. Figured it gone but on my return that day it was on my made bed. Obviously the maid found it. She could have kept it because it was obviously in a place she would know it was lost. But she didn't. And I know she lives in Rochina.
Another thing...you might want to think a little about why many in the world hate us Americans. Your joy at the misforunate living conditions of a lot of good people is an attitude I imagine many poor Brazilians encounter quite often. And many poor people worldwide quite often. I believe I know because I have been traveling for 3 years and have seen and heard similar comments such as these because of things as simple as slow restaurant service. Yes yes I understand you are just pissed at the thieves. But a lot of people work a month to be able to buy a total of 2 of those shirts, which of course they will never be as lucky as you to be able to do. They are trying to keep food on the table and the lights on. When something bad like this happens try to ease your mind by warning others about the potential problem, as you did and thank you, and then remembering how fortunate you are to be able to spend the money to come here.

I had my laundry done there weekly for over a year without a problem (lava-kilo). I even got a 20% discount.

Cueball, that's an awful lot of anger for something that happened to someone else, and directed at people you don't know anything about (except the manager with poor marketing skills). What gives?

Actually I didn't mean to sound that harsh. I was with my buddy when he picked up his laundry and realized that his best shirt was missing. I went with him to the laundry place so he could speak to the manager. My buddy speaks portuguese. Anyway it was the whole confrontation that made me feel uncomfortable. It was almost like the lady manager tried to turn the tables on us and made us feel that we were making the story up so we could try to beat her out of a reimbursement. Usually I am a milded manner person, it must be the heat of the moment when I posted. I'm not one of those hate everybody ignorant fucks. I realize that those people that live in the Favela are by in large hard working honest people that live in an unfortunate situation. I apolized for that comment about the Favela people.

OK, I've been to that laundry. On my last day I realized that both pairs of pants kind of reeked. No way I was going to sit in a plane for almost 20 hours smelling old urine stains. I took all my stuff to them around 10 in the morning, somehow got it understood that I wanted it back by 2 the same day, and went out to do some final shopping. My clothes were washed, dried, and neatly folded when I returned 4 hours later. Suprise. I was happy and would return. Sorry your experience wasn't so nice.

incident that happen to me.. march 2004

i had just finished swimming in copa..across the street from meia pataca..and picked up my camera bag that was being held by two local ladies i know.

i walked to the sidewalk with bag, shirt, and sandals to sit on bench and wipe the sand from my feet..put my shirt on and go on omy way..

i sat down..put my bag between my feet and reach for my shirt and shoes that i had laid on the stone bench...

wham...some teenager ran by and ..whoooosse..grabed my bag between my feet and off he ran...

well... me being from chicago and still in pretty good shape and if you take some thing from me...you got to work for it...

whooose...off i ran right behind him...but him being young..getting a head start...and i just finished swimming...he was getting a distant lead on me..running with no shoes !!!

sunddenly an idea came into my head...

i grap a male off of his bike..rolling in the opposite direction of where i was running..told him i will bring bike right back...and off i rode with the bag snatcher still in my sights...dodging traffic..jumping curbs...i caught him..jumped off off bike ...hit him in his knek...and i started beating that ass....next thing i know..the police grabs me...right away i start yelling ayo so americano...ayo so, americano

after the smoke cleared and they found out who was the bandit... i get my back back..fill out police forms and back to the beach to retreive shoes and shirt...

SO..
(1) DONT CARRY CAMERA BAG..says camera all day long
(2) if you carry bag..rap around foot/leg when you put it down
(3) whoop dat' ass if you catch some bandit

That day I was curious to understand what append to you when you came back together with the policeman. I imagined they helped you recover the bag....

I saw the entire scene of the boy running real fast and you running behind him and then grabbing the bike from the youngman passing by...

I was sitting on the beach just in front of Help, I noticed that he had gained quite some space ahead of you and I imagined that you would have never recovered your bag as the favela entrance is really not so far away...

Imagine my surprise when you reappeared with your bag and the policeman....

Everything ok after all, just some unexpected exercise for you, when maybe you had another type of exercise in your mind....



(Message edited by tiber222 on July 09, 2004)

I remember that day I was walking off the beach and saw you yelling something and some kid running , but I didnt see you catch him , nice job good to see you got your shit back.

I UNDERSTAND THE NEED TO ROB FOR AFTER ALL..IF HE HAD GOTTEN AWAY..IT WOULD OF BEEN A NICE DAY FOR HIM..BUT I GUESS HE PICKED THE WRONG VICTIM...

WE SHOULD MAKE IT A LAW..THAT IS ANYONE IS YELLING ON THE BEACH OR ANYWHERE...GET INVOLVED..

THE WORD WILL GET AROUND... LEAVE THEM AMERICANS ALONE...THEY WILL JOIN IN..CATCH YA...AND WHOOP DAT ASS....

I HAD TO TRY TO CATCH HIM OR BUST MY HEART TRYING

PS
I ONLY CARRY A CANVAS BAG ( ON BACK - OVER SHOLDER ) FROM NOW ON..SO IF YOU WANT TO TAKE SOMETHING FROM ME...KICK MY ASS AND THEN TAKE IT BUT BE READY TO EARN IT !!!


see ya all late oct .. for halloween...trick or treat or both....lol

ps...

i was whoopin' dat ass of the bandit and unknown to me..the police was coming...so when they grabed me..i started saying right away...ayo so americano..ayo so americano...

he is the bandit..not me

after the smoke cleared and they found out that the fellow on the ground was the bandit...off to the police station to fill out report

when they found out that i am a deputy sheriff / police from CHICAGO..THEY GAVE ME THE VIP TREATMENT

AND GAVE ME A LIFT AND ESCORT BACK TO THE SCENE OF THE CRIME

OH WELL..NUFF OF THIS STUFF...WHERE IS MEIA PATACA AND SOME CUTE LITTLE LADY...OR LET ME CALL..brazilan specialist...i have had quite a day

Fellow Hombres - The area around HELP is a high target area for the muggers and quick hit guys. I live in Rio now and hear stories all the time. I recently was ripped off for a cell phone I had on my belt (oh stupid me, I was asking for it). If you are around that area don't wear expensive watches, gold chains, etc. or you will be a prime target. Watch your wallet and always watch your back and be street smart. The little kids in that area are some of the worst. This is just my suggestion to visitors in that area. - Hemp

Is KidCisco back?

Interesting section in the April 30th O GLOBO that spells out 50 essential things to becoming a Carioca. #2 item was: Have a story to tell about how you once got robbed.

It happens often, even to the locals, so don't believe for a minute that tourists are the only targets. It may be one reason why the locals do not carry a lot of cash, don't wear lots of jewlery or expensive watches, carry valuables in grocery store plastic bags or wear back packs and are generally seen in groups of two or more.

Maybe they are on to something in the area of prevention.......? Maybe it would be wise to follow their example.

Sandman -- April 30?? You must have one hell of a stack of newspapers outside your door!

I firmly believe that one doesn't achieve real "Rio Monger Veteran" status until you've been robbed. Welcome to the club, Hemp.

It's true: every Carioca I know has a story about geting robbed, mugged, etc. Some are funny as hell and some are terrifying. Hemp's advice is wise counsel. Stated differently, if you don't need it, don't carry it with you; if you do need it, hide it.

It looks like Hemp and I entered the club within the same week. I am out one gold necklace.

Damn, BT, good thing they didn't want your white disco pantsuit too or black patent leather shoes!!

Damn, BT, good thing they didn't want your white disco pantsuit or black patent leather shoes!!

BT,
Just glad you're "stayin' alive."

Sleeping Cinderella

The latest scam in Rio involves GP's who drug your drinks. A local told me about this drug that the girls call "Sleeping Cinderella". So, if you take a girl back to your hotel or apartment, don't let her make a drink for you or let your drink out of your site.

Boa noite Cinderella has been going on for a while. It even made it to the samba lyrics during carnaval.

I talked to several girls about this and they are all aware that it is happening. Two even knew where to buy the stuff.

If you do slip up and leave the room without your drink in your hand, pour it out and make another. (Cheaper than being ripped off). The operative words there were "in your hand". Don't ever put it down or walk out of the room without it. I know, it is easy to be distracted but just keep the big head focused on security.

Sage advice from a Rio Vet. who lost a couple thousand dollars worth of camera equipment. ME!

Bwana Dik writes: I firmly believe that one doesn't achieve real "Rio Monger Veteran" status until you've been robbed. Welcome to the club, Hemp.

============

So now I know why I am not a real Rio Monger Veteran.

Maybe after another 20 years of Rio I will manage to get robbed. For those who do not want to become Veterans either I recommend my post "Rio safety for the paranoid".


Now, on the other hand, I have constantly been robbed by the legal system, by lawyers, tenants, employees etc. Had apartment rental agency send her employee to pilfer my things. But no real robbery by strangers

Coffee Maker and I were walking home from Help one night about midnight. Suddenly we noticed that two guys were following us. Since I had been robbed once before, I immediately ran, he did not. I exhorted him to run, then he did. Had we not run, I am sure that I would have been robbed again.

The point is that it can happen to anyone. On the news yesterday. There are large gangs that robbing people in broad daylight in Leblon. Happens mainly on sunny days when the beaches are full.

you are lucky you had a head start as cofee maker is a former track star albet not the brightest when knowing when to run. midnight and no taxi ? same bt i know? i cab it 4 blocks to the princess , at $R4 a cheap way to avoid trouble.

Sweet. When are you coming back? You'll be happy to know your money was well spent.

BT and I were about half way between Atlantica and Nossa Senhora on Djalma Ulrich (next to Help) when the Robbers came at us at an extremely fast pace. I froze for a second then made a fist then ran at BTs suggestion. Thanks to BTs split second advice and the fact we had only drank 18 shoppes we ended up safe.

I have since heard from others that this is one of the more dangerouse areas in Copa especially late at night.

So, Coffee_maker you left the terrace with BT and not a garota.....I'm starting to wonder about you.

Usually the talent at Terraco Atlantico is not to my liking, but Coffee Maker and I did pull two from TA the night before.

Not surprised by this although I hope it’s not an indication that safety in the area around Help is deteriorating again.

I have never felt comfortable in Djalma Ulrich late at night as it's usually dark and fairly deserted. I know it's only 50 yards away but IMO it's much safer to head up Miguel Lemos. The pharmacy, Kice Sucos and the botequim on the corner all mean it is well lit and quite busy till late at night. Plus it's a main road for traffic coming into Copa whereas Djalma Ulrich has hardly any. I once asked a friend who’s a broker and lives a couple of blocks away if I was right to be wary of the Djalma Ulrich. She agreed and ascribed it to the fact that there are a lots of “bad buildings” there. By this she means buildings with lots of apartments, no 24 hour porter and low class inhabitants, and consequently she won’t rent apartments on the street. All in all a street best avoided at night.

It's around you, no matter what. But I stay on Djalma ulrich and nothing ever happens. The street is less traffic and a bunch of guys hanging out in front of the cheap eats/beer. They eyeball me the first day and the second, all the way to my tenth night and nothing happens. Miguel Lemos on the other hand is sketchy, all those damm kids. "bad bulidings" allright because all the programma girls live on that very block. I get "safado" at the lobby, by the garotas when I'm walking out. Last time, I jumped into a holding elevator with three garotas coming home empty handed from HELP, I tried to get it on with my date, while these girls were going up. It was fun.

CN

Don't believe for a second that Miguel Lemos is safe very late at night. I friend of mine was robbed at the corner of Miguel Lemos and Aries Saldanha. I was approached twice at the same intersection and had to move quickly to avoid a mugging. Even with 20 cab drivers standing around, the muggers will try to rob you because they know the cabbies won't lift a finger to help anyone. The cabbies that hang around Help are not the most upstanding citizens, and probably were street theives themselves before finding a more lucrative means of stealing from people. I felt stupid taking a cab from Help to my apartment 1 block away, but the area is completely unsafe after 1:30.

Hey, I'm all for taking cabs to go home from Help at night (but grabbing one from the street, not a parked one) - but be it safe or unsafe, you have to be a fool to take a cab from Help to the Miguel Lemos 8 building! Come on...

We should start a new service. Walk you do your door for $R10.
You also have to watch out for the teenagers on bikes. I heard some incidents about the criuse looking for bait.
Usually, I'm drunk, if I dont see a gun or knife, nail the small M/F.
I would say, out of all the Rua in copa or around help. Miguel lemos should be walked with awareness.

FLhobbyer-

"you have to be a fool to take a cab from Help to the Miguel Lemos 8 building!"

Tell that to my friend who was robbed at knifepoint going to 71 Aires Saldanha from Help.

I know guys who take a taxi from Help to Debret, 1.5 blocks away. It's not stupid - more than a few vets on this board, like Bobby T, have been mugged right in front of Bob's.

You can get mugged at your front door, after you get out of a taxi - you can't be 100% safe unless you have a garage.

Isn't the walk from Help to Miguel Lemos 8 like 1/2 block? Maybe 5x what the walk must be if you arrive by taxi?

I think if you take street smart precautions then the safety you have walking from taxi door to front door is statistically equal to that of the walk from Help to front door. You're never 100% safe, there's always the law of diminishing returns.

I know people that are afraid to fly on a commercial jet. I consider that stupid. Sure, people have died... I know people that buy lottery tickets, I call that stupid. Sure, someone is always winning those things. Sure, you can get mugged walking 100 meters from Help to your front door...

I agree taking a cab is much wiser then walking. Out of the 5 times you walk you will be attacked may be 3 times and maybe even injured. These odds are uncompairable to that of a jet-flight obviously. I always took a cab to Debret from Help. The one time I didn't I was attacked.
So my advice is to everyone is:Take cab for 2 to 4 bucks or walk and get mugged and loose much more then that.

Well it's all in your luck, maybe age and fit may also be considered.
I walked on Djalma maybe 40+ times and I'm more worried about the the federal cop on the corner, with an AK assualt, pinching me.
I hear more horror stories at the end of Copa towards Lido.

60% attack probability, walking 100m? Sorry, I can't believe that. It's dangerous, but it's not even 6%... I've walked that 1/2 block dozens of times... I've even sat out on the curb while friends chowed down with a car trunk vendor at 4a.

I'm sorry, but I can't let anyone write comparisons here of walking that 100m to walking 'long' distances of 2-5 blks, up and down Av Atl, or down A. Saldanha, or the last 1/2 blk to the Princess... for all of the latter, sure, take a taxi, it's cheap. But 100m to the corner? Hell, you have to walk to the street or corner just to catch a street taxi.

Well that specific stretch (between Bob's and Alcazar) is notorious since there are always tugs lurking there to attack the unaware gringo.

Just because a distance between two points is short doesn't mean it's not dangerous. The fallacy of thinking this way is exactly what has gotten many a gringo mugged in Rio. "Oh, it's only a block." Problem is, the corner around Miguel Lemos and Aires Saldanha is one of the most dangerous around, as the thieves know that many gringos will roll around that corner late at night. There are known mugging hotspots in Rio, and Miguel Lemos is one of them, as is Xavier Silveira west of NS de Copacabana. Knowing this from both reports of other mongers and personal experience (3 times in the past 2 trips), I will be "stupid" but safe and take a taxi from the Terraço to my apartment. For what amounts to $1.33, I can afford it. I'm pretty certain, on the other hand, that a knife in the stomach would put a crimp in my fun.

(Message edited by Safado69 on October 15, 2004)

I routinely walk this area at all hours of the night, without incident, and yet two of my friends have been mugged there in front of Bob's after midnight. YMMV

(Message edited by DonGringo on October 15, 2004)

I had a guy pull a knife on me at 5:00PM broad daylight with 20-30 people standing around (between Bobs and Alcazar). He put his arm around my neck while asking for a cigarette. I ducked under his arm and pushed him away. He just left. Only incident I have had and I walk around a lot.

To take a taxi from Help to Mig 8 (probably 30 yards) is a bit much though. Anywhere else it is probably a good idea. I take a taxi to my place (about 3 blocks) from Help at night. I recommend taking a taxi at night (a moving taxi).

Remember, if there are 2-3 or more of you, you are less likely to have problems. Lone wolves make easy prey.

Lastly, don't be flashy with jewlery or money. Keep a small money/big money separation of your cash (in different pockets), get pants with cargo pockets that button or better, close with velcro, only carry what you need for the day or night and keep the rest locked in a safe or luggage.....do not let your drink/beer or whatever out of your sight, lock your doors and hide the keys when you have a girl in your room.

From Help to Miguel Lemos 8, try the following

Take your R$ 4 taxi money and offer it to any of the Help Security guys to take you all the way to your door. Or ask a policeman. That should do.

Report on your success here!

Has any of the little bastards been so bold as to try to mug somebody in "the arena," that cleared zone you enter when you step out of Help where all and sundry rush up to you as you leave the place? I always found that to be a frightening moment, to be rushed by so many people at once you can't sort them out.
BS: I was thinking the same thing, offer one of the Help crushers 5R to escort you, but HE might not want to walk back alone.
If you have to make a run for it, I hear the guys that work at Sucos Kice are simpatico.

Keep in mind we are talking about spending 2 to 4 buck vs the even sligthest possibility of being mugged. To me a no brainer.

Bendejo

I think the bastards know who they are messing with.

I just heard a nice story from a well off friend who stays at Copacabana Palace. He was one block away, accosted by a flower vending boy. He refused to buy flowers. The boy threw a newspaper at him. In 5 seconds, 2 plainclothes security guys from Copacabana palace hunted the kid down and jumped on him.

If someone messes with a Help security guy during work, he is messing with the entire security force and the police department and all others who are involved in security there.

No petty criminals will want to get in such troubles. They pick the weak, not the strong

Something I find interesting in this thread is that all these guys are leaving Help alone. Myself, my worst experiences with Brasilieras involved the Atlantica scene and I've given up on it. Looks like others are doing the same.