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Single woman visiting San Francisco, gang violence, gang activity, touring the city not on vacation, marred by violence, alien abductions, common sense needed
I go by what people tell me who live there, kindafedup. Some will scare the dickens out of you with horror stories. No matter what you want to do, something new scares a lot of people. You'll be fine, women live alone anywhere in the world and as long as you don't go looking for trouble, you'll be great. I know I'll be OK and I won't go into the alleyways in the Tenderloin(just to name one area) looking for would be cops and cabbies...LOL I lived in the Tenderloin a year and never had trouble, except for one guy offering me 20 bucks to go with him and a guy offering me a job at one of the "dancestudios"..LOL
You just walk away...that's all.
Also, I want to add that I lived for 5 years in Jacksonville, Fla's Soutside in an apartment complex where there was gangactivity, drugdealing, prostitution, all that and was the only white girl in that whole complex. I never had one bad incident. Drugdealers used to look out for me as I walked home from work at night because they knew I wasn't a snitch. But ya know, I didn't start friendships with any of them, just casually saying hello, that sort of thing..
I'm just saying it's possible to survive anywhere if you keep your wits about you and your nose clean.
San Francisco has many nice, safe parts, and a few very shady and even dangerous parts. Then of course because it's a large city, there's the fact that property crime will happen basically everywhere.
As far as violence and such, it depends. In SF, there's the potential to live a life almost completely untouched by it, and it's also possible to have lots of it affect you, either through lifestyle choice, and/or the neighborhood you live in and plain bad luck.
I've lived in SF my whole life of 21 years, all of it in Noe Valley (a nice quiet neighborhood). Things that have happened over the years:
I know two people who've been shot to death, both in 2005. One in Hunters Point, one in the Mission. My 54 year-old mother was recently jumped and assaulted by a few dudes at night in Noe Valley. My sister was robbed on the 48 in Potrero Hill, and a dude tried to kidnap her in Noe Valley (when she was a child, in the 80's). The store down the block from my house was robbed once, and my car has been broken into a couple times. When I was a kid, a police chase went by house. I've also been accosted by plenty of bums, in malicious and also quite friendly ways, and I've heard gunshots, in the Mission, Excelsior, and Hunters Point. I've been attempted-mugged in Bernal Heights, almost got into a fight with a drunk gangbanger dude in the Sunset, and been chased by more gangbangers at Church and Duboce...but keep in mind I'm a 21 year-old male who hangs out alot with friends, often in the late hours of the night...and some of my friends have been involved in the past in gangs...so these kind of things are probably more likely to happen to someone in my position than alot of other people.
The point is, San Francisco is a city. It has gang, drug and poverty problems, like many other cities. No, overall it's not the safest city, but it's also not close to the most dangerous (although there really are some pockets with intense, concentrated crime and violence). It's beautiful, vibrant, diverse, and it's not like crime is out of control or anything (though admittedly it could be better -but then that's always the case right?- and it's been rising the past few years).
You do sound very paranoid or maybe you are just very sheltered. Sounds like your family/BFF are being overly protective of you, I don't know how young you are and what background you are from, but if you decided it's time for you to explore on your own then you should leave your worries behind, otherwise you will never get over it.
San Francisco is NOT a more dangerous city than any other city in the US, and it's even safer than most. You just have to exercise common sense and you will be ok. Like previous poster noted, look around you and you will see what type of neighborhood it is. If you are uncomfortable to explore some areas on foot then you can always rent a car and drive by during the day time. If you feel uncomfortable getting out of the car then don't, that will be your gut feeling and stick to it.
The main thing, start out with the tourist areas, there are many in SF and they are very safe. You most likely will stay at a hotel (stick to major chains if that will give you warm and fuzzy feeling). Most nice hotels are in safe areas and concierge will be very helpful pointing you in the right direction and providing a map. They'll also provide you with the phone numbers of major cab companies you can call when you need a cab.
Start out by taking a guided tour and looking around different areas from a bus if that will make you and your family feel better. Don't listen to what other people are saying if this is your first trip alone, don't be ashamed to be a tourist, you will have plenty of time stepping out of that tour bus and walking the city on foot and exploring different neighborhoods. Take it easy and do it on your own terms and build up your confidence gradually. If you don't trust talking to people on the street, then don't. It doesn't mean you won't enjoy your experience here.
Start with what feels comfortable for you. Buy a nice guide book, a map, get at portable GPS unit. You will never get lost this way. Avoid wearing loud luxury brands of clothes and handbags that are easily recognizable by others and leave your expensive jewelry at home. Keep enough money for a cab ride or two in your wallet together with one or two credit cards, that will make you feel better if you are worried about getting pick pocketed or robbed. Remember, crime is not a norm it's an exception, you are not 'guaranteed' to get robbed or assaulted, it just happens to some people occasionally if they are unlucky or are not being careful.
And don't look at yourself as a walking target! You are just going to be one of the many many women walking the streets of SF, women of diverse ethnic backgrounds, women with accents ( yes, there are many of them in SF) and women dressed different way. You will blend in with the rest of them whether you are looking touristy or not.
I've traveled to a few cities in the US entirely on my own, My idea to explore is to rent a car and drive around getting a feeling for different neighborhoods and exploring them on foot when I felt comfortable getting out of the car. I am not advocating this as a safe way and acceptable for everyone by any means, this is just what worked for me. It was scary sometimes, once got lost in a very bad area of Baltimore, think, drug infested war zone with buildings riddled with bullet holes and boarded windows. I just locked my doors, got on a major street and kept on driving till I hit the nearest highway, no big deal. San Francisco is nothing near to some of the slums of the east coast.
Also, I want to add that I lived for 5 years in Jacksonville, Fla's Soutside in an apartment complex where there was gangactivity, drugdealing, prostitution, all that and was the only white girl in that whole complex. I never had one bad incident. Drugdealers used to look out for me as I walked home from work at night because they knew I wasn't a snitch. But ya know, I didn't start friendships with any of them, just casually saying hello, that sort of thing..
I'm just saying it's possible to survive anywhere if you keep your wits about you and your nose clean.
Exactly... I lived in East Palo Alto (ghetto of the Peninsula) for a few years, and had a similar experience as you described in Florida. Once the locals got to know me, mainly from walking with my dog to 7-11, they were friendly and somewhat protective of me. If you walk around with an attitude or fear in your eyes, they will mess with you - but if you just smile, be confident, and give off a pleasant vibe, chances are you'll be left alone. I've managed to survive almost 32 years in a variety of places, so it can't be that hard.
You seem to be very, very young. Or perhaps you've never been to a real city. In that case my advice to you would be: find someone to go with, someone who's been to a city before.
If, however, you insist that you must go by yourself, here's my advice:
1. Don't be out after dark.
2. Walk only on main streets with a lot of foot traffic.
3. Don't go South of Market Street, stay North of it.
The above is a bit restrictive but it's simple. Good luck!
I think some differentiation here needs to be made between an Empirical review of a city's crime stats, and a loved one's advice for you to be careful. In the first scenario, SF has more crime than it probably should, but is no Oakland or East St. Louis.
In the second, in any neighborhood, those closest to you are going to advise you to be careful; not because you're likely to fall victim or can't take care of yourself, but because they love you and don't want to see you get hurt.
I grew up in the SF Bay Area and lived for several years in SF. All the good and bad stories you're likely to hear from a sane person are basically true, in the sense that it happened to them and affected them thusly.
What you need to decide is how many of those people are similar to you in personality and values. Those are the ones who have likely drawn conclusions from their experiences that would be similar to yours, if you had been there. Everyone has a different tolerance threshhold for violence, danger, and dysfunction. Yours will be similar to those you know who are most like you. And those are the ones whose advice you should follow.
For crying out loud!. This isn't Baghdad. People aren't dropping like flies from shootings and stabings. San Francisco is as reasonably safe as any other US city.
hehehe. I think SF is reasonably safe too.
To the original poster, where is all of the hysteria coming from? Boils down to common sense. Crime is everywhere. And nowhere. If you step off the plane or off the train thinking you're going to get mugged as an example, you probably will. Because you will have what the old hoods used to call an "easy mark" stamped on your back. They will know you're afraid, you will be walking down the street with dilated pupils scoping everyone out.
I'm a woman, grew up and lived in SF for many years. No problems. This is a relatively safe city I believe. One of the first things I learned as a child, is not to stand in the middle of a busy city block holding a map. I mean that's a big flag that #1 you're not from there and #2 you don't know where the hell you are. If I were a criminal, it's the same thing as you have a flashing neon light on top of your head. "Here I am mr or ms. criminal". You have to walk around like you own the place and make sure you know where you're going. Have a plan mapped out and if you're lost, don't make it obvious.
I almost laughed when I read your post, not at you. But because it's kind of stretching the crime issue a bit. There is crime here for sure and certain districts you don't want to be walking around clueless - I'm not going to name the districts because I believe this will only fuel your fear and I highly doubt that you will travel to them anyway. What I can tell you with complete certainty, is that there are not hordes of blood thirsty gangs roaming all the streets at all hours of the day and night. Ingleside? Pacific Heights? Noe Valley? The Sunset? Okay now I have to laugh with that visual.
Enjoy your trip. Just use your common sense and take down the easy mark sign.
Last edited by redwoodlvr; 03-18-2008 at 08:52 PM..
Reason: because i'm always editing...:-)
It's just Ingleside. Don't even trip about it. I'm not even sure exactly where it is and I've lived in The City my whole life. The only areas I'd avoid to as an outsider are Bayview Hunter's Point, Fillmoe, the Mission, Sunnydale and tha Tenderloin and other areas around downtown. But in reality you can find areas in all those neighborhoods that will be perfectly fine to live. But to be real honest, as an outsider, I wouldn't even live in SF cuz it costs too much.
It's just Ingleside. Don't even trip about it. I'm not even sure exactly where it is and I've lived in The City my whole life. The only areas I'd avoid to as an outsider are Bayview Hunter's Point, Fillmoe, the Mission, Sunnydale and tha Tenderloin and other areas around downtown. But in reality you can find areas in all those neighborhoods that will be perfectly fine to live. But to be real honest, as an outsider, I wouldn't even live in SF cuz it costs too much.
Awww now see...the OP is going to be scared again. I deliberately didn't want to list them. Her map is going to be a mess with red marks all over it. Fillmoe huh? hmmm. Interesting play on words. Wonder if they call it that in Pacific Heights to since Fillmore street runs through it? hmmm.
Ingleside is near City College. Ocean Ave...etc.
The former insider
Last edited by redwoodlvr; 03-20-2008 at 11:46 PM..
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Stop worrying
