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So, here's my dilemma. . .my 20-something year old daughter is going to Guanajuato Mexico with a friend in a few days. Why Guanajuato? Her close friend has family there. From Guanajuato she and her female friend are suppose to drive to Acapulco to meet up with other friends from the USA for the weekend.
I am completely petrified, worried, concerned, nervous, etc. about the entire trip, let alone driving to Acapulco. I've asked her to consider flying to Acapulco. She said she would. But, knowing her, I'm very certain she will choose to drive.
As a parent, I fear the worst. Should I be as worried as I am?
So, here's my dilemma. . .my 20-something year old daughter is going to Guanajuato Mexico with a friend in a few days. Why Guanajuato? Her close friend has family there. From Guanajuato she and her female friend are suppose to drive to Acapulco to meet up with other friends from the USA for the weekend.
I am completely petrified, worried, concerned, nervous, etc. about the entire trip, let alone driving to Acapulco. I've asked her to consider flying to Acapulco. She said she would. But, knowing her, I'm very certain she will choose to drive.
As a parent, I fear the worst. Should I be as worried as I am?
Guanajuato capital is an extremely safe city, but I would normally recommend that your daughter consider a scheduled daytime bus to Acapulco as the smart way to travel intra-city in Mexico.
However, if her friend's family is travel savvy within Mexico, I would not be overly concerned about their choice to drive.
So, here's my dilemma. . .my 20-something year old daughter is going to Guanajuato Mexico with a friend in a few days. Why Guanajuato? Her close friend has family there. From Guanajuato she and her female friend are suppose to drive to Acapulco to meet up with other friends from the USA for the weekend.
I am completely petrified, worried, concerned, nervous, etc. about the entire trip, let alone driving to Acapulco. I've asked her to consider flying to Acapulco. She said she would. But, knowing her, I'm very certain she will choose to drive.
As a parent, I fear the worst. Should I be as worried as I am?
Most of the fighing is happening around the border states, dont let media hype it up, its like saying stay out of LA cause theres gang bangers everywhere!
So, here's my dilemma. . .my 20-something year old daughter is going to Guanajuato Mexico with a friend in a few days. Why Guanajuato? Her close friend has family there. From Guanajuato she and her female friend are suppose to drive to Acapulco to meet up with other friends from the USA for the weekend.
I am completely petrified, worried, concerned, nervous, etc. about the entire trip, let alone driving to Acapulco. I've asked her to consider flying to Acapulco. She said she would. But, knowing her, I'm very certain she will choose to drive.
As a parent, I fear the worst. Should I be as worried as I am?
Make sure she knows they need to stop at any checkpoints set up on the highways.
But like others said, Guanajuato is not a problem. Acapulco itself isn't that much of a problem but the highways aren't always so safe. The state of Guerrero has had problems for many many years.
Probably nothing will happen, just like probably nothing would happen walking downtown Detroit at night - but it's not the smartest thing to do.
Make sure she knows they need to stop at any checkpoints set up on the highways.
Yet, on the other hand, they need to know NOT to stop at any suspicious unofficial roadblocks, either. Most Mexican drivers would willingly tell you first- or second-hand anecdotes involving encounters with impromptu roadblocks on roads to stop drivers for criminal purposes. In such an event, turn your car around in a nanosecond and hightail it in the opposite direction. Hopefully your exit won't have been barricaded yet. And never drive at night under any circumstances. About drunk drivers: My young friend, while vacationing in Mexico, was hit head-on at 60 MPH by a drunk driver near Acapulco who swerved into oncoming traffic to avoid hitting a pig truck – this friend was in a coma for six months. After a near-infinite number of reconstructive surgeries, he was no longer physically recognizable as the same person, but he did recover enough to be functional again. Public transportation between cities is ordinarily much safer and much more economical. I would recommend showing these realities to your daughter so that she has no false illusions about the importance of taking precautions.
Yet, on the other hand, they need to know NOT to stop at any suspicious unofficial roadblocks, either. Most Mexican drivers would willingly tell you first- or second-hand anecdotes involving encounters with impromptu roadblocks on roads to stop drivers for criminal purposes. In such an event, turn your car around in a nanosecond and hightail it in the opposite direction. Hopefully your exit won't have been barricaded yet. And never drive at night under any circumstances. About drunk drivers: My young friend, while vacationing in Mexico, was hit head-on at 60 MPH by a drunk driver near Acapulco who swerved into oncoming traffic to avoid hitting a pig truck – this friend was in a coma for six months. After a near-infinite number of reconstructive surgeries, he was no longer physically recognizable as the same person, but he did recover enough to be functional again. Public transportation between cities is ordinarily much safer and much more economical. I would recommend showing these realities to your daughter so that she has no false illusions about the importance of taking precautions.
Great advice Steven. The bus is a much safer way to travel in Mexico. Travel by day. In Acapulco, tell her if she must be out, she should do it in groups. Never go out alone. People generally drive faster in Mexico. She would avoid the hassle of driving, being stopped by possible unofficial check point, or having to pay if she is stopped for a traffic violation or even know LE system, etc. During this season, lots of young Americans go there to drink. If she does not have a car available in Acapulco, she could get a taxi (with a group of people) or combi to go back to the hotel. This is a much safer option.
Yet, on the other hand, they need to know NOT to stop at any suspicious unofficial roadblocks, either. Most Mexican drivers would willingly tell you first- or second-hand anecdotes involving encounters with impromptu roadblocks on roads to stop drivers for criminal purposes. In such an event, turn your car around in a nanosecond and hightail it in the opposite direction.
I won't declare this to be either good advice or bad advice because there is no course of action that ensures a positive outcome. I can't say for sure what I would do. It would be a decision based on circumstances and instincts. But in general, people who cooperate and comply with orders seem to have less problems than people who resist or attempt to flee. You might recall the missionary woman was killed when they decided not to stop at a narcobloque. More recently, several members of a Mexican family in a van were killed when the husband spotted a narcobloque and u-turned quickly as you suggested, except the narcos saw this and were convinced it was a rival and chased after them firing automatic weapons.
However, even if there were no cartel violence at all, I'd probably not approve of my 20 yr old daughter following that itinerary unless she A) spoke fluent Spanish, B) was familiar with Mexico and it's society, C) had travel experience, and D) was responsible and not naive. There are plenty of dangers lurking on such a journey (and not necessarily criminal).
And when you say that she agreed to fly but knowing her she'll drive anyway, well that says it all. I'm not saying I would issue ultimatums or threaten to cut off college funds or kick her out of the house or such, but I would make my objections clear. But you need to do it based on rational justifications not just parental worries and fears.
Having lived in Mexico 18 yrs and also driven the possible route from Guanajuato thru Queretaro towards DF (Mexico City) which is a long drive for two females with the intentions of meeting friends in Acapulco...just for a weekend?...I'd pass.
I lived in DF for three yrs and drove that Mazatlan to Mexico City hwy 2-3 times a yr.
I'm familiar with the main route having done it many times (solo). With the price of gas at Pemex along with the toll road charges and time factor considered...I'd fly.
It is not so much the distance but the traffic involved getting to the desired point.
Then again what can you say about 20 yr old people and their logic. We have all been there at one time in the past. Do wish them a safe trip tho.
The nature of youth is a sense of invincibility and inherent goodness. I concur with Todd that this woman must inform her daughter in a factual manner rather than an emotional one which could more easily be dismissed by the daughter as ordinary (unwarranted) parental fear. I also agree with Todd that there are many, many risks that a 20-something might incur without sufficient maturity to handle. I re-read the original post and also realized that while the daughter's friends does have family in Guanajuato, the OP does not state that the same friend is Mexican, speaks Spanish, or is familiar with local nuances of travel and survival.
When I was 19 (in the early 1970s), I ended up traveling central Mexico by bus with friends, and inadvertently got pulled into the middle of a nasty and bloody bar brawl in Morelia in which the police were summoned. That same night I passed out and remained fully unconscious for three days due to alcohol poisoning. It took me three months to recover. I was not a 'drinker,' yet felt pressured by my peers to indulge in their Spring Break adventures. My point is that many seemingly- or otherwise-smart American youth do use Mexico as a license to experiment, take risks, and express independence. And, there are those who plot, watch, and wait to take advantage of those same naive and/or foolish travelers. With that said, I worked at several hotels and hostels in Mexico in the 1990s, and often met young female travelers who were wise (travel savvy), highly precautionary, who ordinarily reported no serious problems traveling in Mexico. It was extremely rare, however, to encounter an unseasoned traveler willing to risk driving on Mexican roads.
In my 40s, while living in Mexico, I joined the U.S. Peace Corps and was sent to Costa Rica. Most fellow volunteers were in their early-20s and extremely (shockingly) over-confident about their survival skills in a foreign country. I witnessed that virtually all volunteers falsely assumed that life outside of the U.S. must be fundamentally similar to life back home. Much of our in-country training was geared to educating these 20-somethings to such real dangers. And yet, a shockingly high percentage of my fellow volunteers were robbed, assaulted, raped, etc.
Sorry to be an alarmist, but it beats the alternatives.
Yet, on the other hand, they need to know NOT to stop at any suspicious unofficial roadblocks, either. Most Mexican drivers would willingly tell you first- or second-hand anecdotes involving encounters with impromptu roadblocks on roads to stop drivers for criminal purposes. In such an event, turn your car around in a nanosecond and hightail it in the opposite direction. Hopefully your exit won't have been barricaded yet. And never drive at night under any circumstances. About drunk drivers: My young friend, while vacationing in Mexico, was hit head-on at 60 MPH by a drunk driver near Acapulco who swerved into oncoming traffic to avoid hitting a pig truck – this friend was in a coma for six months. After a near-infinite number of reconstructive surgeries, he was no longer physically recognizable as the same person, but he did recover enough to be functional again. Public transportation between cities is ordinarily much safer and much more economical. I would recommend showing these realities to your daughter so that she has no false illusions about the importance of taking precautions.
If they can get away from the roadblock fast enough I suppose. Faster then bullets and faster than they can drive after you.
The boy, Rico Armando Bañuelas, was on a family trip to Mazatlan when robbers tried to stop the Volkswagen Jetta he was riding in near a section of mountain road known as "El Espinazo del Diablo," (the devil's spine), El Siglo De Durango newspaper reported on its Web site.
The robbers opened fire, killing Rico, when the Jetta sped past a roadblock the bandits had set up and used to rob bus passengers and another vehicle. The suspects were captured.
Bañuelas was a student at St. Pius X School and is the nephew of Monsignor Arturo Bañuelas, pastor of St. Pius X Catholic Community.
If they're just after your money and even vehicle, I think it might be best just to give up your money and vehicle and hope they spare your life. This happened to people from Mexico - you would think they were savvy about how things are there.
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