Do I Feel Safe Going To Rosarito?

[Don Michales]

From the moment I moved here almost two years ago my experience has been wonderful. I feel safer in my little town of La Mision than I ever did in any US city or rural town.

The people here have been, almost without exception, kind, friendly, helpful, respectful, gentle and warm. My favorite part of life in Mexico is that nearly everyone will smile and wave if you smile and wave.

Their willingness to engage and their trust in other human beings is a balm to my tired soul. I love the landscape too, the sea, the rocks, and the unique buildings. It's as though each one was created and built spontaneously, and then painted in glorious colors just for me.

Barbara K.

[Sylvia Dombrosky]

As residents since 1998 we have never regretted our decision to come to Baja. The weather, the people, and the lifestyle is all we hoped it would be. If you are an independent spirit with a flexible approach to life you can't make a better choice than living the good life here. Come join us!

[Jack E George]

I am an americano having lived in baja california for 2 1/2 years. I own a home in Rosarito; for the last seven months I have lived in an apartment in downtown Tijuana for part of the week. It angers me how so much negative publicity is put out on both cities. I feel perfectly safe here.
People seem to forget that there is crime in San Diego, Oakland, or anywhere else in the United States. It is a pity to see the tourists staying away, the negative stories written about Baja, and the businesses and people directly hurt by the stories. This is my home and I love every day I am here!

[Dan Walker]

It's terribly true that so often it's the perception of the facts that counts, not the facts. So it is with Rosarito and crime.
My wife and I live a wonderful life in our condo in Rosarito Beach, living nicely on what would be called a poverty level income on the other side of the border. We "go to town" often and have never been bothered by that "crime" so falsely played up by the American media. I worked hard to become a governor back in the 'states.
Literally walking the entire state (1197 miles) while campaigning, I met thousands of hard-working people who would be called ordinary folks. I stayed in their homes night after night for four months. Here in Baja, I have met not as many but a lot of "ordinary folks" working hard for a living. It's a rotten shame that the exaggerations and lies being thrown out by newspapers and on TV "up north," are causing ordinary honest and hard working folks down here horrible harm from losses of jobs and income All of us Norte Americans should try hard to get out the real facts and dispel those false perceptions that unfortunately lead so many people to say, "I don't do Mexico."
To repeat, let's all spread the facts: This is a delightful place to live and to shop and the plain facts are that as you enjoy yourself in downtown Rosarito, those bad guys will not bother you.

[Susan Smith]

I've lived here in Rosarito for 2 1/2 years in a wonderful home on the beach. I do everything I would do if I were living in San Diego, only at about 1/2 the price. Rosarito is a charming town with the friendliest people I have ever encountered in all my travels. How many times have you had on-coming traffic stop for you, so you could make a left turn? Happens to me all the time here!
Do I feel safe? Absolutely! I have spoken to many people in the American community and they too feel perfectly safe. The bad guys are not after us, they're mostly after each other. When the US media quotes "drug deaths in Mexico" The are reporting on an entire country NOT Baja. I don't know what the number of Drug related incidents are in the US, but I'll bet if you included users along with dealers and assaults, robberies and other related issues, you'd come up with a pretty high number

Sr. Torres, the mayor of Rosarito has done an incredible job of cleaning up the police force and even setting up a Tourist Police group (all of whom speak English) who are ready to help you with any problems you may encounter. But frankly there's no reason to expect any problems, other than needing some directions on how to find something.
The merchants and restaurants in town are anxious to have your business and in addition to generally lower prices, you dollar goes a lot further here in Baja
COME ON DOWN!!!

[james ratliff]

i have been to mexico many times since 1964 especially rosarito. i met some very nice people there. i plan to return this year no matter what i here in the news in the us.i want to live in baja very much maybe in mulege ,where i have a friend i met years ago in rosarito. all i need to do is get a new passport and i will be on my way. viva mexico.

[Caffeinated]

You are doing a huge disservice to Americans by lying about the conditions in Mexico. It is extremely dangerous right now.

And by the looks of it, almost every post has been made by the same person.

For shame!

[Fulano]

While the first five posters here say they live in Rosarito and further south, please note that their IP says they are in Tijuana and they all posted on the same day. It's just some phoney baloney BS. Two days ago, the Mexican army surrounded the Oceanos del Mar Gringo condo complex in Rosarito and pulled four murderers who worked for El Teo out of it. Much to the surprise of the Gringos there, they also released some poor 66-year old Mexican parking lot guard whom they had kidnapped and cut off his finger to get ransom.

Did I mention that the Oceanos del Mar condos were built by -- and still run by -- Rosarito Mayor Hugo Torres?

[moonman]

I was in Rosarita last week partying, I was really surprised how vacant the clubs and streets were at night. I was the only person in my hotel. Not that many Mexicans are going out partying right now either. Ensenada seemed to be very safe and there were many Mexicans and Americans partying there almost like on Revolution Street in Tijuana used to be.
I go to Mexico a lot and honestly i feel safer there then in the USA. This is the first time that I have ever seen people not going out at night because they are scared. It is my understanding theat most of the murders are drugs against drugs but there is a possibility and honestly a real possibillity that an American or Mexican could get kidnapped. Personally I will go there anyway because I could care less, but I proabably would not recomend it to people who are not very comfortable there and very seasoned travelers until Mexico deals with this problem.

[moonman]

Fulano wrote:

While the first five posters here say they live in Rosarito and further south, please note that their IP says they are in Tijuana and they all posted on the same day. It's just some phoney baloney BS. Two days ago, the Mexican army surrounded the Oceanos del Mar Gringo condo complex in Rosarito and pulled four murderers who worked for El Teo out of it. Much to the surprise of the Gringos there, they also released some poor 66-year old Mexican parking lot guard whom they had kidnapped and cut off his finger to get ransom.
Did I mention that the Oceanos del Mar condos were built by -- and still run by -- Rosarito Mayor Hugo Torres?

If you post from Rosarita on Topix it lists you as in Tijuana

[potes grandma]

moonman wrote:

<quoted text>
If you post from Rosarita on Topix it lists you as in Tijuana

W also have a beach house in Rosarito and we love, love, love to go there. Seems we don't go enough.
It's peaceful, it's like living in a small community. We live in OC now and can't get away enough. While in Rosarito, we go to church, go to eat at Yaqui's, go to Waldo's, walk the beach, just like the locals and enjoy the peacefulness of the town. We even drive into Wine Country near Ensenada and have made friends with the owners of the smaller wineries there, they are honest, hardworking people who are proud of where they live and what they contribute to their country. It saddens us to see what has happened to the Puerto Nuevo area, it's a ghost town. I hope all this nonsense that is going on stops. Mexico is a beautiful country with beautiful people. I hope things look up for them.

[grinchman007]

Fulano wrote:

While the first five posters here say they live in Rosarito and further south, please note that their IP says they are in Tijuana and they all posted on the same day. It's just some phoney baloney BS. Two days ago, the Mexican army surrounded the Oceanos del Mar Gringo condo complex in Rosarito and pulled four murderers who worked for El Teo out of it. Much to the surprise of the Gringos there, they also released some poor 66-year old Mexican parking lot guard whom they had kidnapped and cut off his finger to get ransom.
Did I mention that the Oceanos del Mar condos were built by -- and still run by -- Rosarito Mayor Hugo Torres?

i rent a house in rosarito near the walmart please go into more depth about el teo and the oceano del mar kidnapping, i want to verify this.
i walk right by there to get beach access all the time.
do you have the name of the mexican that lost his finger?

[grinchman007]

Susan Smith wrote:

I've lived here in Rosarito for 2 1/2 years in a wonderful home on the beach. I do everything I would do if I were living in San Diego, only at about 1/2 the price. Rosarito is a charming town with the friendliest people I have ever encountered in all my travels. How many times have you had on-coming traffic stop for you, so you could make a left turn? Happens to me all the time here!
Do I feel safe? Absolutely! I have spoken to many people in the American community and they too feel perfectly safe. The bad guys are not after us, they're mostly after each other. When the US media quotes "drug deaths in Mexico" The are reporting on an entire country NOT Baja. I don't know what the number of Drug related incidents are in the US, but I'll bet if you included users along with dealers and assaults, robberies and other related issues, you'd come up with a pretty high number
Sr. Torres, the mayor of Rosarito has done an incredible job of cleaning up the police force and even setting up a Tourist Police group (all of whom speak English) who are ready to help you with any problems you may encounter. But frankly there's no reason to expect any problems, other than needing some directions on how to find something.
The merchants and restaurants in town are anxious to have your business and in addition to generally lower prices, you dollar goes a lot further here in Baja
COME ON DOWN!!!

Sr. Torres, the mayor of Rosarito has done an incredible job of cleaning up the police force and even setting up a Tourist Police group (all of whom speak English) who are ready to help you with any problems you may encounter. But frankly there's no reason to expect any problems, other than needing some directions on how to find something.
the only problem i see is the tourist police are a big waste of money and not needed. there are no gringo tourists here at all. i lived here for over a year, it is a police state here. the only action here is watching the dodge chargers the tourist police drive zoom back and forth as if they had something important to do when actually they are just wasting gasoline. imho 3 or four different types of police here in rosarito.
1.state police
2.tourist police
3.city police
4.federal police
5.don't forget the army stationed in several checkpoints with all kinds of barracades and fire power stoping all traffic and scrutinizing why the hell you are here and where are you going and where did you come from.
6. private security police.

[grinchman007]

hugo torres fire these tourist police and continue to pave the streets where the people live. and get rid of the graffiti. to much graffitti .. i would go for getting the tourist police to study the graffitti problem as job one or fire them off. the mayor of las vegas suggested cutting the thumbs and fingers off of the hand that sprays the spray can that causes the graffitti ,it worked in las vegas. it can work here too. actually i think mexican teenagers are very rich,!they can afford spray cans in multiple colors to ingratitiate there presence on any wall they chose in rosarito.
there is a city owned anti graffitti squad that you can call, limpianos rosarito! they come out and paint over graffitti but it just makes these young teeners even more angry and they come out at night to spray right over as soon as the city leaves they mark their territory like a dog urinating on a fire hydrant to mark his territory.
hugo torres please do this
1.sundown kurfew for tens,and really enforce it.
2.lock up all spray cans at the retail level and make it impossible for a teen to buy the spray cans unless they are over 21 years old.
3.get your tourist police making graffitti irradication job 1.
we have done this in the u.s.a. and especially las vegas andf it is working. lets face it people come down here to mexico to see the architecture and the climate and the ocean , not graffitti.
graffitti makes rosarito lok like angryasswipe instead of a friendly tourist village by the sea

[Fulano]

grinchman007 wrote:

<quoted text>
i rent a house in rosarito near the walmart please go into more depth about el teo and the oceano del mar kidnapping, i want to verify this.
i walk right by there to get beach access all the time.
do you have the name of the mexican that lost his finger?

Don't you read the newspapers? It was in all the Mexican newspapers and even in the San Diego UT.

http://el-mexicano.info/noticias/estatal/2009...

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/j...

[MAC]

I miss rosarito, I can't wait to get my passport card. Remember the mexican people need tourism to make ends meat

[deedee]

Caffeinated wrote:

You are doing a huge disservice to Americans by lying about the conditions in Mexico. It is extremely dangerous right now.
And by the looks of it, almost every post has been made by the same person.
For shame!

I too believed the crap the media put out. They thrive on fear because with out it there wouldn't be ratings. My father who is a Vietnam Veteran of the United States Airforce, never was he so respected and well treated than the Mexican people. 89 percent of them speak English and love to do business with Americans there for they make sure they are taken care of. You are always greeted with a smile.I got over my fear and went with my father who has traveled all over the world in his 25 years of service and never has he felt more safe.
I have lived in Rosarito for 4 years and have never been treated so respectfully. The people are so kind the kid address as Sir or maim. The people don't depend on government aid and have no choice to work hard and depend on Americans to make a living. Never have I been treated so well. I remember one incident where my car broke down in Rosarito the people came out of the wood works to help me. My car broke down here and boy I was called every name in the book, no one helped me. I wonder caffeinated have you ever been to Mexico to make that judgement. America is on the top for one of the highest murder rates in the world. So how do confer.

[Caffeinated]

deedee wrote:

<quoted text>
I too believed the crap the media put out. They thrive on fear because with out it there wouldn't be ratings. My father who is a Vietnam Veteran of the United States Airforce, never was he so respected and well treated than the Mexican people. 89 percent of them speak English and love to do business with Americans there for they make sure they are taken care of. You are always greeted with a smile.I got over my fear and went with my father who has traveled all over the world in his 25 years of service and never has he felt more safe.
I have lived in Rosarito for 4 years and have never been treated so respectfully. The people are so kind the kid address as Sir or maim. The people don't depend on government aid and have no choice to work hard and depend on Americans to make a living. Never have I been treated so well. I remember one incident where my car broke down in Rosarito the people came out of the wood works to help me. My car broke down here and boy I was called every name in the book, no one helped me. I wonder caffeinated have you ever been to Mexico to make that judgement. America is on the top for one of the highest murder rates in the world. So how do confer.

America has one of the highest murder rates because we allow illegals into our country, and other ungrateful foreigners, who bring their gang culture.

Yes...I've been to mexico, and I can attest that their "kind" facade has more to do with making a buck, than any type of sincerity.

I believe long ago, the people were kind, and had good intentions, but not anymore. The kids have a sense of entitlement and are more worried about making easy money than working for anything. The government speaks for itself. It is run by the cartel.

I have a little eye opener for you. The US media is on mexico's side, and they really don't report any of it. My decision is based on my own personal experience and the people that I know.

mexico is an armpit. I wouldn't recommend it to my worst enemy.

And my real guess...is that you have a business there, which you are trying to support. If that is true, I don't blame you. You have to watch out for yourself. But I am more than confident that your standard is either incredibly low, or that you are watching out for your own best interest.

[Caffeinated]

MAC wrote:

I miss rosarito, I can't wait to get my passport card. Remember the mexican people need tourism to make ends meat

They don't need tourism...most of them are living here.

[Caffeinated]

Crime
Corruption
Swine Flu
Drug Cartel
Pick pockets
Corrupt Police
The list goes on....