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Ateo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5938
Registered: 7-18-2011
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In defense of the Villa Bahia's dogs, they appeared to me like any dogs in Baja. Free to roam up and down the beach, playing with their master and
other dogs, living it up on the Sea of Cortez. Millions (maybe billions) of humans on earth would dream to have that setup.
Maybe they hadn't been taken to PetSmart for a shower and haircut in a few years (or never) but who cares? They didn't look starved. They looked
like dogs and they looked pretty darn happy.
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woody with a view
PITA Nomad
Posts: 15940
Registered: 11-8-2004
Location: Looking at the Coronado Islands
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Mood: Everchangin'
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what he said^^^^
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8088
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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9 out of 10 posters had advised that your son go on that BOLA trip yet you chose the single poster and asked him not to go. Why?
The kids who did go had a great time. Your son missed out on that. Now you are asking the same question again. If he doesn't go it will be the same as
before, regret.
You are overly concerned. We're not talking about Afghanistan here.
The dangers in baja are minor: Removing a cactus spine from your big toe. Stepping on a sting ray. Sunburned skin. The absence of first rate hospitals
are more of an issue for seniors with known medical conditions, not a young man of 20.
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micah202
Super Nomad
Posts: 1615
Registered: 1-19-2011
Location: vancouver,BC
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''Over a year ago I wrote to you and your forum asking about the safety of my son going down with his sports team to Bahia de Los Angeles. I wanted to
thank everyone who responded a year ago (very belatedly): I read all of your posts carefully, particularly Lobsterman's, and sent them to my son. He
didn't go on the trip last year, but students from his Ultimate Frisbee team(s) (male and female) did go, got there and back safely and said that they
had a great time. I think that last year was the fourth year that they've gone.
Anyway, this year he is planning to go. I'm providing more specific information this time and asking for any advice or warnings based on the specific
information. They're traveling from the L.A. area. I'm including the route (and maybe you'd be willing to modify it if you post my email, because the
people in the forum will probably just need to know the highways).
A specific question is: what if my son is injured: Is there a hospital nearby? Is it well-equipped? How would I get down there quickly from the SF Bay
area?
What if he or someone in his group is arrested (based on Lobsterman's warning) ? What would be the first thing that I would do...contact the American
Consulate.....fly down...contact you guys.....?
Anything else my son should be aware of? He's vegetarian/vegan so he won't be fishing (or hunting ).
Thanks so much and can I remain...?'' ......Anonymous Mom
............................................................................
....dear anonomom,,,,can you say when you actually plan to untie the apron-strings????????
.....if not,,will we still be getting these enquiries from you in 10-20-40 years??!!?
[Edited on 3-10-2013 by micah202]
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65411
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Terry28
David, The Villa Bahia is a great place, and well kept.. Don't bad mouth a place you have not been to. It is not a "resort" but a nice beach front
hotel with nice owners and a perfect location. We are going back ( again) and I do recommend it to others...even you... |
I am sorry you didn't read my post better... I NEVER bad mouthed it... so don't shoot the messenger, as they say.
20 days ago, it was apparently abandoned as posted by Jaybo when they investigated several motels in Bahia.
I have (in the past) always recommended the Villa Bahia as a possible place... and mention how well Graham spoke of it when he stayed there some time
ago.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65411
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: | Originally posted by mtgoat666
| Quote: | Originally posted by David K
I am not sure if it is still the case, but little Baja towns once had a big METH problem, called locally CRYSTAL (cree-stahl)... and if you look for
bad things, you just may find them, even in a quaint fishing village like Bahia de los Angeles. |
Cristal is probably not available in bahia de los angeles. it's a bit pricy
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I was told by area residents (part and full timers) it was there... and the dealers were even pointed out to me at one of the New Years Eve fiestas
that were held at Casa Diaz... as a point of interest.
[Edited on 3-10-2013 by David K]
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tripledigitken
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4848
Registered: 9-27-2006
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DK,
Hint...u drink it not smoke it.
Ken
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65411
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: | Originally posted by tripledigitken
DK,
Hint...u drink it not smoke it.
Ken |
Thanks Ken, I wondered why it didn't work for me...!
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Alm
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2753
Registered: 5-10-2011
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There are underemployed people - or poor for some other reason including drugs - in any Baja town with population, say, 1,000 or more. BOLA is no
exception. They do drugs, yes. And they steal what they can when they can - mostly this aspect of poverty is a problem rather than physical danger.
One reason for young guys not to go to BOLA - other than boredom - is that locals might not appreciate it. Expats here are predominantly pensioners.
People go fishing at sunrise and go to bed at 10 pm. A couple dozen youngsters of drinking age, full of energy, will try keeping themselves busy -
yelling, bullying each other, playing loud music. I'm afraid not everybody around will be in "Halloween mood", smiling and giving out candies. Though
the sports team probably wouldn't even notice that.
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chuckie
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6082
Registered: 2-20-2012
Location: Kansas Prairies
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Mood: Weary
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Geez!
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bajaguy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9247
Registered: 9-16-2003
Location: Carson City, NV/Ensenada - Baja Country Club
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Mood: must be 5 O'clock somewhere in Baja
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Sports Team
What kind of team??????.......will they have the cheerleaders with them??????.....things might be getting better
[Edited on 3-10-2013 by bajaguy]
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DENNIS
Platinum Nomad
Posts: 29510
Registered: 9-2-2006
Location: Punta Banda
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Alm
One reason for young guys not to go to BOLA - other than boredom - is that locals might not appreciate it. |
I don't believe I read this. The locals might not appreciate it? That is really too bad. Perhaps they should take their complaints to the Sports
Team. I doubt their "sport" is sewing.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65411
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Any visitors to Bahia de los Angeles would be a welcome thing... the place is nearly a ghost town the last few years, most of the time... Failed U.S.
economy and bad press/ fears keeping the amount of vacationers way down.
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mtgoat666
Platinum Nomad
Posts: 20376
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Hot n spicy
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Alm
One reason for young guys not to go to BOLA - other than boredom - is that locals might not appreciate it. Expats here are predominantly pensioners.
People go fishing at sunrise and go to bed at 10 pm. A couple dozen youngsters of drinking age, full of energy, will try keeping themselves busy -
yelling, bullying each other, playing loud music. I'm afraid not everybody around will be in "Halloween mood", smiling and giving out candies. Though
the sports team probably wouldn't even notice that. |
I hope I die before I get old.
P.s. have you seen the Zimmers rendition of My Generation?
[Edited on 3-11-2013 by mtgoat666]
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BajaNomad
Super Administrator
Posts: 5014
Registered: 8-1-2002
Location: San Diego, CA
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Mood: INTP-A
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Reply in my email inbox:
------------------------------------------
First, I really, truly appreciate every person who takes their time to respond to the general question I'm asking, which is "What will make this a
safe trip?".
IslandBuilder: "Hospitals: Ensenada for a fully equipped American style hospital. You might consider medical air evacuation insurance."
ANY COMPANY YOU'D RECOMMEND FOR MEDICAL/EVACUATION INSURANCE? (AND ARE THOSE THE SAME THING OR TWO DIFFERENT THINGS?)
This is the kind of thing I'm looking for. Last year I read another thread in this forum about a man who was attacked and the problems with medical
care, getting money and relatives there--even finding out where he was and what was wrong-- seemed overwhelming.
Geo_Skip: IF they behave with some reason, then the hardest part of the trip will be struggling for Re-Enrty in to the USA. Carry color copies of all
documents including passports, drivers licenses...you name it. Carry EXTRA COPIES... The Homeland Security and DEA are your biggest worries (Stop an
hour south of the border and clean out ALL luggage, NO contraband or questionable imports) One idiot smuggling will turn any happy jaunt into a
disaster!
This sounds very, very important! Homeland Security is scary (the powers they give themselves). WHAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF A QUESTIONABLE IMPORT?
Micah202: I don't think that most parents ever cut the "apron-strings" or should. I'm middle-aged and I still get my (now elderly) parents' advice all
the time. If you have loving, basically stable/sane parents (and of course, not everyone is lucky enough to), then no one will ever care as much about
you as your parents, no one will ever sacrifice for you like your parents (their time, money, even lives). Also, learning to get advice from
knowledgeable people (like asking people like you guys, Americans, who live and travel to Baja regularly what to look out for) is part of being smart,
independent and successful.
Skipjack Joe: I did not say why he didn't go last year. He didn't go last year because his passport was out-of-date and he wanted to come home for
Spring Break.
I also said that the decision has already been made for him to go this year. (I didn't say this in my post, but I am paying for the trip.)
In general, Ultimate Frisbee players are not hulking football players who've been drinking and punching people out since they were twelve years old
(apologies to any non-violent football players--I'm sure that there are many out there). I know my son and I know that he has led a very protected
life, that he's an intellectual kid who has not grown up with any threat to his safety (from criminals, from the police themselves, from his physical
environment). He and his friends are also very smart, and in general, very much in control of themselves, so if they have good information about how
to behave, they'll act on it. (He asked me to send him a philosophy book that a professor advised him to read; his girlfriend is going on the trip.
He's not going to be going into town looking for crystal meth or a prostitute.) My son also studied Spanish at a pretty high level for four years.
ANY RECOMMENDATION FOR A GOOD, PRACTICAL DICTIONARY FOR EVERYDAY "MEXICAN" SPANISH (vs. the Spanish that is spoken in parts of Spain, for instance)?
I also grew-up in a protected environment but then chose to live in different major cities in the U.S. I have often lived in not-so-great
neighborhoods and I had to be taught by the "locals" how to protect myself. For example, I remember walking down the street at night in Manhattan
with a friend who had grown up in the Bronx: I was busy appreciating the beautiful night, but he was a nervous wreck and kept saying, "We've got to
get out of here". I said, "But why? There's nobody on this street." He said, "No, it's when the street is empty that you're in danger....". I learned
that when my apartment-mate was alone on a subway car and five men entered, seemingly not related to each other, and as the train crossed from
Manhattan to Brooklyn, all got up and surrounded him, robbed him (by personally putting their hands into all of his pockets and removing everything)
and then got off at the next stop. I remember taking the subway through the South Bronx and an incredibly kind older African-American woman calling
me over, patting the seat next to her and telling me to "Sit down right here, Honey" and giving the teenagers who I had been standing in the middle of
a "Don't you mess with me" look. She asked me where I was going and then told me to sit with her until we got to that stop... and in the meantime, to
take off my (gold) ring and (gold) necklace and hide them and to keep both my hands on my purse. Probably the first day I was in NYC, I was sitting
in a restaurant and a waiter swooped up behind me, grabbed my purse off my chair where I had hung it and unceremoniously dumped it in my lap saying,
"If you want to keep that for more than five minutes, you'd better keep it in your lap".
These are lessons that kept me looking over my shoulder--and safe--through many years of living in and visiting big cities. (It took me many years to
learn how to keep my purse and its contents from being stolen: I've walked into a crowd with a purse hanging from a long shoulder strap and walked
out with the straps on my shoulders, but not the purse--it had been cut off; I've been walking down the stairs to the subway, watched as a woman
collapsed in the turn-style ahead and realized after she picked herself up and left that the young man behind me had opened my purse and removed its
contents while I had been watching the woman and worrying about her; I've been on a bus, reached into my bag-like purse that I had set on the floor
and grabbed the hand of the guy next to me, who was rifling around it it!)
The thing is, I don't know what the dangers are in going down to Baja. I know that if he were in NYC or Chicago, I'd say, "Don't assume that because
one street is safe for you, that one block over is also safe".
Mulegena: "no one has guns in Mexico"??? Isn't that like saying that because my suburban neighborhood is safe, there are no guns in the U.S.?
DavidK: "resort hotel" is not my description.
Thank you to all. Any more specific advice about ensuring a good and safe trip will be carefully read and would be appreciated. (I think my son is
incredibly smart, tough yet compassionate and ethical, and able to take care of himself in any situation for which a person can be prepared, so
general child-rearing advice would be less appreciated.  )
Thanks,
Anonymous Mom
When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people.
– Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
We know we must go back if we live, and we don`t know why.
– John Steinbeck, Log from the Sea of Cortez
https://www.regionalinternet.com
Affordable Domain Name Registration/Management & cPanel Web Hosting - since 1999 |
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Islandbuilder
Senior Nomad
Posts: 555
Registered: 11-9-2011
Location: nob
Member Is Offline
Mood: bewildered
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Here: http://www.medjet.com/anderson is a link to a company that sells medical evacuation insurance. A friend of ours had a ruptured bowel in San
Carlos, and had medivac insurance. They took one look at her in the local clinic and told the husband he had to get her back to the US. They had DAN
insurance (which is marketed toward traveling SCUBA divers), and had an excellent experience. And after several surgeries and a year of recovery she
is doing very well.
There are several companies offering this sort of insurance, and I have no personal experience with any of them.
As I read your concerns, I am impressed with your maternal instincts as far as your son's safety are concerned, but I don't think that any of your
nightmares will be realized on your son's trip to BOLA.
The drive is easy, all paved roads except at the very end. The lodging, based on other first hand reports is going to be fine, with the posted guest
reports ranging from Great to funky. That's pretty typical here, and probably speaks more to our different expectations than it does the establishment
itself.
I sense that you have a high level of anxiety about this, it bleeds across the screen, and I hope for your sake that you'll be able to relax while
he's gone. He WILL BE FINE, subject to Woody's disasters of course, but so are we all regardless of where we are.
The stuff NOT TO HAVE in your luggage when heading back across the border is DRUGS! They aren't too worried about people not declaring their Velvet
Elvis paintings of fake Cuban Cigars anymore. They're looking for VERY BAD THINGS. Stuff that the kids won't have a chance to aquire as long as they
just visit BOLA and stay on the bus the rest of the time.
Still, I suggest that you make sure the kids know how stupid it is to bring any sort of contriband across the border in our post 9/11 world.
Again, no one can promise a trouble free trip. But your son will be fine.
One last thought, I don't know anything about cell coverage in BOLA, but I know that our verizon phone works only on the border, in Ensenada, La Paz
and Cabo. The rest of the time its useless.
The only guarenteed way to have full time connectivity is via satellite phone. There are places that rent them for short term trips. More for you than
your son, you might want to consider renting one for him.
I also suggest that you take a guided bus tour to Baja, or fly to one of the Gray Whale Lagoons on a charter (arranged by the whale watching
outfitter). Dip your toe in, you might find you want to take a swim!
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DianaT
Select Nomad
Posts: 10020
Registered: 12-17-2004
Member Is Offline
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Islandbuilder
One last thought, I don't know anything about cell coverage in BOLA, but I know that our verizon phone works only on the border, in Ensenada, La Paz
and Cabo. The rest of the time its useless.
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There is no cell tower in Bahia de Los Angeles --- even a TelCel phone does not work. They are hoping to have one in the near future.
Reading the e-mails from mom makes me realize once again that I am so happy I did not know everything my sons were doing during teenage and college
days --- including their forays into Baja as I would have worried myself sick.
It was different when I was young --- I knew what I was doing at all times and I was very safe at all times and no one needed to worry about me!
And yes, sh*t can and does happen. It happened to some of my friends when I was young, and it happened to some of my son's friends, but what is the
alternative? Don't venture out, keep everyone close to home, and maybe fall into a sink hole while sleeping.
Growing up is a dangerous thing.
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micah202
Super Nomad
Posts: 1615
Registered: 1-19-2011
Location: vancouver,BC
Member Is Offline
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from anonomom...........''Micah202: I don't think that most parents ever cut the "apron-strings" or should. I'm middle-aged and I still get my (now
elderly) parents' advice all the time. If you have loving, basically stable/sane parents (and of course, not everyone is lucky enough to), then no one
will ever care as much about you as your parents, no one will ever sacrifice for you like your parents (their time, money, even lives). Also, learning
to get advice from knowledgeable people (like asking people like you guys, Americans, who live and travel to Baja regularly what to look out for) is
part of being smart, independent and successful. ''
...anonomom,,,,,the very best advice I can share is that it is very worthwhile to allow yourself and your son to develop some very intangible
skills,,,,such as intuition,,,trust,,,,2nd sense,,,whatever you wish to call it!
...........not everything,,in fact very little is black and white,,,,,just like as you say,,,,''just because one street is safe,does it mean the other
is''???
......you need to cut your (probably) adult child some slack at some point,,,sure give them loving advice,,,but c'mon they're likely old enough that
they should be developing a 'sense' of a situation for themselves,no?
.......they can ask that mixed-gender group that's been going for what,4 years now 'if it's safe',,or see just by the fact that they return alive each
year,,and likely talk of the fun adventures they've had,,,,,,and develop their own approach to the situation---LET YOUR CHILD MATURE A BIT!!!!
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motoged
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6481
Registered: 7-31-2006
Location: Kamloops, BC
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Mood: Gettin' Better
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This thread is hilarious.....if this mom is "real", it is even more hilarious that her son asked for a philosophy text for something to read over
spring break....maybe he will read it to prevent a premature event with the girlfriend accompanying him on this incredibly dangerous trip to BoLA....
Howcome no one has called out "troll" on this one?
Don't believe everything you think....
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65411
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Hi 'mom', You did refer to Villa Bahia as a 'Hotel' more than once, so I just said I hope you didn't expect a "Resort" hotel for you son... it really
isn't even a motel, but a room rental like a B&B. Jaybo checked it out last month and no humans were there, just a bunch of smelly dogs (words to
that affect). Raquel & Larry's or Daggett's may be a better deal.. depends on how many rooms? These places all have web sites or are shown on
Mia's http://www.bahiadelosangeles.info/accomodations.htm web site.
[Edited on 3-11-2013 by David K]
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