When in Rome, watch out for the fucking Romans

16 11 2010

Headline of the day : hot tourist chick gets murdered in Gugulethu, world goes apeshit. Weather at 9.

The bit that gets me is,

On honeymoon in Cape Town, Anni Dewani and husband Shrien Dewani were returning to Cape Town from a trip to the Winelands when, on impulse, they asked the driver of their taxi to make a detour to Gugulethu. According to police, they had wanted to experience the famed township nightlife.

I mean Jesus Christ. I think I’ll go to South Korea and experience the atmosphere of the DMZ. Sounds like a good idea, right?

Dear Tourists coming to South Africa: It is a dangerous fucking place. You might have read about statistics like these.

Would you go to New York and walk around in the Bronx at midnight for kicks? Sorry, maybe this is a little unsympathetic but it isn’t so much an indictment against South Africa’s crime as it is an indictment against tourists’ complete lack of common sense sometimes. It’s like they get on a plane and suddenly think the world outside of their usual bubble is filled with benevolent smiling brown people who just want to show them a good time.

Get a fucking guide. Ask questions. Be a little bit paranoid. This is Africa for shit sakes. If you’re white – regardless where you come from, resident or foreigner – and walking around in Africa, you have a target painted on your ass a mile wide. That’s just a fact. Deal with it.