Originally Posted by axolotl

I know I'm feeding the thread starter troll (who I suspect is a sockpuppet), but you've painted the world with an extremely wide brush. Have you ever toured in any countries other than "English speaking" and "Northern Europe"? I've toured in quite a few developing countries, and the few problems I've had were mainly in western Europe. One of the places where I felt the absolute safest was Chile. I do quite a bit of research before I choose a destination, as well as for selecting my routes. When I toured in Sri Lanka, the civil war was still going on there. But guide books, websites, ex-pats on the ground, and recent tourists all said that they felt quite safe and that fighting was restricted to two small portions of the country which were easily avoided. I never felt the slightest bit of danger or even discomfort while I was there. Some of the roads weren't in great condition (but others were fine), however it was one of my favorite destinations.


There was a thread started by the heroin-obsessed guy with a link for a map of Latin America marked at places where there had been incidents reported by cyclists. There appeared to be a hotspot along the northern Caribbean coast of Colombia. (Please note that it's spelled Colombia, not Columbia. Unfortunately this seems to be a common error.) I've been to Colombia and I hope to return. There are some parts of that beautiful country which I would avoid, but large portions which I'm eager to visit, both on and off my bike.

I don't know why this cycling forum attracts so many folks who seem to be irrationally afraid of so much of the world. Other cycling forums than I know have a much higher percentage of more adventurous folks. Sure, there are plenty of places where I wouldn't venture to at this time (e.g. Syria, Yemen, Venezuela). But there is so much of the world which is wonderful to see and experience, and I feel lucky that I've been able to see some of those places.