Posted on 04/27/2017 4:22:53 PM PDT by nickcarraway
TWO young Australian backpackers have told their horror account of being kidnapped, assaulted and robbed at gunpoint while travelling through Guatemala.
Jayson Peter Kelly, 25, and Kirsten Smith, 25, from Cairns, Queensland were just eight weeks into their nine-month backpacking adventure — a trip they had planned for two years — when what was supposed to be a trip of lifetime turned into a living nightmare.
Speaking to news.com.au from Costa Rica, a shaken Mr Kelly recounted the terrifying experience to warn other Australian tourists visiting the Central American country.
The couple were on a shuttle bus, organised through a hostel, with 10 other tourists — including two more Australians — when they were shot at and their vehicle was hijacked by a group of thugs.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...
Idiots.
Nowadays NOTHING south of the Rio Grande is safe for “roughing it.” It isn’t as stupid as hiking in Iraq or NoKo but close enough.
I go to Mexico 4 or 5 times a year and I wouldn’t do it.
I hope they learned their lessons.
I’d be stealing something’ else.
“The pair have been interviewed by Guatemalan police and have given a statement. However, they aren’t confident the authorities will pursue the three men responsible.”
The cops are probably related to the criminals. Assuming of course that the criminals aren’t cops. That’d be no big surprise in Latin America.
I guess all of Guatemala’s criminals are not here yet........
I remember readinDumas’ “From Paris To Cadiz.” It was essentially a travel diary. Along the way they encountered bandits, however they were well armed and it turned out very differently. Great read, especially if you are making the trip, which I did as I read it.
Guatemala and Mexico are on my “must avoid at all costs” list.
Are those tattoos on that girls face?
For some reason the movie “Romancing The Stone” came to mind after reading this.
Check the other picture. No face tattoos on her.
It looks like they both did some sort of face painting.
Love the Treasure bandits picture!
Mr. Mercat and I did some of this type of exploring in the early 70s in central and south America. And no, I would not do it again. Even then we had some encounters with the indios which were pretty scary. In the Andes for example, a religious festival was basically an excuse to get drunk and high and shoot guns in crowds. Masks were worn that looked like conquistadors and the people wearing them were beaten with canes.
I thought tattoos were supposed to make you so tough!
Fools got off easy. They are lucky to be alive.
Guess Mr. TatMan wasn't such a badass after all and he and his broad are lucky they're still alive........
Guatemala is no different than any of the other Central American countries, they're all now under the control of the drug cartels and the petty kidnappers looking for quick bucks.
My Brother-in-law is from Honduras and almost all of his great nieces have finally escaped to the U.S. While he still has two nieces left there, he no longer vacations on the mainland due to the danger but rather flies directly to the Bay Islands.........
Estupidas!
Barry Sadler made the same mistake.
Where in Honduras is he from? I know some Americans who live in Trujillo, Honduras. From stories I’ve heard, it is a risky place to live. No thanks.
“Hey Gringo, we want your woman”.
Going down there was stupid and they lucked out.
Who’d go to a God forsaken backward country like that in the first place?
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