Define "Safe".

My biggest concern upon arrival in South Africa was probably avoiding getting murdered after stepping off the airplane. Half the South Africans I know told me Cape Town was similar to Sydney or NYC -- relatively safe, just be smart and alert. The other half made it sound like stepping into a real life version of Grand Theft Auto -- muggings, robberies, rapes, drive-bys, all happening with non-chalant regularity. I heard of a man getting shot point-blank for his mobile phone, and how owners of nice cars often have 'flame throwers' installed on the sides to avoid the standard hijackings at stoplights. I wanted to side with the more Sydney-esque version of Cape Town, but thanks to all sorts of statistics validating South Africa as the most crime-ridden country in the world, it was hard not to be the tiniest bit paranoid.

Having been here a week, I've noticed that #1. "safe" is a very relative term, and #2 it depends on the area, obviously, but more importantly, you. Most places we've been feel relatively safe. Many are busy, but not chaotic, and with basic street smarts, you're fine. Most houses feel generally safe thanks to ridiculously extensive locking/alarm/security systems (I'm still trying to sort out if that should actually make you feel safer, or LESS so, because the more extensive the system, supposedly the higher risk of crime... right? Who really knows.). What's fascinating to me is the way in which many people (locals, who LIVE here) make targets of themselves. If you live in the midst of poverty but insist on driving the latest model BMW, aren't you kind of asking for it? If there's a slum full of hundreds of destitute and desperate people a few miles away and you choose to live in an 8-story mansion with a pool and tennis court, should you really be all that surprised when your house is broken into? Maybe it's my skepticism of the rich, white upper-class here, and the inevitable underlying racial tensions. But I've resolved the more basically you dress and present yourself, the less trouble you're likely to have. We'll see how this plays out..