Re: [73attendees] Is USA qualified for 2.3ofdraft-palet-ietf-meeting-venue-selection-criteria?

[David Kessens <[e-mail]>]

Dean,

On Tue, Nov 18, 2008 at 10:53:24AM -0600, Dean Willis wrote:
>
> On Nov 18, 2008, at 10:26 AM, Ted Lemon wrote:
>
>>  Mexico City, for example.
>
> Sure, if you want 40% of our attendees kidnapped for ransom and another 
> 20% arrested on faux charges and fined heavily. Mexico City is a HUGELY 
> not safe place for people who don't know their way around. Those who DO 
> know only travel with trusted bodyguards. Do you, for example, know the 
> difference between Libre and Sitio taxis? Most people don't, but there is 
> a big one . . . mostly, how many days the kidnappers hold you to keep 
> pumping the ATM dry.

This still doesn't even come close to your description of the safety
situation in Dallas (see mail below).

We survived Dallas so why not a meeting in Mexico City ?

David Kessens
---

  Logistics Warning for Dallas Meeting

    * /To/: Working Group Chairs <wgchairs at ietf.org
      <mailto:[e-mail]>>
    * /Subject/: Logistics Warning for Dallas Meeting
    * /From/: Dean Willis <dean.willis at softarmor.com
      <mailto:[e-mail]>>
    * /Date/: Tue, 24 Jan 2006 14:14:47 -0600
    * /In-reply-to/: <[e-mail]
      <msg04067.html>>
    * /Sender/: wgchairs-bounces at ietf.org <mailto:[e-mail]>

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I just noticed that the Dallas IETF will be at the Anatole hotel. It's a
very nice hotel, in general, BUT . . .

I've lived in the Dallas area for most of the last twenty years, and
have had the dubious honor of attending many events at that hotel. There
are are some important things to know about the logistics as you plan
your between-meeting schedules, ad-hocs, bar bofs, and things of that sort.

Cars are MANDATORY, but almost useless, due to traffic issues.

First off, the hotel is in the middle of Hell. It's on Interstate 35,
surrounded by a no-mans land territory in which I would be unwilling to
walk while wearing body armor and carrying an automatic rifle without an
entire platoon of people similarly equipped and helicopter gunships and
medevac on standby. The little strip along the highway is only
terrifying, but once you get off of that you walk in the Valley of the
Shadow of Death itself. It MIGHT be a little safer than urban Iraq is
right now, but not by much.

Second, there is very little in the way of restaurants or entertainment
within walking distance (like, absolutely nothing I'm aware of) anyhow.

There are a number of dining facilities in the hotel, but they will not
be adequate to the number of people we're bringing. This means that many
of us will be going off-campus (in cars) for meals. The traffic in this
area is HORRIBLE around peak hours -- between 7:00 AM and 7:00 PM
weekdays. I'd estimate a minimum of twenty minutes transit time each way
for anything you want to go do, and longer if you want to find a decent
place. Imagine the worst traffic you've seen in Washington DC, New York
City, or Highway 101 in California. Then imagine it worse, if you can.
That's a good day in Dallas, and some days get very bad indeed.

The good news (hah!) is you're only a few blocks from Dallas' most
notorious (but recently somewhat cleaned up) red-light district. The bad
news is that this is a very scary place with high levels of criminality,
unlike any place I'm aware of in Europe (they're probably there, but
tourists don't find them). The worse news is that the housing projects
are on the other side. While the hotel itself maintains some security in
parking areas, I'd suggest leaving NOTHING of value in your car. Also,
study up on "car jacking" and ways to avoid it.

Dallas cabs are very expensive, and almost impossible to hail if you get
away from the hotels. Keep a list of cab company phone numbers with you
if you're going to rely on taxis. The good news is that the taxis
themselves are fairly well-regulated and unlikely to completely abuse you.

Avoid reliance on public mass transportation in this area at all costs.
The area is not served by trains, and the buses are used only by local
residents who are used to coping with them.

--
Dean

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