Out and About -- In the World at Large

[Sinned]

kilty, DC don't worry I'll be taking some shorts as well for when we go out of the hotel complex and kilty it's not a matter of if we go as it is all paid for - all we need to do is get a few dollars spending money. kilty, no implied criticism from me as we are all unique and dress as we please, I was just trying to say that I had tried your manner of dress, as others on this site have, and decided that it's not for me. You may come to the same conclusion but on the other hand you may enjoy it but unless you have tried it you won't know.

[Caultron]

I've not been to Jamaica but, from what I've read about "tolerance" there, I'd be very wary of being "different" outside of secure holiday complexes. Allegedly a very high crime rate and you'll stand out not least because you're white; don a skirt and you'll be rife with attention.

On the one hand, the Jamaican economy is highly dependent on tourism, and so they'll likely put up with almost anything those crazy money-spending tourists want to do.

On the other, Jamaica is a third-world country with lots of poverty, and so it's probably not advisable to go alone anywhere outside the well-secured tourist areas, skirted or not.

[Kilty]

I've not been to Jamaica but, from what I've read about "tolerance" there, I'd be very wary of being "different" outside of secure holiday complexes. Allegedly a very high crime rate and you'll stand out not least because you're white; don a skirt and you'll be rife with attention.

On the one hand, the Jamaican economy is highly dependent on tourism, and so they'll likely put up with almost anything those crazy money-spending tourists want to do.

On the other, Jamaica is a third-world country with lots of poverty, and so it's probably not advisable to go alone anywhere outside the well-secured tourist areas, skirted or not.

A country with a predominantly black population is not automatically Third World. It has problems with crime, granted but that's a very sweeping statement. Jamaica has benefited from tourism but strong ties to Christian beliefs, Deuteronomy 22:5 etc will take more priority than "putting up with almost anything " (which you contradict with "don't go outside the well secured tourist areas" ) A tourist is more likely to get shot in the US with their out of control gun laws than caught up in cross fire between gangs (which generally keep away from tourist areas) The 'Batty man' to use a pejorative local term which one will hear if walking around skirted, is not welcomed with open arms and what some there may construe as not manly behaviour such as wearing a sarong, skirt or similar may cause problems. I know you may have seen Jamaica on TV (and not even strayed outside your State) but it's not some wasteland awash with criminals. When was the last time you saw Jamaica or any of the West Indies on a charity advert or appeal?

@Sinned There's no real difference between a formal pencil skirt than a denim one, to Joe Public, a skirt is a skirt. Being well built I could not fit into women's tops without looking completely ridiculous so I was being facetious ditto makeup... as regards advice on travelling to Jamaica, I have Jamaican friends and family, so was trying to save you some aggro...

Everyone is different here, some like jeans skirts, some full tiered contra dancing ones, which aren't my cup of tea. But we are all just men in skirts, regardless of the style of them some accessorise with tights etc, some don't. My relatives don't mind my sartorial choices, but then those who matter dont mind, and those who mind don't matter, IMHO


(Rant over)

[Caultron]

A country with a predominantly black population is not automatically Third World. It has problems with crime, granted but that's a very sweeping statement. Jamaica has benefited from tourism but strong ties to Christian beliefs, Deuteronomy 22:5 etc will take more priority than "putting up with almost anything " (which you contradict with "don't go outside the well secured tourist areas" ) A tourist is more likely to get shot in the US with their out of control gun laws than caught up in cross fire between gangs (which generally keep away from tourist areas) The 'Batty man' to use a pejorative local term which one will hear if walking around skirted, is not welcomed with open arms and what some there may construe as not manly behaviour such as wearing a sarong, skirt or similar may cause problems. I know you may have seen Jamaica on TV (and not even strayed outside your State) but it's not some wasteland awash with criminals. When was the last time you saw Jamaica or any of the West Indies on a charity advert or appeal?

I didn't say Jamaica was third world because its population is predominantly black, That would be racist. It's because of median incomes and GDP/person.

I'm sure there've been tourists beaten up and/or robbed in Jamaica, and that this occurs less in the well secured tourist areas.

I've been to Jamaica, and seen it, had a great time. The people I met were happy and friendly. I have a photo somewhere of a Jamaican guy who wore an island dress every day and hung around tourist spots charging people to take their picture with him. But I was certainly advised not to go exploring in dark side streets and back alleys.

I'm not saying all Jamaicans are thieves and gang members and religious fanatics, because I'm sure 99.9% or so are not. But the remaining 0.1% can still hurt you.

[Kilty]

A country with a predominantly black population is not automatically Third World. It has problems with crime, granted but that's a very sweeping statement. Jamaica has benefited from tourism but strong ties to Christian beliefs, Deuteronomy 22:5 etc will take more priority than "putting up with almost anything " (which you contradict with "don't go outside the well secured tourist areas" ) A tourist is more likely to get shot in the US with their out of control gun laws than caught up in cross fire between gangs (which generally keep away from tourist areas) The 'Batty man' to use a pejorative local term which one will hear if walking around skirted, is not welcomed with open arms and what some there may construe as not manly behaviour such as wearing a sarong, skirt or similar may cause problems. I know you may have seen Jamaica on TV (and not even strayed outside your State) but it's not some wasteland awash with criminals. When was the last time you saw Jamaica or any of the West Indies on a charity advert or appeal?

I didn't say Jamaica was third world because its population is predominantly black, That would be racist. It's because of median incomes and GDP/person.

I'm sure there've been tourists beaten up and/or robbed in Jamaica, and that this occurs less in the well secured tourist areas.

I've been to Jamaica, and seen it, had a great time. The people I met were happy and friendly. I have a photo somewhere of a Jamaican guy who wore an island dress every day and hung around tourist spots charging people to take their picture with him. But I was certainly advised not to go exploring in dark side streets and back alleys.

I'm not saying all Jamaicans are thieves and gang members and religious fanatics, because I'm sure 99.9% or so are not. But the remaining 0.1% can still hurt you.

You were doing so well until your last sentence in your post... Perhaps skirt wearing black men like me are not so welcome here. Such a shame

[dillon]

To be fair, kilty, Jamaica has the sixth highest murder rate in the world...at 39.3 homicides per 100,000 population, about 7 times the rate in the US, and 40 times the rate in Britain. We know that the contributing factors are poverty, drugs, and gangs...not race. The five higher countries were principally of Latino population, and not of African descent, and are mostly in Central America, though Venezuela was very, very high as well. Swaziland followed Jamaica, then St.Kitts and Nevis, then South Africa. Colombia rounded out the top ten. Data from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. I would think tourist areas are fairly safe, but the country as a whole is troubled.

When I taught agriculture in Ethiopia, I never felt threatened on the streets of Addis Ababa, though there was considerable crime about. I felt safer than I do in even the most "white" US cities. Crime, however, can become cultural, and race has nothing to do with it, only its presence without sufficient response, and perhaps under the blanket of fear that quickly envelopes a people. It is a contagion that knows no race or ethnicity.

[Sinned]

OK, let's draw a line under this one. I take your point to be careful in Jamaica and to take any cues from the locals as to skirt wearing. I was only going to take sarongs anyway which I wear folded in half lengthwise and just as a wrap skirt rather than as a dress. Peace, my brothers and sisters.

[Caultron]

...But the remaining 0.1% can still hurt you.

You were doing so well until your last sentence in your post... Perhaps skirt wearing black men like me are not so welcome here. Such a shame...

There's a 0.1% that can hurt you anywhere you go, even outside your own house. Of course, the risk goes up in being alone in unusual circumstances.

I would wear a skirt in Jamaica, but I would keep out of dark alley anywhere, skirted or not.

[Reaper_Man]

tonights outfit that got me a load of verbal abuse from some chavy boy racers whilst i was waiting for a cab to take me home, bad choice by them as the regulars at my local will defend me to the hilt, .... they soon got told where to go lol

[skirted_in_SF]

You have to admit Reaper_Man, that that isn't an outfit your local boy racers see on the street every day.

[Caultron]

What was your thinking in assembling this outfit?

[Reaper_Man]

What was your thinking in assembling this outfit?

why, is there something wrong with it?

[crfriend]

why, is there something wrong with it?

I do not believe that the thrust was that there was "something wrong" with it, but rather simply why you picked the elements and execution you did. The two are quite different.

[Caultron]

What was your thinking in assembling this outfit?

why, is there something wrong with it?

It just struck me as an unusual combination of elements.

[SkirtsDad]

tonights outfit that got me a load of verbal abuse from some chavy boy racers whilst i was waiting for a cab to take me home, bad choice by them as the regulars at my local will defend me to the hilt, .... they soon got told where to go lol

Totally awesome outfit!!!!

Glad the regulars at your local stick up for you. I usually let most comments go if I get negative comments, but often my friends won't lol.