I have heard of this specific scam happening in Buenos Aires as well. It's a particularly nasty one.
It's unfortunate, but I would say that on my world trip about 50-60% of English-speaking locals in non-English-speaking countries were trying to get my money somehow. I feel bad for the ones who weren't, because I had to treat them with such suspicion.
But, the rule is, if somebody doesn't have anything better to do than talk to you, they're probably after your money. I never stop walking if someone starts talking to me on the street, until I have an idea of their intentions.
Actually, this gives me an idea for a blog post on the lines I've been fed in this process.
I think it holds true for major US cities (though usually you're just being panhandled instead of conned). The exception to this is generally people asking for directions This seems much more common if you're on a bike, which if you think about it is pretty clever. I wonder if there is a tourism book out there somewhere that advises you to ask bikers for directions over other people.
That's an excellent point. I always tell people that there's a huge difference between Beijing/Shanghai and the rest of China, for instance, in this regard.
I'd like to write a blog post about all the various lines I've been fed, and I'll try to emphasize that.
> I have heard of this specific scam happening in Buenos Aires as well. It's a particularly nasty one.
Yes, it happened to some friends of ours visiting us here in BsAs last year. The particular squirted substance was probably some kind of ground-up plant; it left grass stains.
> But, the rule is, if somebody doesn't have anything better to do than talk to you, they're probably after your money.
This is true in tourist areas and shopping centers. So I avoid them as much as possible. In the rest of the world, especially outside of big cities, many people are perfectly happy to talk to strangers without any kind of financial exchange.
I live in Baltimore. If someone wants your money here, they'll hurt you to get it. For whatever reason, people seem less inclined to use violence outside the US.
When I was in a puddle of misery after the backpack was gone, a lot of locals clustered around us to find out why I was crying (these ones, at least, were sincere). A few of them mentioned that I was lucky not to stabbed — apparently thieves will come up behind someone, stab them with a small knife, and run off as the person collapses. So it didn't happen to us, but apparently violence is used as well.
It's unfortunate, but I would say that on my world trip about 50-60% of English-speaking locals in non-English-speaking countries were trying to get my money somehow. I feel bad for the ones who weren't, because I had to treat them with such suspicion.
But, the rule is, if somebody doesn't have anything better to do than talk to you, they're probably after your money. I never stop walking if someone starts talking to me on the street, until I have an idea of their intentions.
Actually, this gives me an idea for a blog post on the lines I've been fed in this process.