A Roma girl stole my shoe on a train one time. I’ve thought about it many times, because I was pissed, at the time, but the difference in privilege is so vast that I can only see it as a just act, now. She should have a few dollars to give my shoe back. One of those lessons that a young American needs to learn.
Also, I chuckle at the fact that one only needs to steal a single shoe! The other one just becomes instantly useless. 
I, being a natural schnook, bought a $5(CAN) coin for $20(CAN) from a scammer who had a handful of them. Went to the bank next day and asked what the value of the coin was, teller replied $5. 
My takeaway from this is that there are FAR more pickpockets in the world than I previously thought. Note to self: just swallow all my money and learn to regurgitate it on demand, and never touch my clothing again.
Checking out of a Cancun hotel, they said our credit card didn’t work. Fortunately, we had another card, which we had not used in Mexico. When we got home there were some Mexican charges on that card.
I was having lunch by a popular photo op site when some tourists asked if I would take their picture (with their camera). I obliged and gave them their camera back, when they left a “gentlemen” came up to me complaining I was cutting into his game.
As if that wasn’t punishment enough.
I feel old. I remember seeing the game with “guess which of the three cards is the hearts” where some obvious lowlife “won” several times in a row, then some eager tourist lost 300 euro, while I was wondering how anyone could fall for such an old trick. This feels like a con from my grandparents time, in comparison to some of these…
I don’t see the “very expensive kiwi” scam. While at an E European fruit market, I had an impulse for a kiwi, but when I asked how much, it became apparent there was both a language barrier, and I had not yet fully learned the value of the currency. He offered to ‘show me’ how much, by motioning to my wallet. He then helped himself to about $10. I suppose he could have just taken all my money, but maybe he had a heart. And hey, maybe Whole Foods sells $10 kiwis too, what do I know.
So I’m curious, would you guys consider it a scam if someone was selling apples $1 for locals, $5 for tourists? Would your answer change if there was a sign clearly stating both prices vs you having to figure it out?
The common denominator for most of these is distraction, so as to render you a better pickpocket victim.
That is a con from your grandparents’ time. P.T. Barnum was right: a sucker is born every minute.
Even older than that. The three card monte/shell game dates back to like the 15th century.
I got the “girl drops a gold ring and picks it up and asks if it’s yours” scam in Paris waiting for a tour of the sewers, and handed it back; no loss. But in my own town I fell for the pigeon drop, where a little man claimed he was lost and could I help him find his hotel. I let him into my truck and then he screeched “pull over, pull over!” He then gesticulated to another man walking by asking where’s my hotel and that guy got in my truck. The little man had a roll of cash and the other guy said, lets put your cash and this guys cash all together and you hold it. Then I dropped them off thinking I had acquired a roll of cash but it was a roll of paper. And this was long after I’d seen the movie, “The Sting.”
“Didn’t I tell you not to trust anyone, Dr. Jones?”
Someone once stole one shoe from my ex, when we lived in the Caribbean; it was sitting outside my door at night to dry, just like so many other people on the island do, all the time.
When we got up in the morning, one of his sandals was gone. We always figured the actual one legged man who lived on the same island must have swiped it, but who knows?
I’d say that’s typical.
I would fall for that. I’ve always dreamed of being friends with Thelonius Monk, and I probably wouldn’t recognize a fake costume since I’ve never met him before. But someday.
I’ve seen very, very few of these in London (born and bred) so I’m tempted to say we’re not a hotbed for many of these crimes. I’ll allow that these people can smell tourists so I’m probably not as likely to see them.
For reference I’ve never, ever seen street games here in London so they can’t be that common. Pick-pocketing (mostly on public transport/major shopping streets) is reasonably common and I imagine fake show tickets are a thing.
I was in New Orleans years ago, walking along Bourbon Street with friends, when a young man offered to polish my boots. I declined, and he responded with “I can tell you where you got those boots, and if I can’t I’ll shine them for free, but if I’m right the shine will cost you 15 bucks”. I played along and after a very entertaining 5 minutes or so of questions like “What kind of car do you drive?” and “Who was the first president of the United States?” he said “OK, I’ll tell you where you got those boots - you got them on your feet!” It was so funny and so entertaining (alcohol may have been a factor I suppose) that I gave him his $15 for a job well done - I was thoroughly and totally bamboozled, and it made our evening. For the rest of the trip our catch phrase was “I’ll tell you where you got those boots!”
