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Just Fell Victim to a Scam in Istanbul -- God Do I feel Like an Idiot!

Just Fell Victim to a Scam in Istanbul -- God Do I feel Like an Idiot!

Old Oct 8, 2006, 6:04 pm
  #31  
 
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IMHO, the lesson I takeaway from this OP, with thanks for his reporting, is that life continues to be a series of tradeoffs...

I know their are kind and helpful folks in every country but there are also likely to be at least some who are unscrupulous, at least by my standards, and still others that are simply crooks. The problem is that sometimes, many of these different individuals are difficult for me to characterize....here in the USA let alone in a foreign country.

Again, thanks for sharing the story, OP, and for many insightful comments by others.
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 6:05 pm
  #32  
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First of all, as eastwest said, I'm glad that you were not hurt in any way. Secondly, here are some things I would recommend:

1. Call your credit card company NOW - have them reissue an fed ex you a new card (if this is your only one - otherwise cancel it and use another card while you travel) (You had called them before you left to tell them you were travelling, right?)

2. Go to the US Embassy in the morning and report exactly what happened including the name of the police officer who went with you to the club. Provide as many details as possible. Have them give you a copy of the written report.

Hope this helps and hope that the rest of your trip is wonderful. I personally wouldn't come home or cancel any part of your trip - something wonderful may be in store for you!
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 6:10 pm
  #33  
 
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Again thanks for sharing your story. I like Idsant's advice and my guess is that your credit card company will protect you. I lived in Turkey for a while and love the Turkish people. It is hard not to be jaded at this point, but I, too, hope you don't cancel your vacation. Have you seen the Blue Mosque, St Sofia, Grand Bazaar, etc.? Good luck and please tell us the rest of the story when you get home?
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 6:17 pm
  #34  
 
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Thanks to the OP for sharing that story. I could very well see myself having fallen for something like this. It's just a reminder that not every person you meet on the road will be friendly. Perhaps we should be looking for FT luggage tags..
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 6:25 pm
  #35  
 
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In Rome, the same thing was attempted on me. Fortunately, I figured it out in time.

Something else to watch for in Istanbul: taxi fares. They will travel in a roundabout way and/or try to overcharge you by a factor of 3 or 4.
Negotiate the price up front and/or get a reliable person (e.g., hotel) arrange for a taxi for you.
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 7:33 pm
  #36  
 
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I've been approached in Rome, while walking along the Via Veneto; in Tokyo, while walking along Harumi-dori in the heart of Ginza. I pretend not to understand whatever language is spoken, including English, and walk away.
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 7:55 pm
  #37  
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Originally Posted by thegeneral
You let another man buy you dinner and dessert??? Weird.
Why? I wound up meeting my wife because I let another man buy me appetizers and a drink.

To me, moral of the story is stay away from quasi-third world countries. I'll still to travelling in the west.
1. This scam is universal and not restricted to quasi-third world countries.
2. Some of my most interesting travels have been to quasi- and actual third world countries. You're missing a lot by sticking to the west.
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 8:08 pm
  #38  
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Originally Posted by alex0683de
Bangkok (the Poker an Gem scams, see the Lonely Planet), etc.
The Bangkok scams are really nasty because they can involve tens of thousands of dollars and can be more aggressive than even what the OP experienced in Istanbul. Long before I had heard the details of the gem scam, someone tried to run it on my wife and myself. It wasn't the full-blown scam, i.e. no carefully planted shills at various temples in the city to lure us in, but there was a "helpful" gentleman who was kind enough to tell us that the department store where we were heading was "closed for lunch," and sent us off to a jewelery store on a conveniently-idling tuktuk. Our scamdar works pretty well and we were out of there in just a minute or two, and wound up walking quite a distance to find a taxi out of the remote location.

It can be great talking to people, and it's usually very interesting, but when they start telling you about this great shop they know, it's usually a good time to bail out. Also, while I know that there are people who hang around places frequented by tourists in the hopes that they can practice a foreign language they're learning, I am always very, very wary of people who try to chat me up with that line. Nine times out of ten, they're touts.
I'll just offer one observation. I mentioned in an earlier post meeting my wife thanks to a man who bought me drinks and appetizers. This was someone I was seated next to on the plane to Hong Kong. He started chatting with me early into our 16 hour flight (this is something I usually don't like to do). During the course of our talking throughout the flight, I mentioned that I was a little nervous about going into China (it was my first time, back in 1994). He told me that China was a wonderful country, and invited me to join him for drinks in China the following day. To this day, I can't tell you why I went, as it's not something I'd usually do, hadn't done before and haven't since. I looked him up at his hotel in Shekou, about an hour outside of Shenzhen, where I had business. As noted, he bought me drinks and appetizers. And introduced me to his wife. She decided I was a nice guy and called her friend to come join us and meet me. The friend and I hit it off, and we got married 6 months later. This was 12 years ago, and we're still happily married.

Sometimes getting chatted up can be a good thing.
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 8:09 pm
  #39  
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Originally Posted by stockmanjr
This happens in london and paris so I'm not sure about your comment concerning quasi-third world countries??
Cheers
howie

And NY, and Cleveland and just about any other city in the world.

Pres, I'm sure you learned a lesson and hopefully this won't dampen your sense of adventure in getting out to meet new people in your travels.
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 8:36 pm
  #40  
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Something like this can happen anywhere. I would just write it off as an experience in life and move on.

I had a somewhat similar experience in Bangkok when I was 19 or so and was visiting the city with friends. We ended up having very expensive drinks at the Patpong.

If I meet overly friendly people when I travel I tend to be a bit hesitant first. I know how good I look but even then I try to keep my feet solidly on the ground.
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 8:54 pm
  #41  
 
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A similar thing happened to me when I was in London earlier this year. My friends had just left, so I was alone in the city for the evening. I booked a movie, but it didn't start for a couple of hours so I took refuge in the only place open -- an "entertainment venue" of sorts (read: topless bar).

Anyway, paid the 5 pounds and went downstairs. A woman greeted me and started talking to me on the couch about world affairs, etc. (I was happy to listen as I had nothing better to do) -- I declined a drink, etc. as I was only really interested in staying out of the blistering cold for an hour or so.

About 20 minutes into the conversation another lady comes in with a bill for $2000 pounds. Having never been scammed before, it took me roughly 20 seconds to realise what was going on. I got up to leave, only to find a very big bouncer standing in the stairway and noticed they had pulled down the security door, essentially closing the venue off.

Long story short, things got nasty for a while, they demanded everything I owned, etc. -- I tried using my cellphone to phone the police but they kept grabbing for it, disconnecting my phonecall. They also told me that if I called the police they would say I assaulted one of them, and one of the girls was already grabbing her own wrists to create bruisemarks, etc. Ended up getting in the face of the muscle and he eventually backed down and let me out...Thankfully there was only 1 'muscle' there and no weapons were brought out, otherwise my physical approach wouldn't have been as successful .
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 9:15 pm
  #42  
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Originally Posted by PTravel
I'll just offer one observation. I mentioned in an earlier post meeting my wife thanks to a man who bought me drinks and appetizers. This was someone I was seated next to on the plane to Hong Kong. He started chatting with me early into our 16 hour flight (this is something I usually don't like to do). During the course of our talking throughout the flight, I mentioned that I was a little nervous about going into China (it was my first time, back in 1994). He told me that China was a wonderful country, and invited me to join him for drinks in China the following day. To this day, I can't tell you why I went, as it's not something I'd usually do, hadn't done before and haven't since. I looked him up at his hotel in Shekou, about an hour outside of Shenzhen, where I had business. As noted, he bought me drinks and appetizers. And introduced me to his wife. She decided I was a nice guy and called her friend to come join us and meet me. The friend and I hit it off, and we got married 6 months later. This was 12 years ago, and we're still happily married.

Sometimes getting chatted up can be a good thing.
If i was invited to a hotel restaurant to meet someone I met on a plane, i'd probably meet them too to be honest.

Nothing like meeting some locals on a trip who are indeed honest.

I almost had this scam run on my in Rio but I'm very vigilant and usually 'ignore' locals if i'm asked to go somewhere with them or anything similar to that for the fear of being robbed/scammed. I'll chat.. but I won't go anywhere unless Its called McDonalds where I really can't be scammed out of a crappy meal anyways.

if it's not on the main street, i'm not going. Simple as that.
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 9:19 pm
  #43  
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thanks op for sharing your story and for reminding the rest of us to stay vigilant. glad you're okay!

idsant's advice is worth taking, both about being proactive with your cc company and heading to the embassy. don't let this misadventure ruin or truncate your trip--let it make you a bit wiser
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 9:27 pm
  #44  
 
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The main thing is that the OP is OK.

Could OP tell us more about the Ukrainian and Russian women - what interaction did you have with them?
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Old Oct 8, 2006, 9:53 pm
  #45  
 
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In January I punched an African "gentleman" in the chest in Akasaka. He asked me to come into his club. I refused, he then grabbed me by the arm and I proceeded to knock the wind out of him.
Glad to hear your OK, cancel the card.
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