mecabq

Thanks for reporting this, and I am glad that you weren't hurt. I think that this could happen to anyone -- I have been solicited as usual in Bucharest and Bangkok, but luckily not victimized. (Somehow I avoided the scams in India.)

The real shame is for those who share the OP's general approach of liking to talk to locals. I, like him, have had great experiences meeting people and learning a lot about the places that I visit. I have met people and bought them a modest lunch in exchange for chatting me up and giving me insight. It's worked out wonderfully. Not to be too pompous, but I like "representing" America as an inquisitive, open-minded, courteous traveler. It's too bad that these experiences make us less likely to want to engage strangers in other countries.

P.S. I am currently staying at the Hyatt in Istanbul. It's a great place, certainly superior to the InterCon across the street and no worse than the Ritz-Carlton down the street in my opinion. (But I step below the best place in town -- the Kempinski on the Bosphorous. I can't wait for the Four Seasons down there to open.) Great neighborhood, too -- or so I thought!