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SINGAPORE—The tired traveller flies into flower-filled Changi
Airport and instantly feels at ease. Everything is neat, clean,
functional, and aesthetic. Rules are adhered to in Singapore. The
streets are as safe to walk as the tap water is to drink. So what
kind of thief can operate in such a city state?
The traveller collects his luggage and changes a little money at
the airport booth, then jumps in a taxi to the hotel. "Fifteen
dollars," the driver might say as he pulls up to Raffles or the
Regent or the Mandarin; and in most cases, the visitor will pay
and that will be that.
A surprising number of American tourists, though, whose first
sense of Singapore is not exotic and foreign at all, but rather
resembles the modern city in which they live, happily pay in U.S.
dollars. What taxi driver will refuse an instant bonus of thirty
percent? That tourist has been self-ripped, and the driver is
hardly to blame.
More devious, though, is the driver or shop clerk who slips a
Malaysian bill into the stack of Singapore bills he gives you as
change. The pink Malaysian bill looks remarkably similar to the
pink Singapore ten-dollar note. So similar, in fact, that the
passing of it could be just an accident. But at ten ringgits, the
Malaysian note is worth only half the value of the Singapore one.
The visitor to Bangkok stands on a street corner comparing his
map to bewildering street signs. A well- dressed local
approaches, eager to help and give a good
impression of his city. He's very friendly and in a |
matter of minutes has won the visitor's confidence. "By the way," he suddenly remembers, "did you know that today is the last day of Bangkok's annual jewelry promotion? A few
government-selected shops are allowed to sell duty free! Come,
let me take you. Hurry!" The tourist he befriends will certainly
get a deal, but it will be one wholly to the shop's advantage, with
a healthy commission for its sophisticated tout. This scam, in
endless variations, is nearly impossible for the police to stop, as
the shops do nothing illegal.
That Hong Kong is an electronics shoppers' paradise is one of
the most common misconceptions about the Far East. But the
unsavvy shopper may get much less than he bargained for. The
"bait and switch" is an age old technique some camera shops
have used, but now merchants have learned new ways to extract
dollars from overseas visitors. Goods may be sold with limited
warranties or note at all, lacking invisible features like time and
date stamp or remote control, or without accessories that are
routinely included with the item elsewhere. These fly-by-night
shops are regularly closed down by police, but they somehow
manage to reopen under new names just blocks away.
1995 research in parts of the Far East reconfirms the practice of
the old standard ploys intended to separate the traveller from his
money and valuables. Most common now is the razor slitting of
handbags carried on the shoulder. |
