It was 1992. A more innocent time. Especially if you lived in a peaceful, South Pacific island country like Vanuatu. The capital, Port Vila, had only one small weekly newspaper. And when I say small, I mean only four pages long and printed on paper slightly larger than a legal pad.
In 1992, we weren’t using the internet yet. Friends and family called us and sent us mail. Strangers didn’t. We didn’t worry about scams or conspiracy theories. We were innocents.
So, it’s not surprising that I was such an easy mark that day in Suva for one of its notorious sword sellers.
It was a beautiful morning. After my husband and I had breakfast together in the hotel, a car arrived to take him for a meeting at some government ministry, and I set off by myself to explore Fiji’s capital.
The main thing I remember from that day is how carefree and happy and confident I felt as I walked down the wide promenade that ran along the shore. It was sunny, and I was in a vacation mood. When a Fijian man walking near me made a friendly comment, I thought nothing of it. At first.
The sword sellers in Suva are infamous. Frommers and Tripadvisor have warned about them for years. Looking online now, I see there were warnings at least twenty-four years after I was scammed. I guess I wasn’t the only one it worked on.
The scam was simple: a wooden sword not much bigger than a letter opener and an ability to trick the unsuspecting tourist. The scammer first convinces you he’s friendly, just interested in giving you some tips on seeing the city. You walk along for a while, enjoying the sunshine, the splash of the waves, and the relaxed, happy people around you. He asks your name. Casually. And before you know it, he’s carved your name on the handle of a little knife. A nice souvenir, right? He’ll give it to you for … he names a price, and you try to figure out what that is in dollars. What was the exchange rate? He couldn’t be asking that much, could he? He allows you to bargain him down. But the price is still exorbitant. And how do you get away from him now?
By the time I met my husband back in the hotel for lunch, I was in tears and the sword was in the waste basket. I don’t remember how much I paid. Too much, but not that much. It’s the humiliation of being scammed that hurts. How could I have been so stupid?
I’m smarter now and more careful. But they’re everywhere, the con artists, grifters and scammers.
Have you ever been scammed?
I am so sorry to hear that this scam happened to you, Nicki. Most of us just want to have a good time and enjoy ourselves. Glad you were safe and okay in the end.That’s what matters. I am someone who likes to keep to myself. If someone I don’t know comes up to me on the street and talks to me, I avoid them as I find it intrusive – I’ll walk as far away as possible. Even if I come across rude so be it. I guess I was brought up to look out for myself and would much rather be safe than sorry.
I do find that there are quite a few salespeople on the street or in the malls here who try to get you to sign up to something. Or offer a sample of a product and then offer you a bunch of things for quite a price. I’m always wary of these. Then there those people who cold call selling raffles for charity over the phone – and so many of these are scams. You can never really be too careful these days.
Even though the sword seller didn’t put me physically at risk, it was an unpleasant experience. I’m afraid I was in a carefree mood that day, more than I should have been. But exploring the world and staying open to new experiences, often involves some risks. We have to decide how much we’re willing to accept.
I agree with you about salesmen in the malls. I’ve stopped and talked with them a time or two and been sorry. The best choice is just to walk on by. I’m usually smart enough these days not to answer cold calls. I don’t want to waste my time or be talked into something I don’t want.
Nicki, that sounds horribly stressful. I’m so sorry that it spoilt what had started out as a lovely day for you.
Fortunately, I started to use the internet at a time when I knew people who had been using it for a while and were savvy, so I have learned from them. I’m now pretty savvy myself, even getting through online dating successfully without being scammed. I still think the in-person experience, like you had, is worse.
In-person experiences or internet scams each have their own kind of fright. In-person could lead to physical harm–Not in the case of the “sword sellers,” but here in the US where so many people have guns, a simple theft could easily escalate. Using the internet opens us up to an unlimited number of scams using a multitude of techniques, and the scammers are invisible. That’s scary too. And hearing that Microsoft gets hacked every so often reminds me that I’m an easy mark. Bad guys all around. Why don’t they just get an honest job?
What a story. I’m glad you were okay in the end, but really that’s a scary situation. I’ve been in houses that were being robbed, but that’s not really a scam, more of a straight-up crime.
Actually, I don’t feel as though it was a scary situation. It was just embarrassing. Very embarrassing.
Were you in a house as it was being robbed? Now that sounds scary to me. My sister had her Seattle house robbed when she was out of town. They stole some jewelry that had sentimental value and made a mess of the place. Like they say, knowing that a thief has been in your house, disturbs your sense of safety.
Imagine how horrible it would be to be a con artist to steal a living from carefree tourists.
Much better to be a true artist, like you with your batiks, etc.
It would be horrible. But from what I hear from a prosecutor friend, it’s hard to find a reformed con artist or thief. When they get out of jail, they tend to return to old habits.
I don’t think I have, but I doubt that I would forget such a nasty experience
I’m glad you’ve avoided scammers. They’re everywhere, each with their own modus operandi.
I don’t think I’ve been scammed, but I am sure I paid more money that I should have for items while on vacation. Actually, I undoubtedly did that while not on vacation, too–probably to get rid of solicitors at my door when I was younger. It’s very difficult to slam a door in someone’s face when you’ve been brought up to be polite. It’s a skill you have to learn.
Yes. I remember those door-to-door salesmen. Magazine subscriptions, vacuum cleaners. And then there were the Tupperware parties and Mary Kay. I had a cousin who sold Mary Kay cosmetics for a while. I resisted all of those. Still, as you say, it’s hard to say “no” face-to-face. Now I get the occasional worker who wants to clean my gutters or help me with gardening. I know they need work, but choose on my schedule.
Sorry to hear your story. You’re very right that it’s not the money but the humiliation of being scammed that hurts.
There is a American Mike living in Mele Beach east of Port Vila with his adopted son Nicky. I and another Japanese girl was scammed by him in early 2022, he got our rent fee for for a month and kicked us out in a week. Before us, there was a local victim girl and after us there was a Nigerian guy. He kicked us out the same way. We went to the police station and Japanese girl even went for her embassy friend. After a month, we still didn’t get out money back. The police in Port Vila seems very busy and several months rent fee looks small for them.
I’m so sorry, Fred. It sounds like Mike is a repeat offender. You’d think the Vila police could make a good case against him if they wanted to. It must have hurt to lose a month’s rent. I hope you found another place.
Thank you. A nice neighbour, an Australian lady helped us find a good place to stay. We’re very appreciated. We had a lot of great memories in Port Vila except Mike.
It’s a beautiful and interesting place.
They have become a lot more conniving in the way they scam today. Even an intelligent person has to be careful.
It’s the online scams, Kate. There are so many of them, and it only takes one wrong click.
Oh my goodness how awful. 😖😖 So sorry!
When I commuted to work in downtown Chicago, scammers used to work the buses and trains asking for money. A woman on my busline had a sign that said she couldn’t talk and needed money to buy diapers. Probably a week later she verbally asked for money.
I was scammed by a vanity publisher many years ago. I learned the hard way not to entrust them with my work.
When we lived in the Philippines, our maid was robbed on a jeepney. It wasn’t a scam. He just grabbed her watch and jumped off. People riding public transportation are good targets for scammers and thieves. And I don’t suppose most of them can afford to be taken advantage of. At the same time, they may be more likely than most to be sympathetic.
My guess is that most vanity publishers don’t start out to be scammers, but they don’t realize how hard the business is, and when it isn’t going well, they disappear.