Random Episode 6: How Kevin Rose and Glenn McElhose Got Scammed in China – Ha! 184 Comments
Total length: 20 minutes.
This is a weekend edition of Random. It is a happy-hour special of Chinese scams.
How did Kevin and Glenn get totally screwed by Chinese “art students”? More important, how do you avoid getting scammed while traveling?
This episode lays out one of the most common scams and explains how to spot similar set-ups worldwide…
Show Notes from Glenn:
- Open intro with weird light: Kevin shooting a laser into a “7 Cups” vessel. Animation by Tynan.
- Yin Bar, Beijing – http://www.theemperor.com.cn/
- Travel Website: www.virtualtourist.com
###
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Posted on October 8th, 2009
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184 Comments
Yale Wang — October 8th, 2009, 2:28 am
Sorry to hear you guys got scammed but if it makes you feel any better, there’s all types of scams targeted toward domestics as well as foreigners. We even have a slang phrase for getting scammed “kao nie de baong baong” which can mean anything from being scammed outright to being gouged on prices (like at a roadside restaurant.)
I remember going to a historic village visited mostly by Chinese tourists and the same art scam taking place. They even had fake craftsman making pieces of a woodcarving in front of you to lend it more authenticity. A lot of the Chinese tourists bought pieces.
I’d hate for you guys to take the sickening feeling of getting scammed and inevitably equating it to how Chinese vendors operate. In reality, Chinese businessmen have always had to deal with an inadequate legal system and as a result, have had to develop a system of commerce based on one’s reputation and trustworthiness commonly known as Guanxi. If it wasn’t for this code of ethics, I probably wouldn’t have a supplier and still be an investment banker.
Checkout this link from James Fallows of the Atlantic about “Guanxi”
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid36249178001?bclid=35974541001&bctid=34919168001
David Rojas — October 8th, 2009, 2:30 am
I told Kevin at FOWA the other day: ‘Please we want more randome episodes, they’re awesome!’ And here it is
Also, this one can be downloaded from vimeo, thanks for that.
Gino — October 8th, 2009, 2:46 am
If I tried to show this video to and non-tim-ferriss-addict, they would say it is a waste of time. I am still trying to convince myself of the same but keep watching!
Gordie Rogers — October 8th, 2009, 2:51 am
The two biggest scams for foreigners in China to watch out is the art room and the tea room ones. If you get students coming up to on the street, especially in Beijing, asking to “look” at some art work or “try” some tea, then run for the hills because you’ll probably end up losing lots of money.
Jerome Sadou — October 8th, 2009, 2:53 am
What I’d like to know is if Kevin and Glenn kept the paintings in the end. Because even if it was a scam they seemed to like them at first…
(and these ladies are definitively in their 30′s
Damian — October 8th, 2009, 2:56 am
I can understand why people get scammed in China. Mind you those student they got scammed by look late 40′s and that’s being nice.
I live in Shanghai. The tea scam is the same here its on Nanjing Road shopping street.
And there are scams all over the world. The one in the USA that i remember was the guys in tourist area of New Orleans kept asking “I can tell you where you got them shoes”
Like the videos from China be interesting to hear the rest of the stories.
Francisco Costa — October 8th, 2009, 3:22 am
hey Tim, nice explanations about scams and great Chinese accent =)
Here in Portugal the only one i know is are taxi drivers who take a long way to charge tourist more, but despite this you should visit this country and get to know the language!
Paul B — October 8th, 2009, 3:24 am
I love it – I got the same art student scam in Shanghai, though I got away with just buying an art work and not the follow up milking (and I fortunately paid cash). There was a moment when I got nervous as the ‘gallery’ was in an odd out of the way lane within a department store, past various dodgy guys – and when I at first declined to make a purchase my otherwise polite new friends developed a nasty demeanour.
For a nano second I stupidly figured I could take on the ‘art students’ but not the other guys, sanity prevailed and said a little cash and a dent to my pride was no big deal.
The art work actually is nice, and it still hangs in my home.
Oleg — October 8th, 2009, 4:25 am
Excellent tip about being on your guard when people are overly friendly. In Japan it may be OK (I experienced the same situation with people going out of their way to help you find your way in Tokyo without expecting anything in return), but in other places that’s not the case. Most recent example was the Parisian train system- guy sees I’m lost, offers to show me how to get to my train, then demands money for the “service.”
Jonny — October 8th, 2009, 4:46 am
Kevin being screwed. I bet that hit the front page of digg.
Oscar — October 8th, 2009, 5:05 am
Good to learn about these type of scams. Thanks for sharing Tim.
Sami — October 8th, 2009, 5:22 am
I find it so funny that Kevin got scammed
Especially when considering he did that Broken / social engineering stuff yeeeeears ago cheating for free pizzas and stuff like that 
I bet he thought himself to be knowledgeable enough not to get scammed.
Traian — October 8th, 2009, 6:09 am
Thanks for sharing!
I have to agree with Tim – Thai people are great, almost 0 chance to get scammed there, even though they might appear more over-friendly than any other people.
The worst scam I ever got was in Tunisia. I was out with some friends shopping at a bazaar and this really friendly guy comes to us and says: “Oh! I know you guys! I work at your hotel! Come with me! I will take you to the store of my family!”.
Anyway, then he offered to bring us ice-cream (he never brought it). There were no price tags on any products and when we asked how much does this or that cost, we were told that price doesn’t matter, that we are friends and we will talk about money later.
Of course, at the end they asked for 300 euro, which was probably 10-15 times the real value. The problem was that we couldn’t just leave everything there, as they made some custom (crappy) custom bracelets which we were obliged to buy and 10 angry men were around us.
In the end we payed just 100 euro but took only 1/3 of the items, so we still got scammed big time.
What’s most intriguing is that we even felt bad in a way that we upset the friendly man and we weren’t friends anymore
)
Jez Liberty — October 8th, 2009, 6:12 am
Ah ah!
Good to hear about that scam (I am planning to travel for a while including in China in the next year or so)
Random episodes are really wicked! It really adds another dimension to your blog and your persona too (is that a step to trying to become more mainstream?)
Keep up the great episodes (and other posts)..
Derek Blais — October 8th, 2009, 6:34 am
Thanks for posting. I love the proverb. I play street ball (basketball) with Chinese here in Japan, and I am finally beginning to understand–”Trick if can be tricked”. No more accepting calls on fouls that weren’t actually fouls.
Dario — October 8th, 2009, 6:52 am
Very cool video! I’m planning a trip to Beijing real soon and the info you guys gave me were priceless. Thanks a lot and keep it up!!
Drew — October 8th, 2009, 7:08 am
I understand they were pissed about being taken advantage of, but I think reversing the charges was wrong for two reasons.
1) You still had the products.
2) You must have said four or five times how great the work was. And it was painted, not photocopied. So even if the girls didn’t paint it, it was good. You didn’t think you were paying more for a “name” artist anyway. So why is it suddenly worthless because it wasn’t done by the girls?
That second rule really comes down to my general rule for not getting scammed: Only pay what you think something is worth. As long as you actually get what you paid for — and in this case you did — you got your money’s worth.
Dan Massicotte — October 8th, 2009, 7:33 am
Great vid. Asia is definitely in my scope. But S. Korea first.
David Aase — October 8th, 2009, 7:54 am
I encountered a similar art scam in Paris when I visited a few years back. It wasn’t as complex as this though, the “art students” simply set up shop on the sidewalks and streets. I ended up buying one for $20 US, it ended up being very high quality print on canvas.
I feel for Kevin and Glen, sorry guys. Lesson learned.
As a side note, do you think they will actually ship you the paintings?
Rob Rawson — October 8th, 2009, 7:56 am
The only time I’ve been scammed was in London. Awesome credit card scam where they timed it exactly so that someone said “hey you dropped a bill” and there was this 20 pound note crumpled on the ground. Funnily enough I thought I had 20 pounds in my pocket, and really thought it was mine, picked it up, and somehow they totally timed it so that they managed to pull out the card from the machine at the exact moment that I picked up the note. Really awesome timing, can’t believe they did it. And they saw the pin number. But luckily they didn’t take too much money for some strange reason.
Jason R. Coombs — October 8th, 2009, 7:59 am
I ran into the same scams in Beijing. I was more lucky at the tea house. I refused to pay for the girls’ tea, but it still cost about $30.
I also spent way too much on the “art”.
You suggest virtualtourist to scope out scams, but your example suggested search for “art student”… but who has the time to search out a scam before it’s happened to them. I thought the dangers section of Beijing was way too vague and wouldn’t have been enough to caution me away from these scams before I had experienced them.
I’d be interested in a site that was able to rank scams so the most common ones were easily identifiable and could be reviewed on the plane or in the hotel before venturing out on the first day.
Charles — October 8th, 2009, 8:02 am
In Paris if someone hands you a brass ring asking you if you just dropped it you’ve met a chain scammer.
To all his own
The Real Josh — October 8th, 2009, 8:11 am
I find that while travelling the cold shoulder usually works pretty well. I am not a cold person but I would prefer to not get taken advantage of. Not to say that it will never happen but worked pretty well so far.
Michael — October 8th, 2009, 8:16 am
I’ll never forget my trip to Rome, Italy where dressed up Gladiators would pose for a picture with you and then demand 10 euros outside the coliseum. Word to the wise…
Mike
Allen — October 8th, 2009, 8:18 am
This is by far the best episode yet.
The easiest way to not get scammed is not talk to or help anyone, but really you have to find a balance between friendliness and risk avoidance. This balance will change based on where you go. In non-touristy areas you can be more open.
Most good scams hinge on a few principles. Usually someone needs your help (often pretty girl). They build rapport, maybe help you, and in return you help them. The 419 scams http://www.419eater.com are a good example of this.
Other scams use basic compliance techniques:
Foot in the door – make a small request, get you to say yes, increasing your likelihood to say yes to a bigger request. (Can we practice English with you?)
Door in the face – make an outrageous request, which you will reject, then make a smaller request which you will say yes to out of guilt
Scarcity – claim that something is unique or that you have a limited time to buy (I painted this, you are leaving beijing)
Low ball – start with one price, and once you’ve committed, increase the price (buy some art, then pay for shipping)
Ingratiation – a specific attempt to get someone to like you (friendly pretty girls are almost always the initial contact)
Social proof and Isolation – by removing your frame of reference, you have no way to tell what is normal (Foreign country in this example), further by substituting a new one, you can make that which is not normal seem normal (it is perfectly fine to pay $250 a person for a cup of tea or some art because everyone here is doing it).
Read up on Robert Cialdini’s work in compliance. Great for sales and avoiding scams.
Mike — October 8th, 2009, 8:29 am
Always cool to see traveling videos from exotic places. Thanks for the tips.
M
Hillman — October 8th, 2009, 8:33 am
This was very entertaining and informative!
Klaus Tol — October 8th, 2009, 8:58 am
I always love the random videos. This one was really entertaining and informative.
Inspiring to hear you talk chinese Tim.
Klaus Tol
Russ Turley — October 8th, 2009, 9:01 am
Great story and great tips on scams while traveling. Best quote though, “That’s strawberry. We make that out of dog piss.”
Adam Craft — October 8th, 2009, 9:23 am
Great information!
My brother and I are leaving for South East Asia in a few weeks. I really look forward to meeting the local people and getting a behind the scenes view of the area. Based on the video it seems best to avoid “friendly” people.
Have you had any success meeting people in Asia which lead to a better experience? If so, do you have any tips about how/where to meet people that are not scammers and are genuinely friendly?
Richard — October 8th, 2009, 9:28 am
I just got back from travelling for a year, and my worse scam was in Shanghai. I saw the art students in Beijing too, but they weren’t so bad. I didn’t buy anything from any of them and one “student” even bought me a drink after I’d said no to his art. But on to Shanghai…
A pretty Chinese girl in the middle of the day on a popular tourist street asked if I was sightseeing too, (she was also in Shanghai sightseeing) I said yes, she took me for coffee then ordered loads of food and wine and then invited her friend as well!
The bill, which I was expected to pay was 1000RMB ($150). After arguing with management I “got away” with paying a massive 300RMB ($45) for my coffee.
To be honest, I kind of new I was being scammed but I hoped they might at least offer me sex for that kind of money. lol.
jcogliandro — October 8th, 2009, 9:31 am
dude that is very funny. a pain in the arseno doubt. and a little humiliating but at least it was under a 1000.00 and no real damage was done good thing Tim was with you guys.
Dynasty — October 8th, 2009, 9:45 am
Tim,
Thanks for keeping the video short. Oh yes, the Forbidden City… sorry you missed it. It has amazing views and it’s mind-boggling. FYI- I feel for you about the notebook you lost.
Kev, Lol. This is hysterical.
Those girls pulled a quick one on you/Glenn and they weren’t cure. They milked it, though it wasn’t cool. I’m sure you see it from a better perspective nowadays. You deserve another sugary drink on me for that.
Looking back on it, enjoy a hearty laugh.
Hey All, Tim makes a valuable point- question motives and be direct. This is especially helpful for all the ladies.
Cynthia — October 8th, 2009, 9:46 am
Interesting. I think the fact that you’re guys “enhanced” your experience. On my first trip to Beijing, in 2000, my traveling companion (also a woman) and I encountered “art students,” but they were much younger — definitely not more than 17 or 18. The art studio was off the beaten path. We each bought a small painting for about $10 (paying cash — we weren’t totally trusting, and didn’t want to give them credit card numbers). They rolled up the paintings and put them in tubes so we could pack them safely, and then they said, “we hope you enjoy China” and said good-bye. No expensive tea or offer of “cheap” tickets anywhere.
Of course, by my second trip to China, a few years later, traveling alone this time, when an older gentlemen (the instructor, of course) offered to show me his art studio, which was “nearby,” I decided it was, if not exactly a scam (because I did get a piece of artwork I love and it was worth what I paid), at least a very well organized operation, so I declined his offer, saying I already had bought art.
So I definitely think they approach women differently than they approach men. I’d say that, if you want the art, no problem in going, but know what it’s worth, pay cash, and take it with you — and then say “good-bye.”
Paul Romine — October 8th, 2009, 9:55 am
I went to China in 06, and out of all the things I saw I had the most fun haggling down vendors in this huge flea market in Shanghai. My sister was too shy to argue over a price so I got to have a lot of fun storming off when they wouldn’t go any lower and have them chase you to give you a better price!
JamieJo — October 8th, 2009, 10:01 am
In any third world country a lot of their bread and butter is scamming tourists. I’m not saying that it’s right per say, but if it happens to you don’t be angry. I’ve traveled a lot and it’s really kind of a gamble whenever you’re purchasing something off the streets in a different country. I’ve been scammed and I’ve also made some really great purchases, so when it does happen I kind of look at it as part of the experience. You came out of it with a great story and in your guys’ case the credit card company took the hit. =) Happy Traveling!
Norio — October 8th, 2009, 10:15 am
Great tips! Can’t wait to go to Beijing and other places while my muse does all the hard work. Tim – you kick ass
Daniel Richard — October 8th, 2009, 10:20 am
Ah drat. I’m gonna go watch it when I’m plugged into a good power source. Now on a netbook and any vid stuff is going pretty laggy now — only got to see the ox in the first couple of mins in the clip.
Jay — October 8th, 2009, 10:41 am
I don’t get it. Is there supposed to be a link to view something? Where is the link?
jim — October 8th, 2009, 10:42 am
On the point of Chinese people fighting over the bill, I’m Chinese and had the opportunity to visit second cousins (our grandparents are siblings) and if you even mentioned that you thought something was nice, they would jump at the chance to buy it for you. We were in Zhejiang, which is known for leather products, and I mentioned I wanted to get a pair of nice shoes… we spent the next thirty minutes going into a bunch of shops until they forced me to pick one they would buy for me. My wife said she thought my cousin’s purse was cute, to be polite and all that, the next day my cousin gave her one.
Now, these were strangers, rather than family, when the day started but if they were genuine, they would’ve at least shown a hint of that. Just wanted to add a little extra perspective on it.
On the flip side, Chinese people, in general, won’t talk to strangers unless there’s some sort of pre-existing relationship (quanxi). So a friend of a friend isn’t a stranger, but some random on the street would be.
Colleen K. Peltomaa — October 8th, 2009, 10:52 am
When I was in the art business we imported our oils from China. They were good sellers to the middle-class market and extremely cheap for us to purchase wholesale. The point is they mass produce these art pieces.
Jeremy — October 8th, 2009, 10:53 am
So the moral is the story is to use your American Express when purchasing things and try not to be scammed……but if you do….just do a charge back and get some free art!
Rogerio Job — October 8th, 2009, 10:57 am
Useful tips here. I don’t plan fly to China but there’s scammers in all places around the world. Thanks!
Noah — October 8th, 2009, 11:38 am
Great episode.
Those little taxis at the end are nuts.
Mark — October 8th, 2009, 11:42 am
Brilliant and entertaining. My 3 buds & I got hit up by the “art students” outside the Forbidden City… thankfully, we didn’t bite. Enjoy your trip! Fantastic country.
Yale — October 8th, 2009, 11:45 am
I just watched it again and realized those girls are probably in their 40′s haha. Man there’s nothing that’ll take a guy’s money faster than “friendly” women.
manofskill — October 8th, 2009, 12:03 pm
Did you actually see the scam artists ship the art work? I’ve heard of other scams where they will sell you something then take it out of sight to ‘package it for you’ but, actually, they are putting a rock in a box or something similar.
At any rate I hope they did really ship your artwork so you can always have a good story to tell people when they ask about it.
Michael R. — October 8th, 2009, 12:07 pm
The “Slumdog Millionaire” technique I’ve witnessed in India seemed only a bit more ethical and transparent: a young man approached me at one of the historical sites and also described himself as an art student giving tours to practice his English. What tipped me off at his ulterior motives was that he was not happy to see me wander off the regular tour path – I’m sure that threw off his customer acquisition metrics
At the end, I did feel that because he spent 20-40 mins walking me around, I at least owed to hear his real pitch.
We ended up at his father’s shop across the street where the negotiation went on for 20 minutes and the owner ended up accepting my offer through a window of a departing cab – it was somewhat overdramatized. I still don’t know whether I got a good deal, but every time I mentally replayed that experience, I’ve gotten more and more appreciation toward their scheme and their attention to detail.
Tim, it’d be great to hear your take on haggling techniques you’ve seen and used when traveling.
Silver — October 8th, 2009, 12:24 pm
Another great episode. Huge fan of Random – keep em coming
As far as Japan goes – lived there for a year and no scams whatsoever. I did hear about semi-shady venues in Roppongi though – so watch out for those.
Chip Green — October 8th, 2009, 12:40 pm
keep the beard it gets more comfortable with time and looks awesome
Adam Paxton — October 8th, 2009, 12:43 pm
Yeah, what’s wrong with beards?!
Good episode.
Leif Stenlund — October 8th, 2009, 12:49 pm
Very interesting. It seems to me that you had a great time there, despite the art buying incident. Never really felt like going to China myself thou. On the other hand, my wife would be very interested in tasting all those tea varietes. We’ll have to think about it.
Thanks for the post.
Michael Medlock — October 8th, 2009, 1:09 pm
Sorry to hear you guys got scammed. I think it’s happening less often than it used to. Generally Chinese people are really nice and often do want to help. But you have to be careful in touristy places. Also try to learn a bit of the language, it can indicate that you are not totally green about the country: scammers tend to go for easier prey (but not always).
Tim if you have time please have a look out our Chinese learning program. We have similar ideas to you on language acquisition. I’d be grateful for your feedback.
Thanks
M
Steve Tremko Bellante — October 8th, 2009, 1:11 pm
It’s not uncommon to hear about tourists getting scammed, but it’s not everyday you run into such a well developed and planned out scam like the one you described. Glad to hear nothing too serious was lost. Really enjoying the random episodes. Love to see these keep going in some form.
Dylan — October 8th, 2009, 1:59 pm
I think this show could benefit with more ‘travel show’ elements, rather than just completely using a ‘talk show’ format.
Dylan — October 8th, 2009, 2:02 pm
That being said, I really like it, and am a huge fan of the blog and FHWW. Looking forward to the new book Tim.
Serge Longin — October 8th, 2009, 2:03 pm
Tim, first of all, your Chinese is amazing! I spent 6 months in China recently (mid ’08 to early ’09), so this really brought a lot of memories rushing back. Strongly recommend people to visit. It’s an amazing place and you come back with a ton of impressions and great new perspectives.
Feel both bad and good for Kevin and Glenn for getting scammed, but hey – they got a great story out of it. It’s a small price to pay for a video like this. I’m sure they will be a tad more cautious next time abroad.
Looks like you had a blast traveling together, and Tim, I’d stick to the non-sugary lemon drinks as well (sorry Kevin
).
Darya — October 8th, 2009, 2:12 pm
Girl drinks and beard schadenfreude, LOL. Totally worth procrastinating for.
My friend had her ID stolen by a taxi driver in SF. Go figure.
Lloyd Budd — October 8th, 2009, 2:15 pm
Fantastic video! Great insights.
Looks like Kevin and Glenn should go to Brian Brushwood’s Scam School. Don’t know they have heard of it, it’s a rev3 show
dude — October 8th, 2009, 2:16 pm
One thing to be careful about in Shanghai and Beijing is “fake” unregulated cabs. Cabs in China are extremely inexpensive compared to London and NYC, but there are some “unregulated” cabs in Shanghai and Beijing that have the meter go ching ching ching and charge you 5x or more the usual fare.
Some tell tale signs are no license plate, different look of the taxi sign on the top, different brand car (most cabs in Shanghai are VW), no protective fiber glass around the driver, the driver speaks extremely good English
This may save you a few bucks and some nerves because they’d most likely take you on a longer route as well.
Ben — October 8th, 2009, 2:21 pm
wow, that must’ve been surreal. I can relate with their anger. Once I tried to score some herb in New Orleans whilst roaming the town during Jazz Fest. It turned out to be Oregano and I was greatly angered. In hindsight though, I was actually impressed wuth their social engineering!
Jack Bao — October 8th, 2009, 2:27 pm
Tim, this is hilarious! At the same time, also very informative
You’re Mandarin is still pretty darn good man, don’t trip. You’re right, in any country, there will always be some messed up people taking advantage of others. But I’m glad no body got hurt! At the end of the day, that’s what counts.
The way forbidden city charges tourists have changed. They charge separate fees for different sections and rooms tourists what to see. So that’s another way for them to make more money LOL! (umm…scam?) And yes, restrooms are as horrible as anywhere else if not worse; imagination sharing a portable construction stall with someone!
I like the tip on debit vs credit cards in foreign countries man! So true! Good luck at the BizTech Day!!
J
David Turnbull — October 8th, 2009, 2:31 pm
If anyone’s like me and likes to download the episode to their computer you can just go here: http://www.vimeo.com/6942629 and then scroll down, there’s a link on the right.
Shame Vimeo doesn’t let you download users videos in podcast form though – that’d be brilliant.
Christie — October 8th, 2009, 2:58 pm
That old man singing is hilarious.
So why did the girls give you their cell phones? You never went back to that.
Thanks for the tips!
Matt S. — October 8th, 2009, 3:00 pm
Kevin and Glen… you guys are just lucky there wasn’t a police sting in that house of artistic prostitution. You two could have been arrested as Art Johns.
“Officer, I just came for a creative massage.”
James — October 8th, 2009, 3:17 pm
Guys,
That was classic!
You should come down-under, I’ve got a brother that’ll let you ride his Kangaroo, he lives in town, but you have to watch out for the drop bears (damn Koala’s) they love to drop from the lightposts and grab your wallets…
Hope you can drop past soon…hahahaha…
David Turnbull — October 8th, 2009, 3:37 pm
Just finished watching the episode, absolutely love it. Reminded me of Diggnation but with a broader range of topics – and that’s a good thing. Hope to see more episodes not as far apart
James — October 8th, 2009, 3:55 pm
Did you just share straws?
Ron Turner — October 8th, 2009, 4:19 pm
Great episode, Tim! I agree about Virtual Tourist, it has been a lifesaver for me! The most scam-laden city I have visited? Cairo. Just 5 minutes after arriving at the airport at the airport the scammers were lined up and unleashed their fury on me (I didn’t bite). Visiting the pyramids was even worse!
Any more scheduled trips on the horizon?
Annie — October 8th, 2009, 4:58 pm
I am always bemused when I hear people say that ‘the Eastern culture is so much more spiritual’, or ‘Asians are not materialistic, not like westerners’. Maybe that’s not the case of those ‘art students’
I have friends who sent their kids to China because they wanted them to be immersed in “Buddhism and all those eastern philosophies’. Good luck seeking ancient wisdom in shopping malls and factory towns…
Oh by the way, Tim, you recommended in your book a few starting points for ‘mini-retirement’. Taipei is one of them. I appreciate the recommendation since I grew up there. However, it’s weird to categorize it as “China”, along with Hong Kong and Shanghai. Don’t you think?
Tim Ferriss — October 8th, 2009, 5:05 pm
Hi Annie,
I totally agree on all points. The folks who cite the non-materialist Eastern cultures make me almost wet myself. I don’t consider Taipei to be in China, per se, but the publisher had their fact-checkers all over the book, which is a good thing. Taiwanese culture and mainland culture are as different as the US and China, in my opinion.
Tim
Christopher — October 8th, 2009, 6:35 pm
Hey Tim,
Ask Kevin if he still has his barbie doll.
best,
Christopher
Kevin — October 8th, 2009, 9:13 pm
Love these episodes of Random. Keep ‘em coming.
D. Tilton — October 8th, 2009, 10:08 pm
Great episode, guys. Keep ‘em coming.
Yes, please tell us the “rest of the story” regarding the women giving you their cell phones.
Adrian — October 8th, 2009, 10:15 pm
Definitely got approached by this scam, the Tea Festival Scam (“this tea festival only happens once every three years, come drink tea with us..”), and what else…?
In Mongoia, they didn’t even bother to scam me, some dude just stole my newly purchased apple juice from me on the sidewalk – right out of my hands. Odd, i know.
Bangkok – too many to mention. Usually, a guy who “works at your hotel” offers to get you a good price on a boat ride (even though his wife is supposedly having a baby on the other side of the river)….Or, a guy with a job and “is not selling anything” wants to tell you about a once every two years sale going on at some jewelry warehouse.
Saigon – Malaysian “tourists with family in Saigon” ask to take you back to their house for dinner so that their sister can learn more about “how to get a visa for [insert your country here].” And they usually have a sister who is a nurse in a city near where you live. And beware of all moto drivers here – counter offer at least half of what they say first.
Cambodia – most of the children selling stuff can tell you the capital of your country, its population, and of course the name of your president. They work hard memorizing all that for sure, which might be worth buying something from them.
Luckily, I’m too skeptical to get hit by any of these, but after I caught on to the scam in Saigon, I told the Malaysian lady that I was a journalist working with the Saigon government to report on and uncover scams. She couldn’t believe scams would be happening to tourists, but quickly wished me good luck and was on her way.
Oh – and reading Rolf Potts’s Marco Polo Didn’t Go There (great travel book!!!), he shared how he was ruffied (ruphyed??) and stripped of all his belongings while asleep. Ug – hard to trust people anywhere.
Someone, Lonely Planet perhaps, should put together a compilation of scams from around the world for travelers to read through before visiting those countries. Hmmm, maybe I’ll go start a site like this right now. Automated income?
With all that being said, numerous people have helped show me the way while I was lost, or helped in myriad other ways, during my past year in Asia. And for them I am indebted.
Be well fellow travelers,
Adrian
Jefferson Kim — October 8th, 2009, 10:15 pm
Thank you for posting this story. It was extremely intimate.
Schmidty — October 8th, 2009, 10:23 pm
Tim & Guys, EXACTLY the same thing happened to me and a friend in Beijing about 4 years ago, so my guess is they have it down to a fine art (no pun intended). Just felt like I was reliving it through watching the video. In the end we were playing on it with them, and they ended up running the other way cos they knew they had been caught out.
Love the Random episodes. Cheers.
Melissa McCune — October 8th, 2009, 10:53 pm
Tim- I think the beard is HOT!
Chase — October 9th, 2009, 12:40 am
I friggin’ love these random shows you guys do.
Will Stevenson — October 9th, 2009, 3:12 am
Tim,
There are rumors that the reason the Tea and Art scamming even still happens is that the local police are profiting.
That would also explain the reasoning behind the preferential Real Estate detail you picked up on.
I have also heard that the DVD sales go through the police and so do most small bike repair guys, XiaoMaiBu ??? (the little shops) and any one else that has to profit from a ‘temporary’ spot of land they don’t own.
Also, now I get why you guys were slowing down on the drinking when I showed up at dusk….
You guys were literally there all day.
Oleg Mokhov — October 9th, 2009, 6:43 am
Hey Tim,
My girl is from Yunnan (Kunming specifically) and it was cool hearing Kevin’s sentiments of countryside vs. city mirror hers (she was comparing to Shanghai, not Beijing, though).
What was your favorite part of Yunnan? It’d be awesome for us readers to get some Ferriss-tips on the sweetest parts of the countryside, nature, etc.
Thanks to you, Kevin, and Glen for sharing your trip,
Oleg
PS. You look really cool with the beard. Total world-hopping traveller-writer
Chatty — October 9th, 2009, 9:22 am
Love Random Episodes.. =) Thanks Tim! i’m a big fan of yours =)
Jill MacGregor — October 9th, 2009, 9:26 am
Tim,
LOVED the *Random* video–not only because it was a fun story (that you all will be telling for years to come) but because its wonderful to watch good friends having a great time together.
I hope the rest of your trip is full of happy/hilarious memories!
Take Care,
Jill
PS–dude, break down and shave.
Pat — October 9th, 2009, 9:53 am
I was in Beijing for a few days in 2004.
I got hit with the tea house scam.
I got hit with the art student scam too. The first time I fell for it and bought $30 worth of art. The second time I realized it was probably a scam and politely declined. The third, fourth and fifth times I was approached I responded with “no thanks, I don’t want any fake art”.
Small price to pay for going halfway around the world without knowing the language or customs.
Pete — October 9th, 2009, 3:47 pm
Wait, what is the scam? Get you to pay for art and never ship it?
Ivan — October 9th, 2009, 6:24 pm
Hi Tim,
I read your book when it came out, and I only bought it because it was on my wishlist after I saw it recommended and I just purchased it without thinking about it too much.
And boy, it was one of the best reads of the past few years. I’m now reading Be Unreasonable, and although it’s a good book, it does not come close.
Anyway, I’ve been also reading your blog for a long time, and I believe this would be my first comment (or second). I just wanted to tell you how grateful I am for your book, for the teachings you share through your blog, and now for the awesome show you three put on.
I hope I don’t sound too… mmh, I don’t know the word… “barbero” in spanish in case you’re familiar with the word… but you’re the kind of person I’d love to be around with, and I hope I get to meet you some day.
Next year I’m gonna start traveling, so maybe then… And if you ever come to Mexico, please let me know!
Tim Ferriss — October 12th, 2009, 3:21 am
Thanks so much, Ivan, for the kind words. No te preocupes — it’d be fun to grab a drink if I make it to Mexico!
Un abrazo,
Tim
Austin Collins — October 9th, 2009, 8:44 pm
Hi Tim-
My favorite concept from your book is that money is multiplied in practical value by how free you are to use the ink the money provides to paint the canvas of your life. I was inspired by that idea, and based on the factors you discussed, I developed a tool that allows the user to know the “real value” of their income. I found that by understanding my current reality, it was much easier to focus my efforts in the right places to immediately create more freedom and balance. It has been so helpful and effective for me that I’m sure there is value in sharing this with others. I would love your perspective on this.
Thanks for showing us the truth about obstacles: They are self made illusions based on untested assumptions.
AC
Jeanne Greenwald — October 9th, 2009, 9:31 pm
What an enjoyable 20 minutes spent hearing about your scam. The same thing happened to me and my girlfriend (we are both girls who traveled alone to China together–not ‘partners’). So we were exiting a mall in Beijing when two young “art students” approached us – same deal – so off we went with them to an out-of-the-way, up-the-back-stairs “gallery”…more of a storage space with hanging art and also piles of art you could leaf through. I have to say we had a thoroughly enjoyable time. We didn’t hear of this being a “scam” until after we returned from China, though, but we knew we were taking a bit of a risk to go off the beaten path with two strangers…well, the girls really were young (not like your “students”), they did say they wanted to practice their English, and they did invite us for tea, afterwards, downstairs! But we had a delightful time. The “art teacher” and other guy were on site when we arrived upstairs in the “gallery”. We felt no pressure to buy…but we were definitely willing. The girls and “teacher” showed us around, explained the themes of the art, seemed very polite and forthcoming. They answered all of our questions, too. The prices for the art seemed fair, so we bought a few things. It wasn’t expensive. We took them with us, carefully rolled in tubes and otherwise nicely wrapped for suitcase travel. I am sure I gave them RMB and not my credit card (I hope I wasn’t that stupid…I should look it up for sure!) but regardless, there was nothing amiss about it. When we had tea, which we declined to buy, there was no weirdness at all. I think that the girls even paid for the tea we drank. I was there to adopt a child and my friend came along b/c my husband stayed at home with our other kids. I mentioned the adoption to the “art teacher” who really did have a working art space, and she immediately set to work on a quick painting of my daughter’s Chinese name Lian Hua which was translated to ‘lotus blossom’ and she added a red lotus blossom…and would not accept payment for it! So I have a lovely bit of original art that I witnessed and filmed being made, framed and hanging in my home today. Along with the other pieces that I bought, which believe me, were not expensive.
So: were we scammed? I didn’t feel scammed nor did my friend. So they sold us some art, who cares? We liked it, we had fun with them, they made a little money and we came away with something pretty and, at least in one case, definitely original! I agree it could have gone wrong in a big way. We were probably stupid for going off with them…they could have had some guys waiting in the alley to beat us senseless and relieve us of our cash, credit cards, cameras and passports. For sure. So, your video is important and I think I’d definitely be wary in the future. But for us, we had a blast.
David Nilsson — October 10th, 2009, 4:09 am
Thanks for sharing Tiim, great episode. I look forward for more episodes soon.
Ken Kurosawa — October 10th, 2009, 12:35 pm
I know times when we know that we’re in for a scam, but our psychology being programmed to conform since birth feels bad (empathy?) to call the scammer out?
Chris Hanlon — October 10th, 2009, 2:11 pm
Great video Tim!
Reminded me of a very similar incident I learned from in Tangier, Morocco 15+ years ago. I got ‘taken’ to a carpet maker in the Kasbah, and after an hour or two bought a rug I wasn’t interested in buying in the first place…
I thought I had done well with the negotiation… but when my firend (a local) found out what I had paid they gave me a real hard time!
It was a good learning experience though.
But as Kevin said not all friendly acts come from greed or suspicious motives. Not long after, I was in Seville,Spain,for one night for the world expo. I decided not to spend money on a hotel for the one night so split the night between a park bench and the stairs of the railway station.
Some guy approached me at the station around 0800 in the morning and offered to show me around. I was wary of scammers etc (after 2 years travelling at this time), So I immediately told him I had no money, I had a bus ticket and would be leaving at 1100.
He assured me that his intentions were good and he took me for a 1 1/2 hour tour of some of the most amazing architecture I had ver seen. He spoke knowledgeably of the history of the area. All for a handshake and a smile.
He filled in a morning, gave me a new pespective on Moorish Spain, and bolstered my faith in people everywhere.
)
BTW: Most impressed with your Chinese language Tim… I find it inspirational, I need to get travelling again and oil up my language skills…
Anthony — October 10th, 2009, 11:41 pm
Hilarious
Simon — October 11th, 2009, 3:37 am
Ironically, those drinks were about 10 times the normal price :p
Megan Donovan — October 11th, 2009, 4:32 am
What’s the scam? I don’t get it. Do they get a provision from the restaurants, tea bars etc., what about the art work? Btw. the video was fun to watch, hopefully you’ll share more soon.
Dynasty — October 11th, 2009, 7:17 am
Hey Tim,
I would like to express my sincere thanks for your acts of kindness, Thanks a million.
Darrin — October 11th, 2009, 7:56 am
I enjoyed the video.
I almost got taken in Thailand.
I think you have to realize that you are most likely to be approached in the most tourist-packed places. It just makes sense: as the saying goes, “That’s where the money (suckers) is.”
They are going to latch onto what really interests you. In Thailand I was approached at a temple. He found out I was interested in Thai boxing (I was wild about it.) and he was going to take me to the boxing stadium, he knew trainers, etc.
I’m sure that if I’d said I was there to buy teak he’d have said that he knew the world’s greatest teak carvers. Or needlepoint stitchers, surfers, hikers, meditation instructors, was the son of the most famous monk, had property on Koh Samui, and so on.
When he asked the question, “Are diamonds expensive in your country?” I saw where it was headed and left.
David O. — October 11th, 2009, 10:26 am
So the Chinese women misrepresented themselves and their purpose. You may not realize this but misrepresentation happens all time in US. We see commercials where actors and celebrities endorse products they themselves don’t use or won’t recommend to their friends. Thanks for posting the link to the hotel.
Toomanyearlymornings — October 11th, 2009, 10:28 am
wahhhh awesome video Tim… keep up the inspiring work
jacob emmert — October 11th, 2009, 1:42 pm
Tim, this is the only way I saw fit to try and contact you where you would respond…yes breaking the rules here…it’s my motto. Anywho I’m a Product Design student from the Art Center College of Design looking into doing some research on blogging lifestyle. Would you be able to answer a few questions via email or mobile? This is a total shot in the dark and simply a student project I doing for a class..
Jacob
P.S. I could give you my contact info if you were able to get this and choose to respond…thanks!
Scott Barrington — October 11th, 2009, 3:26 pm
haha we almost got caught by that when we were in shanghai.
Melissa M. — October 11th, 2009, 5:01 pm
Hey Tim!
I think the beard is hot! Shame on Kevin and Glenn for shaving theirs and getting scammed.
-Melissa
Tim Ferriss — October 12th, 2009, 3:15 am
Hmmm… well, perhaps you should have tea with me in SF and convince me?
Tim
alwaysLovely — October 11th, 2009, 6:45 pm
Tim, you spoke really good Chinese!
Tim Ferriss — October 12th, 2009, 3:13 am
Aw, shucks…
Xie xie!
Tim
Raina Gustafson — October 11th, 2009, 9:39 pm
Always entertaining.
Tim, what more can you say about the Room to Read event? Trying to decide whether or not to attend.
Joe Falcon — October 12th, 2009, 6:05 am
I was the victim of a scam in Peru. They are getting creative in these touristy hot spots. Basically I jump into a cab, and it the car wont start. The driver tells me to get out and give him a little push. As soon as I push he takes off with my travel bag safely secured in his trunk. Ya, I was stupid to fall for it, but I have to give it to him. So much better than pick pocketing or mugging.
pgomm13 — October 12th, 2009, 6:24 am
Tim- Excellent stuff. My partners and I have all read the book- (bought two copies!) and swear by a lot of it. Now we need you to take one of our self-guided tours on a motorbike of your liking. When are you in Tokyo next? Don’t forget your IDP!
Yoroshiku ne…
Peter
Kyle — October 12th, 2009, 11:15 am
The scam tip off is this:
When women are playing both masculine and feminine roles a guy is being taken. Masculine shows direction, feminine follows. Strippers do both in an artful weave, beautifully…if they are good.
Vince — October 12th, 2009, 12:17 pm
Haha, I had to laugh while watching this. It was enlighting since I am going to be traveling abroad for the first time next year. I have a feeling that Europe will be a little safer when it comes to scams but I will be on the look out now.
Also, I may be off…but was Kevin Rose on Attack of the of Show a few years ago?
Vince
Attila — October 12th, 2009, 12:29 pm
I got into serious trouble once in Turkey under similar circumstances. My original idea was to go to Bodrum and “practice” negotiating at the local market. It was a very hot day (46 °C / 115 °F at around 5 P.M.) and I’ve already had a few funny encounters on the streets (dude extending hand and then accusing me of not shaking it: “Why don’t you want to shake my hand? It’s human!”, subsequently dragging me into a carpet store once I did).
Following advice from very friendly locals, I let them lead me into the middle of the market, full of small, shady alleys. There were many nearly identical stores filled strictly with stuff containing national symbols. Mind you it was extremely hot, which would wear anyone out combined with all the noise and hectic market ambience. By the time we got there, I was feeling really tired and had trouble to focus.
So, I was checking out one store with my “new friends” and got interested in a T-shirt with a Turkish flag on it, but it just didn’t look right. I told the seller that I’m sorry, but I’m not going to get anything this time and turned around to leave, just to realize that my “friends” were gone. Suddenly, the seller starts screaming about how I hate Turkey and that he’s going to kill me, at which point every other shop owner in the alley ran up to the store and circled me with sharp objects in their hands. For a minute my chances looked really bad, but then I found a way to talk my way out by purchasing the cheapest thing I could remember, feeling very lucky in the end…
Watch out!
Charlie — October 12th, 2009, 12:34 pm
This is one of the reasons that I prefer to pay cash for most things – no links back to my bank account. Most gas stations here are “pay at the pump” for debit/credit cards. Almost anywhere else can take cash. Thieves don’t know it’s in my pocket unless I wave it around.
When we went to Tokyo we paid for almost everything (except our hotels and maybe one large purchase) with cash. I know the Japanese are unusually law abiding, but even so this way there was less temptation to misbehave with our card numbers. Also less temptation for us to spend the money. Spending actual cash feels painful psychologically.
Jay — October 12th, 2009, 3:42 pm
Is there a video that all you people are talking about? Is there a story? I have looked all over this page and I cannot find either one. An help will be appreciated. Thanks
Austin — October 12th, 2009, 9:59 pm
Man I love these videos. There’s a guy begging for a storyline. Can’t give one up. China is a great place to have a good time, not matter what happens if you have the spirit, intelligence, since of adventure, and sense if humor, that makes exploring other cultures as one of life’s highlights. I’ll sign up to get scammed and drink blended Bai Jui with them boys any time any where.
Jorge — October 12th, 2009, 10:54 pm
Tim
THIS IS DRIVING ME CRAZY: What are you going to do about your hair?
Are you just giving up and not caring, or do you not know what to do?
I love you Tim and I dont want to see you go bald unless you really want to.
I really care and am not trying to pick on you or anything.
Please respond so I can have peace of mind
Stay strong brother
Dolly — October 13th, 2009, 2:32 am
I got scammed a few years ago in Egypt, I was in a taxi on my way to see the pyramids, it stopped at traffic lights and a local man got into the taxi, told me and the taxi driver “the pyramids are closed but I can take you in another way”. I knew I was being scammed but the taxi had already sped off down through the maze of backstreet Cairo. Luckily I only had to pay them $100 to get out of there AND I did get to see the Pyramids but it wobbled my travel confidence for a long time afterwards.
BTW, I agree with Melissa, the beard is HOT but I guess London is too far to travel for a convincing cup of tea!
melocoton — October 13th, 2009, 5:29 am
i just become one or ur fans….. i discover u book and i love it….. u think the same like me “dont ask permission to take whatever u want, as long anyone gets hurted”
ahhh nice surprise: nice mind in a nice body… good mix
Leroy Lyne | For the Kids — October 13th, 2009, 8:18 am
Come on man, you can’t get scammed like that. I did not hear anything to excuse you guys from what happened. As world travelers you have to be more suspicious than that.
John — October 13th, 2009, 11:39 am
Some people find not looking at each others eyes when you cheers a mildly offensive mannerism.
James NomadRip — October 13th, 2009, 1:43 pm
The part near the end talking about people coming up and trying to help you is not limited to overseas. That’s pretty standard anywhere there are large concentrations of tourists. I’ve heard that same intro in Dallas near the Kennedy Assassination site, in New Orleans, Times Square, Downtown L.A., Vegas, and just last weekend outside of Pike’s fish Market in Seattle.
Philip — October 13th, 2009, 2:09 pm
Very enjoyable, thanks, three thumbs up!
a.m. — October 13th, 2009, 4:25 pm
amusing and well done.
Erin — October 14th, 2009, 5:57 am
Hi Tim
Eager to see part 2. On Glenn’s site it said it was total 45mins long?
And yes I too like a man with a beard! If you are a rugby fan – have you seen the French player – they call ‘the caveman’ – Sebastien Chabel – serious beard action
http://www.clipjunkie.com/Massive-Hit-from-the-French-Rugby-Caveman-vid1776.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1565828/Frances-Sebastien-Chabal-the-hairy-Caveman.html
love your work
Erin
Jamie — October 14th, 2009, 7:23 am
Been there, done that. Although for me it happened in the Qianmen area – and this was back in 1999. I don’t even know if they had credit card machines in the art places back then.
I was by myself, and so only 1 young lady came up to me, and I was near the end of a 3 week trip by myself living off cash, so I really didn’t have much with me. At least I was able to pull off some Chinese bargaining techniques of my own – “Oh, I only have a 50 note left!” so I managed to bargain them down a bit. But still not that much, they’re used to the usual foreigner markup. I carried my paintings with me in the little rolled up tube. My sisters liked the gift at least.
In other related news, be very careful changing money illegally on the street in Ho Chi Minh City – those guys are world class prestidigitators. You’ll be watching them count out the bills, and when they fold over the 10th, they’re swapping the high value bills inside the stack for 9 low value bills – taking 90% of your money in the process. Stupid high-exchange rate dong.
Jay — October 14th, 2009, 9:34 pm
You people are so “virtual” you are virtually no good. I have asked and asked how to view the video the blog keeps referring to and nobody can take the time from gazing at themselves in rapt admiration to help anyone else. The only way any of you will ever achieve the life you are seeking is if you somehow get a lot better than you can be bothered to give.
Which ain’t likely.
Casey — October 14th, 2009, 9:59 pm
Yeah, how did you get scammed like that with some travel under your belt? Opening maps in the middle of the street is the first rule anybody tells you. Plus, I was hoping the chicks that lured you were a bit hotter, haha.
At least you got to chill in China. Unreal Chinese Tim. Cheers!
@Jay – Relax bro. Everybody is referring to the really large Vimeo video at the top.
Tim Ferriss — October 16th, 2009, 3:16 pm
Hi Casey,
Thanks for the comment. Keep in mind that I didn’t get scammed, though. I’ve spent enough time in China to see those types from a mile off. Kev and Glenn weren’t so lucky
Best,
Tim
Melissa McCune — October 14th, 2009, 10:33 pm
Just click the play button on the picture at the top of this page. There’s a hilarious 20 minutes video. I couldn’t view it from my laptop in a cafe with slow internet today though. Could be your problem. Hope that was helpful!
Melissa
Melissa McCune — October 14th, 2009, 10:37 pm
Tim,
I can be pretty convincing at times. 
Tea in SF sounds great.
Melissa
Jay — October 14th, 2009, 11:38 pm
Melissa, Thank you for your kindness. The problem is that all I see at the top of the page is a picture placeholder within a square that looks as though it should hold the video frame. I am using a laptop, however my connection is high speed cable.
It appears that somehow one size does not fit all. Oh well. Again, thank you for trying.
Jay
rgap — October 15th, 2009, 1:00 pm
the worst scammers I’ve encountered in Egipt, and one trick made me laugh from myself for the whole eveinig. Young boy selling cigarettes took 50 ponund note and handed me the pack of cigarettes different than we talked about earlier. When I said I did not want them, he took the thing back and gave me 50 piastra note (piastra = 1/100 pound) that looks almost the same and the digits are not “arabic” as we know them. Of course I did not notice when had he changed the notes, and it was on the street in the eveinig, so the trick was even easier
Steve Nik — October 15th, 2009, 2:30 pm
Jay- Sounds like you are missing the appropriate plug in. I’m guessing here but I think you need Adobe Flash Player 10.
Tim- After having traveled extensively and always ending up in precarious situations like the scam you guys described, I started filming. I think I have a really good one captured from a trip to Morocco. They actually tried trading 20 camels (real camels not cigarettes) for my friend. When that failed they tried to trade for me.
In the end we either purchased carpets or died. So we picked the carpets.
Lucas — October 15th, 2009, 4:55 pm
I was in Rome earlier this month and the scammers were everywhere. It was a constant nuisance…I nearly fought a taxi cab driver over his excessive fees, argued with a waitress over an expensive unsolicited bread charge and had to forcible take back my luggage from a hussler wanting tips for loading bags onto the train, just to name a few.
On the other hand, the week I spent in Florence was splendid and relaxing.
Tim, you showed the world how to travel and live your 4HWW (THANKS)…now we must learn to travel the world and not get scammed.
sinodionysus — October 15th, 2009, 8:16 pm
I think you guys should have messed with the second and third set of scammers a little more. You could have told them that you where porn scouts looking for new talent.
Annabel Candy — October 15th, 2009, 8:58 pm
Sorry boys, they saw you coming:) You live and learn!
Melissa McCune — October 16th, 2009, 6:11 pm
Tim-
I may be in SF middle of next month, so send me an email (missyfitness@yahoo.com) and we’ll have tea. 
It looks like I’ve started a trend and all your secret admirers are coming out of the wood-works.
-Melissa
Cindy — October 17th, 2009, 10:12 pm
Dear Tim,
It’s Cindy from Taiwan. The video shows some Chinese culture.
I traveled in China before.They took me to a temple and cheated me to buy things too.
Most of Chinese do care about money more than life. Sometimes people blind their mind and soul.
As a Chinese girl, I’m blessing to see your book. Your philosophy encourage me so much.I read your book in 2008 .
Than I stoped my job in January,2009.
I arrived in Los Angeles since 26,May,2009 till now.
I’m learning English at school and planing to stay in LA longer. (If my English confuse you..sorry.)
Your shareing save me free and show me the peace… which I look for many years.
I’ll be brave to become a 100% NR.
Thank you Tim !! ^_^ You are a very kind person.
Very nice to meet you. Wish you have a very good life forever~~
Cindy
lara lea williams — October 18th, 2009, 3:15 am
i live in taiwan, and it’s crazy because everyone here really is, for the most part, genuine and willing to help. watching the vid made me remember what it was like living in central america where i was constantly on edge in the cities from being scammed. i realized watching i’m almost never scammed and then understood why: i never have enough money to consider the scams:)
jb — October 18th, 2009, 10:58 am
Tim,
Did you hear about the Chinese Drywall in Florida and other areas? Very dangerous stuff. I agree, it appears that scamming others is acceptable and basically a cultural phenomenon. Toys with lead, drywall with carcinogens and phony art…very interesting.
Great post.
Dustin — October 18th, 2009, 9:58 pm
Damn it! That happened to me when I went to Beijing and I had no idea till I watched this blog! I was with my girlfriend(wife now) who is from Macau and they still had the balls to do this to us. It was not in Wong Fu Jing but actually in the gates of the forbidden city! It was so organized and believable. I was too cheap to buy anything. I feel so violated.
Dustin — October 19th, 2009, 5:35 am
My wife and I are very impressed with your correct pronunciation of your tones. Did you get to be so natural speaking from just being in China for long periods of time? …or did you lock yourself in a room until you got it right?
Chris — October 19th, 2009, 2:48 pm
I love these videos Tim, I can relate to all of them. When I went to China I had a student approach me to “practice English” and I thought “what the hell.” She kept trying to get me to go for tea, and so I ducked into a book store. This was right outside the Peking duck restaurant in Beijing. She also looked older than she said. A few girls from the group I was with got hit with the art room scam, though they didn’t buy anything. It’s funny (for me) that Kevin and Glenn got hit with both scams by the same girls.
Fah — October 20th, 2009, 4:23 pm
This is a great lesson, this is not just happening in China or Thailand… but these scam can happen across the world even in the US, if it’s too good to be true it’s probably is… this is something that you can’t learn anywhere. Thanks for sharing!
Woody — October 20th, 2009, 5:14 pm
Great Post Tim as always. Got my lesson of hard knocks in the Philippines when asked by the trike driver “How long you been in Manilla”. Lesson learned by 10x charge for a ride. Granted still only like 3 bucks, but live and learn. Keep up the great work, looking forward to the new book as my original’s pages are getting tattered from use. Cheers
AmericanExpressCEO — October 21st, 2009, 7:26 am
Getting scammed happens all the time in any country.
But not so cool that you got to keep the paintings AND got your CC company to reverse the charges for being a dumbass?
.. um… isn’t that fraud?
Tamara — October 22nd, 2009, 3:29 pm
Tim,
I get so excited every time I find out there there is another episode of Random posted. All three of you are entertaining, and the content always interesting. Keep them coming. Is there is a way to track down some of the Trial by Fire pilot? I would love to check it out.
To our Mutual Success in Life and in Business.
Peter — October 23rd, 2009, 6:23 am
So good to hear someone else falling for the same tea scam as me :S
It took me a while to even realise I was scammed. I bought $300 worth of fine tea!
Jon Griffith — October 23rd, 2009, 9:09 pm
Thanks. What a great video. I’m headed to Beijing possibly for the Great Wall Marathon in May, so I’ll be prepared to “look at some artwork.”
Genie — October 24th, 2009, 10:24 am
I’m a foreign teacher in China (Sichuan province, which I choose to teach in solely because of the food).
Anyway, I had a Web VPN to access all the U.S. sites, but my laptop got stolen from my apartment recently; therefore, my VPN is MIA. My students tell me, “As the New Year approaches, thefts increase.” The guy scaled the side of the building and opened my window from the outside, stuck his hands through the bars and got the laptop. It was a cheap Acer, so it was no big deal. Thankfully, when I discovered it was stolen, I was drunk and didn’t care to much. I was barhopping that night and was playing a Chinese bar-dice game, called chui niu (??) – great to play if you want to learn your Chinese numbers quickly.
Long story short, can someone upload this video to a site that is not firewalled by China? (youku, tudou…) That is, of course, if it is okay with Tim/Kevin/Glenn.
Valentin — October 25th, 2009, 3:37 am
actually there is no need to even search specifically at some website – you can read about this in the “Scams” section of a Lonely Planet (at the end as part of the “Directory”). At least the Lonely Planet Beijing describes the art student / tea house scam in some detail (along the airport taxi scam which also seems to be well established).
In general though, i have to say that Beijing felt very safe – even though we were approached by these ‘art students’ many times (one interesting variation was a couple of “chinese tourist” that claimed they where also visiting Beijing and who’s uncle had a tea house nearby). And lets face it – overpaying for tea and art while being in friendly company is really not the worst that can happen to a tourist.
Clement — October 25th, 2009, 12:56 pm
I spent a lot of time in Istanbul and experienced that as well.
.
- My first rule is to answer that I’m never alone, and “I’m always on the way to meet my friends somewhere”. Most of the scammers are looking for lonely people and they will just look for another target.
- Most of the time, as Tim said, they ask you “how long have you been here ?” which most of time means “Have you already been scammed ?” cause they know that you’ve been if you here for more than three days
- I’m always leaving my credit cards at the hotel, this the best way to avoid the worst things.
There’s plenty of advices like that, I saw a great list there…
Have nice travels guys !
Phil — October 25th, 2009, 5:57 pm
Was scammed the same way over 2 ago. The scammer also sold me ‘cheap’ tickets to a kung fu show and brought me to many shops. Once I also wanted to change money and was brought to some unofficial place where they offered me 30% of the value of my Euros. Had I not known the exchange rate, I could have been ripped off for more than 400 Euros.
Sheldon — October 26th, 2009, 1:52 pm
Japan is an awesome and super safe place. People don’t even lock the front door there a lot of the time. That said, I had a couple ‘freindly’ guys come up to me at a train station in Tokyo and they ended up taking me to a Church of Scientology. At least that’s what they said it was… I didn’t stick around.
John Broyles — October 26th, 2009, 8:38 pm
Just moved to Kunming, China and am loving the city! Does anybody have any tips for a good proxy server in Kunming to reach my blog and other websites?
email me if so at johnwbroyles@gmail.com
Thanks!
jared — October 27th, 2009, 3:31 pm
yeah, saw frank abagnale speak a year ago (the guy about whom catch me if you can was written, great speaker) and one of his pointers to avoid financial headaches was to never use a debit card. he always uses an amex. even for cash.
(i think his other two pointers were to use a micro-shredder and to use a credit reporting service/credit lockdown service.)
Brian — October 27th, 2009, 5:31 pm
Tim – just came back from South Africa on Saturday where they have widespread ATM and credit card fraud. I normally use AmEx as well but overseas I exclusively use Capital One which doesn’t levy any currency/international fees. Someone cloned our card and we found $13k in charges today but, thus far, resolving it with Capital One has been easy. I am also a merchant however, and have to deal with chargeback inquiries. Without fail, the longest and most documentation-heavy disputes that come through are from Visa/MC cardholders.
This is the first episode I’ve watched but having traveled extensively (and fallen prey to a few scams myself), this was great! I had that try-not-to-laugh grin on my face listening to Kevin describe it go down. “Ohhhh reeeeallly, how long you in town?” Classic!
Travel Tips « Alexa Hart’s Blog — October 28th, 2009, 10:10 am
[...] avoid scams. Check out Virtual Tourist for scamming advice. I also highly recommend watching this video, where Kevin Rose (founder of Digg), Glenn McElhose (blogger and video producer) and Tim Ferriss [...]
Scottie Duncan — October 29th, 2009, 3:01 am
I love this stuff, I found this interesting…
Luis Merino — October 29th, 2009, 3:18 pm
The view from the hotel looks like a dreamland. I was laughing inside every time you said to Kevin about the sugar injection he was asking for
I started to read your book for the 3rd time this afternoon. Every time I go back to it, every once after a few months, I get a different perspective out of it.
I’m glad to say I’m in a business which looks like it’s going to lead to a great outcome, and reading about the NR makes me want it even more.
Let me send you my most sincere appreciation and I hope I bump into you again some time soon, maybe in another Apple Store outside NYC.
Big hug and take care,
Luis M.
Albert Steven — October 30th, 2009, 3:59 am
wow love your chinese Tim. You are my inspiration.
Bojan Devic — October 31st, 2009, 4:06 am
Yeah, your chinese is impressing, but more impressing is your chinese accent and not just chinese every language you speak you have amazing accent.
Tim Ferriss — October 31st, 2009, 4:08 pm
Thank you so much, Bojan. I still have a lot of work to do…
Tim
David — November 3rd, 2009, 2:39 pm
I got scammed in Mexico… Around Cancun, not sure if the entire country is like this, all the gas stations are full service. We were going to pay with a credit card, but they tried running it and said the machine was down. So, we payed in cash. After handing them the money they came back and said, “oh, you only gave us a 20 not 200 (or whatever denomination it was)”.
They were real friendly, so it just takes you off your guard a bit. Not until later did we realize that we had in fact gave them the correct amount. Didn’t get scammed for much, but still…
Ralph — November 5th, 2009, 4:40 pm
Man, that was funny. I wonder if American scammers could pull off a similar con on Chinese tourist? This video makes me want to do two things. First, see China-that view is awesome. And second,learn a third language (my french is choppy but I know enough).
Michael Lee — November 9th, 2009, 11:43 pm
Simply dumb!!!
Shahab — November 13th, 2009, 3:58 am
This was my first random episode.. man let me tell you i really liked it
You guys are great story teller too!
Matt — November 15th, 2009, 1:46 pm
Tim,
Why is that a beard would have prevented those girls from talking to them? Is it because they have some strange form of respect for facial hair? or just that it would have made them look older?
I was in Beijing for about 3 months last year and didn’t get approached by scammers once. Now I’m wondering if it’s because I always kept about 5 days worth of growth, or perhaps it could have been I stayed mostly in Wudaokou…. could it also be different if you try to speak Mandarin with them? then perhaps neng pian jiu pian doen’t apply? I think it’s this kind of stuff that keeps me so interested in Chinese culture… definitely not for everyone though…
Matt
scott bratcher — November 17th, 2009, 9:23 am
That’s a very ZeFrank expression you have in the video still. Initially thought you had him as a guest.
Jonny Bend — November 17th, 2009, 3:35 pm
Now that is funny. I have spent a couple of weeks in China but we had locals escort us so we were not as susceptible.
Emil — November 20th, 2009, 1:22 pm
What’s the scam? They showed you artwork that you liked and you bought it. The fact that they claimed to be art students but in fact were not…seems essentially irrelevant.
Dave UK — November 23rd, 2009, 7:09 am
This doesnt just happen in China. I met a backpacker in Canberra, Australia who was being paid commission to travel door to door to sell art, posing as an art student.
Bobm — November 28th, 2009, 1:36 pm
I spend a great deal of time in China, scammers are a big problem there. I have talked about this very same issue on my blog as well. What gets me is their boldness, they have no problems telling some of the biggest lies you have ever heard. iPhone clones are every where as well as Tailor Made golf club sets, lol. Thanks
Scott — November 30th, 2009, 8:06 pm
Are you guys going to do an episode on about Tea? I’d be quite interested to hear what you have to say. I had my first pu-erh tea recently and it was great.
mike — December 7th, 2009, 7:35 pm
I’m a bit surprised that Kevin and Glenn were easily scammed. Especially when I saw those pictures of the “art students.” Tim’s explanations was dead on. Since Guangzhou is the first place I traveled in my life. (I was 3.) guess that’s why I didn’t understand why others can be so gullible. I learned these scans in such an early age. I still haven’t been to Beijing yet, but I hope to get a chance to pay a visit if possible in the future. Definitely going to try out that virtualtour site.
Tim, your Mandarin sounds great to me, a native Cantonese speaker. =)
Rafael Marquez — December 9th, 2009, 8:06 am
Great video, where’s part 2?
Kevin McKillop — December 20th, 2009, 10:50 am
I was laughing watching this. As I stare at my two largely expensive ‘student’ paintings on my wall from Beijing.
I was greased with tea BEFORE the art showing though.
I kid you not, exactly as you guys described about back in March 2006.
Technomadic » Sfax — January 28th, 2010, 8:22 am
[...] to head upstairs briefly to say hi to their friends (I admit, at this point I was remembering the art scam that got Kevin Rose and Glenn McElhose in China, but once again, all was well!). They spoke for a moment in Arabic, and when I observantly noted [...]
Kyle — April 1st, 2010, 7:25 pm
Guys, this is just what happens when you think you’re smart. Luckily in your case you can afford it.
This scam is so popular, it’s on wikipedia, I’m extremely disappointed you didn’t at least read of this before leaving, and considering you went on a special tour, you’d know to stay with the guides.
Tim Ferriss — April 8th, 2010, 9:56 pm
Hey, I told them to stick with me
Jeff Parker — April 6th, 2010, 2:08 pm
If I hadn’t seen this video, I wouldn’t have believed it.
What’s the bright side? You just saved us all from the same scam.
Thanks Tim – Thanks Kevin!
-Jeff
How I did not get scammed! – Sjors Provoost — May 15th, 2010, 12:00 am
[...] how everyone in Beijing seems to want to take you to their art gallery (watch how it worked on Kevin Rose, while Tim Ferriss was laughing at him). I told him that I should probably buy a T-Shirt with [...]
Aron Tai — July 19th, 2010, 4:25 pm
Hey,
I was watching your video and I recognise those first girls that scammed you they are the same people who scammed me and my dad on our first day in beijing in wang fu jing. I will never forget that face, luckily I told my dad to back off before it escalated to buying any art, although it ended up with us buying dinner for them…
My Sabbatical » On the Road: Popular Scams in China — August 11th, 2010, 11:45 am
[...] am thankful to Kevin Rose and Tim Ferriss. After watching their videos on their trip to China, I became aware of a couple of the more popular [...]
Sheryl — September 21st, 2012, 11:03 am
I’m watching this video now in 2012. I thought scams just happen in India, even when we locals travel within our country we have to switch on the sixth sense or be prepared for such a coincidence. Sometimes you buy some stuffs from someone, just move at a distance & you realize that you are cheated but when you reach that place to return the article, the seller disappears.
The squatting video is much fun. You’ll find similar squatting places in India.
Tim, you look so good with facial hair.