This hits home for me. Living in Milan I encounter these types pretty often, especially in the touristy places. Sometimes they go from flattery straight to begging for money, which irritates me quite a lot. Not the begging per se, I would have helped anyway if I had the means to at that time , but the fact that one would weaponize my self image to make some cash makes me not want to anymore. Not to mention the doubt that arises after such an interaction, debating whether the compliments were at least sincere, if you could hear such words without having to offer anything in return. Such a depressing doubt.
I was born in 1967 and half of my life was lived before the internet and definitely before smartphones. I won't say scams didn't exist in the early 90s, but I suspect my experience traveling outside my own country at age 26 was quite different than what you describe here
Just before you mentioned the bracelet scammers in Milan (in Italy as a whole, it seems), I thought about them and how much I hate conventional tourism. Everything is a trap. There aren't any locals. There's no living, breathing spirit. It's empty "aesthetic" with no substance. Hope your next destination is photographer-free.
This had me wheezing and cringing in full sympathy 😭 The perfect mix of self-deprecating humour and painfully relatable delusion. Honestly, it’s a public service announcement in disguise: beware of flattery, tourist traps, and oddly specific posing instructions. But also? You are the main character for thinking you were being scouted for a portrait series on “enigmatic women abroad,” and I fully support that level of self belief. Iconic behaviour, even if the photos say otherwise.
This hits home for me. Living in Milan I encounter these types pretty often, especially in the touristy places. Sometimes they go from flattery straight to begging for money, which irritates me quite a lot. Not the begging per se, I would have helped anyway if I had the means to at that time , but the fact that one would weaponize my self image to make some cash makes me not want to anymore. Not to mention the doubt that arises after such an interaction, debating whether the compliments were at least sincere, if you could hear such words without having to offer anything in return. Such a depressing doubt.
TL;DR it’s annoying
I was born in 1967 and half of my life was lived before the internet and definitely before smartphones. I won't say scams didn't exist in the early 90s, but I suspect my experience traveling outside my own country at age 26 was quite different than what you describe here
Oh i’m sure that’s the case
Just before you mentioned the bracelet scammers in Milan (in Italy as a whole, it seems), I thought about them and how much I hate conventional tourism. Everything is a trap. There aren't any locals. There's no living, breathing spirit. It's empty "aesthetic" with no substance. Hope your next destination is photographer-free.
Great read!
Ahh yes! Sometimes it feels like walking around a Disneyland of scammery. Thank you for reading Evgeniy!
This had me wheezing and cringing in full sympathy 😭 The perfect mix of self-deprecating humour and painfully relatable delusion. Honestly, it’s a public service announcement in disguise: beware of flattery, tourist traps, and oddly specific posing instructions. But also? You are the main character for thinking you were being scouted for a portrait series on “enigmatic women abroad,” and I fully support that level of self belief. Iconic behaviour, even if the photos say otherwise.