The Tea Ceremony Scam
Trip Start
Nov 29, 2008
1
6
16
Trip End
Jan 03, 2009
Shanghai,
Zhejiang,
China
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Renmin Square, known as "People's Square," is one of Shanghai's biggest tourist areas. The panhandling can be aggressive, and even more difficult to deal with because it's often done by children who tag close on your heels, adults egging them on. Old men grasp at your coat sleeves and shake their cups in your face, refusing to take no for an answer. There's a difference between sitting calmly on the street or playing music with a coffee can out and goading people into giving.
There's something else to what out for, too-the groups of clean cut kids who look like college students.
"Hello! Hi! Do you speak English?"
Three Chinese, about 20, two girls and a guy, approached. They must have spotted the opportunity when they saw me pause to take a photo of the Radisson, a space-age building that looks like the landing pad for a UFO.
They asked the usual questions, with pat answers from me. I'm from Canada. Yes, it's very far. Yes, it's very cold. Yes, I do like it here. I kept my hands on my camera and angled for a way out
They complimented me on the blueness of my eyes, and invited me to a tea "festival" behind Capital Land, the shopping complex across the street. Another blue-eyed woman, blonde hair tucked under a black knitted cap, walked brusquely up to me.
"I would be careful if I were you," she said in my ear. "Don't go anywhere with them." Then she delved back into the crowds with the purpose of a woman who lives and does business here.
"What did she say?" the so-called students from Beijing wanted to know.
"Enjoy your tea party, kids," I said, and made my getaway.
No less than three times in one hour I was approached in a similar manner by three groups of young Chinese. My guess is that the tourists are brought to an expensive teahouse to watch the tea ceremony, then charged outrageous prices while the kids who brought them get a commission. (Comments on this blog from others who have experienced the same situation or have more information are welcome.)
Yesterday I returned to People's Square with Jay to go to the Shanghai Museum. The sun was warm and the old folks were out gambling in the park or walking with their grandchildren.
On the path to the museum, we passed a western couple chatting with another group of three young Chinese, enthusiastically telling them where they were from, etcetera. In hindsight I wish I had warned them, but I didn't, thinking that maybe what happened to me was a one-off.
Jay and I stopped to take photos of each other in front of the museum, a signal to the tourist-hunters that we, too, were prime for the picking. Sure enough, a different group of three came up and asked us to take their photo. They had been in town only two days, they said, and did we know any good places to go? Incidentally, they had heard of a tea festival happening right now behind Capital Land.
"Wow!" I said. "I've heard about that. It sounds like a really great event! But we're going to the museum today. Have fun!"
"Thanks, we will!" said one of the guys. "Oh, the entrance to the museum is on the other side!"
Helpful scammers, anyway.
Comments
I got scammed, but I reacted on time
Hi, it is as you described, who would think such lovely girls are part of a scam? Me and my wife were trapped! So we went, it was between nice and weird, they were kind of silly nice girls. Yes, it was very expensive, we got out, say goodbye and though, wow it was expensive but at least we got to share something with locals (something not easy if you don't know chinese). But my wife had this funny feeling, we went bak to the tea house, of course the girls where not there, but guess what? They tea box the girls bought was there, with two nice things inside they box they had picked as a gift from the tea house! Ok, so we new we were scammed and I just got out of myself and asked for ALL of my money back, so it is either all of my money or the police, they tried to took us to a room, take the tea box away, but I did not moved and did not let go the tea box, my wife acted as she was going out for the police. We got all our money back, all of it, 1300 Yuan, but we were lucky, the tea box with the gifts was there, so we have the proof, if that had not happened it would have been difficult to get anything back, so keep your eyes open and cute little china girls away, sorry to say it, but now it is hard to trust anyone. Anyway, we had a nice tea festival for free! But it is better to stay away!
I got scammed as well
Can you believe I was scammed twice during the same day in Shanghai. First was this tea ceremony. I had a break in People's Square and was looking at my tourist map. Suddenly there were two girls sitting right next to me. One started talking and asking where I'm from when the other one was a bit more shy to talk English (at first). They said they were some students having an excursion to Shanghai.
After 15 mins I ended up being in this funny tea ceremony tasting different kinds of teas. It was a really small room where one girl was taking care of the ceremony. OK, teas were fine but in the end I kind of had to buy quite expensive tea (cost me about 70 eur). I think I could have gone out without buying any tea with my but just pay the tea that I had been drinking (which was expensive as well).
It was so well played that I actually started to think about it afterwards when the girls had gone on a 'dinner with their friend'. I don't really have so bad feeling about it. Yes, the tea was most expensive I've ever bought but the girls were nice and it was really good lesson for me about Shanghai.
Well, then after 15 minutes I was walking back to my hotel on this shopping street when again some woman started to talk to me just to learn some English. We talked for a while and then she said why wouldn't we go to have a drink, beer or something. For me it was a good idea, I was thirsty.
We went to some place she picked up. I ordered a beer, she ordered some drink. We talked a little bit and I was ready to leave. She wanted to order something more, so she ordered some red wine. I took nothing. When that happened again, I started to think that something weird is going on. I told her that I'm not going to pay her drinks and I want to pay. Suddenly she didn't have any money and I had to pay all.. and the drinks were really expensive! The red wine was almost 200 yuan per glass!
This really got me pissed, but what could I have done. The restaurant people said that someone has to pay, and they said they don't know that woman and that it's my problem. It was my word against that woman's word... another lesson learned.
Most expensive tea and red wine of my life during two hours in Shanghai. What an experience. It was actually after this second scam when I started to think about the tea ceremony more and realized that was a scam as well :)
Nearly Scammed...Figured it Out and Ran!
Wow, this is almost exactly what happened to my husband & I! We were approached outside of Shanghai Museum by a group of 4 high school/college-age kids -2 girls and 2 boys. They asked if we'd take their picture, which we did, then asked us a million q's about where we're from, if we liked China, etc. They were very clean cut, very sweet and VERY flattering (which was actually our first red flag).
They invited us to tea and we accepted wanting to hang with some locals, but got suspicious when we ended up in a dingy mall. As soon as we sat down and saw the $$$ menu (48 RMB for green tea and they give it away at nearly every restaurant here), we excused ourselves and got the hell outta there. No doubt they were working on behalf of the tea house, which can't possibly get any business otherwise.
Definitely avoid going anywhere with locals and if you see Westerners falling victem to the scam - warn them!!
Wow what a story!
Hi all, I am so sorry to hear this story, and so choked at the same time! I cannot believe that they try to rip off tourists like that! And price is really incredible! They should be bring to police really!
I am very disapointed, especially because I work here in Shanghai for a chinese company that organizes lessons on how to choose tea, differenciate the different teas, be able to recognise leaves etc.... (for between 10 and 30 euros for 2 hours!!!) So imagine how this story make me feel! It seems that with such bad approach people will only think tea business is only taking money out of tourists (even if in fact we have more locals that others!)
Well once again, i am very sorry to hear that, and those that really want to learn about tea, you better go to some real tea place (no promotion here!)
Hope it did not screw up you trips guys!
Bad experiences always happend; got my macbook stolen at home after 2weeks being in china!!! :-(
A couple approached me and talked to me for awhile. Then asked me to go get some tea. I thought it was strange. I figured they wanted to slip me something in the tea and take my Kidny's. So I told them no and I needed to get on my way. But they insisted that I get some tea. I knew they were up to no good. I left and kept looking over my sholder.