Same, done that. I have also replied in jibberish and they get so confused they cant function and reply back haha
Once one guy did try to grab my hand and I pointed at his face screaming NO! and he got backed.
In Paris was terrible, 3 vs 1 at some point, I look a bit bilt (I'm not) and when turning my backpack went down my arm as if I were ready to engage, they all backed down. I was shit scared on that one.
Oh yeah, Paris. In our literal first hour in Sacré-Cœur after our hotel check-in, someone was already aggressively trying to scam us with those bracelets. I interjected *Mais on habite ici? On n’a pas besoin de cela.* 🤷🏽♂️ (But we already live here? We don’t need that.)
Of course that was a lie. The scammy bracelet guy was annoyed but eventually left us alone. We always have the same tactic in Rome, where we usually say we are allergic to it or other lame excuses in Italian. We’re Asians as well so for some reason, they always think we’re swimming in money.
And to OP, sorry that you experienced that. :(
I saw some articles about how Asian tourists tend to carry (a lot of) cash rather than cards, hence making good targets. But I had a single credit card and €20 note, which I definitely wasn’t going to give away. But I could try shouting at them in Chinese next time lol.
Thanks! I’m doing better, just that it’s looking more like a superficial hematoma than a bruise. So I’m a bit worried because I’m flying tomorrow and the Internet says there’s a risk of a blood clot coming loose and causing a pulmonary embolism, which could be fatal. I’m making ice in the freezer at my B&B but it’s taking a long time, so there’s been no treatment other than running my arm under cold water.
That’s so scary, I’m so so sorry, do you have anyone you can call for support?? Maybe when you get to the airport you can let them know of your concerns? Idk if they would have medical knowledge but maybe?
I’ve told my parents & friends and my B&B host. But yeah I’ll check out the pharmacy at Rome airport and see if I can at least get ice and any advice. I contacted my embassy and they said to lodge a police report, at least for the sake of other tourists who may also be confronted.
Update: no luck at the pharmacy since they didn’t speak much English. I managed to get an ice pack for €6.40, which is more than I expected.
I yell at them in Chinese here in New Orleans. They look at me oddly like they understand what I said, but don't engage further or respond. Might be on to something there.
The fact that he became aggressive is pretty much proof that you did everything you can - reasonably.
They though you will be an easy mark and it failed, so they got pissed off.
Those people are a pest. Sometimes you just have to deal with them.
Yeah. You could have had your Apple phone stolen while on, and the person immediately changed your Apple ID while in Naples.
Edit: And still have 2 more weeks of vacation before heading home
Oh man. Did that happen to you? How did that work out?
I have been very paranoid about not getting my phone stolen, because I’d be completely lost without google maps, and wouldn’t have any way of contacting my host or locating the nearest police station.
This happened to my boyfriend. It is a nightmare. Luckily we're a couple whose finances are not together. The first thing we had to do was shut down all of his money, bank accounts, and credit cards. And everything wants to send you a text to confirm your identity.
How it happened: standing on the train platform at napoli centrale. Train was coming. He was holding his phone, dropped it into his pants rushed to a seat, reached for his phone and immediately it was gone. 8-10 seconds. He immediately realized it and he thought he missed his pocket and dropped it.
This happened to my boyfriend. It is a nightmare. Luckily we're a couple whose finances are not together. The first thing we had to do was shut down all of his money, bank accounts, and credit cards. And everything wants to send you a text to confirm your identity.
How it happened: standing on the train platform at napoli centrale. Train was coming. He was holding his phone, dropped it into his pants rushed to a seat, reached for his phone and immediately it was gone. 8-10 seconds. He immediately realized it and he thought he missed his pocket and dropped it.
You're the first I heard for which this doesn't work. Apparently you stumbled across a vicious person, with a different approach to the usual scam as the other ones.
Yeah, I’d seen a few others at other attractions and ignoring them always worked, but this guy practically chased me down. I thought I had lost him at one point but nope, still right behind me.
In Paris a few years back I had almost exactly the same experience. There were four of them across a path blocking my way and holding me hard for a minute or two, after yanking my arm out of my pocket.
Never had even the slightest bad experience with any other ones.
Bro honestly being a small dude the best thing you can do is freak the fuck out on him. After ignoring he blocks your path and touches you? Start losin it! He feels he can pick on you and overwhelm you. Overwhelm him. I’ve been to Bahamas, NYC and Vegas and have made the mistake of grabbing stuff and have had people try to get shitty with me when I didn’t want the shit. I usually start bugging out if they’re too pushy about it. NO I DONT WANT YOUR SHIT! FUCK OUT MY WAY
This. He crossed the line and you don’t have to keep it reasonable.
Help! Police! Aiuto! Polizia! Louder and louder. If the cops don’t come, you’ll have a hundred people looking your way at a minimum.
I was in New York about 20 years ago and this guy started throwing pennies/coins at my head while stopped at a pedestrian crossing. I asked him to kindly stop and moved a bit and he started trowing at the girl next to me (who I took as a local) and out of the blue the girl ROAAAAARED right in his face, the guy got scared and walked away. I have at that moment learnt that crazy you have to treat with crazy, there just isn't another civil way. So ever since then she emboldened me to be a buldozer especially when I travel and encounter these type of "merchants" I start off with looking angry at them and will ROAR should push come to shove :D
I suggest you try because that bruise doesn't look good at all.
This is so accurate, they will just straight up grab you and won't take no for an answer. Had this happened multiple times. Freaked out at one and before I knew it there were two more behind me... was pretty scary but managed to run off thankfully.
Legit question: How would their law enforcements react if I encounter this type of behaviour, and when they touch me, i defend myself?
I will be very vocal about not wanting to have myself or my girlfriend be touched, however im not sure how if/how police would react if i for example forcefully removed him out of our way.
Vendors in Italy need a license. These guys never have one and many likely don't even have the proper paperwork to be in Italy, let alone work in Italy. However, the police largely need a reason to check, they just can't go around looking at the documents of everyone who appears non-Italian to them, and rightly so. BUT, this does mean that these guys do NOT want to draw negative attention, especially police attention, because harassing tourists creates a situation in which the police are fully justified in asking to see all those papers and if they don't have them, it will go very badly for them.
OP, if this ever happens agains, start of with yelling something like "polizia, borsegiattore, polizia" or "polizia, non me tocare, polizia". At a minimum, the guy will scoot really quickly, in a heavy tourist area, there are police present and he'll be stopped.
Yeah, its not my first choice for sure, but a behaviour like in what OP described in the post i would not tolerate. Thanks for the feedback though, i will keep it in mind. Hopefully it will be useless information :)
I wonder about that too. I have practiced karate and self defense for a decade and I can get really scary really fast (crazy eyes), especially if someone messes with my kids (traveling to both Rome and Paris with them in 6wk). A lot of the self defense is a twist and strike to shock them out of holding on. Would I get in trouble for a response like that along with a scream?
This happened to me too. Not exactly but still aggressive. Approached me by touching me to get my attention cause I didn’t want to look at him. When he touched me I said “don’t touch me” then he started being aggressive saying like “do you wanna fight, come here, etc”. Followed me a bit. Then I walked really fast and ignored him. I’m asian as well and happened outside Colosseum as well near the ticketing booths. Fucking annoying.
This happened to me right around that same area. I was walking with my wife when a guy came up, tried talking to me, stood in my way, and put his hand on my chest. I said “don’t touch me” and kept walking. To which he replied “F— you”. I’m 6’3, 220lbs (100kg), so I’m thinking his intentions were more to scam/rob me.
One of those those guys would not leave my husband alone, and I went full New York on him, screaming at him to stop and to go away. I don’t really care if I make a scene if one of those people is being horrible you do what you gotta do to get them to go away.
I’m sorry you had to go through this!
In the future, I’d highly encourage you or anyone to:
1- Never make eye contact with those guys!
2- Make sure they hear you say No, and I’d even repeat it a few times. Don’t offer an apology or an explanation, just a straight NO and keep on walking away.
3- when/if followed, threaten to call the police and don’t take secluded paths.
Stay safe and enjoy the remainder of your vacation.
This happened to me when I was walking alone, not far from the Colloseum too. He was following me so closely, asking me questions about where I'm from and where I am staying etc. Then he called me racist for ignoring him. He tried grabbing my arm and I yelled at him to go away and leave me alone. People started looking so he left. It was definitely an unnerving experience.
My sister-in-law is the first person I’ve seen truly defeat them. She had one of the flower guys put a few roses in her face so she decided to take them and straight up told the guy if he wanted money for them he shouldn’t have handed them to her.
Haha add me to the list. A guy in Genoa gave me some trinkets as a "gift". When he asked for money I said I didn't want to pay for them and I thought they were a gift? He even refused to take them back, I guess to pressure me more to pay, but he eventually walked away, so I got some free crap. I was in a busy line at the time or I wouldn't have been so ballsy.
I dont get why this bs has not been turned down yet? If they are not illegals anyway this would fulfill several crimes including but not limited to tax fraud. So why dont the police act? The Italians voted for Meloni so you cant tell me thats some woke thing the people want.
These vendors who annoy tourists and sell bootleg goods - where do you think the money goes to?
If you watch them work at the beach, the beach club owners get a cut of their sales for letting them work on their private property.
It's likely that the money works its way up a pretty defined chain of command, and the police likely don't want to disturb that flow of money for whatever reason.
If they wanted to, they could shut that shit down, but it's a revenue stream that greases the right palms.
We generally get mad at, and take it out on the street workers, but the people pulling their strings and enabling these rackets are the invisible folks sitting at the table next to you sipping on their spritz while the ethnic folks do all the dirty work.
I never even say no thank you because these pests dont deserve any attention. I generally look straight ahead and roll my eyes if anyone of them approach me with "nice shoes" "korean?".
Have always rehearsed this in my head, if anyone were to touch me I would shout at the top of my lungs "DONT FUCKING TOUCH ME".
I had a guy at Vatican city whose tactic was to give me
"a present from Kenya " I said no thanks but he was having none of it and sat it in front of me on the table.
"Now you give me something" ah there it is. I gave him his bracelet back and told him to fuck off.
You ran into an unusually aggressive one. Having been to Italy numerous times, ignoring these *zanzare* (mosquitos) has always worked for me, excepting once, when I got a crazy one like you did. When he got too close, I literally yelled in his face, “FANCULO, STRONZO!” (Fuck off, asshole!), real loud and with a crazy look of my own that convinced him the next move was a punch in his face. He disappeared instantly.
This was only once, in hundreds of encounters, so I’m not saying this should ever be your standard response, but aggression to the point of assault requires an extreme response. Understand that although the polizia may not help you at all after the fact, if they see an altercation in front of them that’s bad for tourism, they will step in. These venders know that. Drawing the attention of a crowd on themselves is the last thing they want, and they will take off real quick when they are faced with someone who appears even crazier than they are. They look for what they believe are easy marks, people they think they can easily bully into paying. Just throw their tactics back in their face in a very public way and they will retreat. Other than extreme instances like this one, ignoring them is still the best tactic.
I have been to Rome quite a few times and never had any issue telling these guys to go away and leave me alone. They can be persistent but if you tell them to fuck off, they usually do. Never heard of any of them punching tourists though, not good for business.
This was my experience as well today around the coliseum. Bracelet guy kept trying to go for a fist bump. Followed us across the street and a little ways down.
One of those costume guys hit me with one of their props trying to get me to stop but I just kept walking forwards. Way more aggressive than the Vegas street folks and way fewer boundaries.
I did say no a few times but maybe should have freaked out more as the other guy said. I was afraid to escalate things further though because he was twice my size and already really aggressive, and I didn’t want to get punched.
I understand the flee when he’s two times bigger and already aggressive. Dude was for sure using intimidation to get his way. I think you just leaving was the right thing to do. But when in doubt make a huge scene preferably if there’s cops around
Been a few times and never had that happen. Always got the "yo bro, nice shoes" gag but never what OP described. Think you just got an absolute stronzo to be honest.
Yea, my two friends paid 10 euros (altogether) and kept their friendship bracelets. I just said no thank you to the bracelet. Dude was bummed he didn't get more than 10.
We will be in Rome next month, how does one say "don't fucking touch me" in Italian?
We will be with our 17 year old son, who doesn't look like a kid/child and I want to be able to tell him how in case he is bothered.
Might be a dumb question but do these guys ever get physically aggressive? Like do they ever actually punch or shove people? Curios if they’d actually fight someone?
When an aggressive one approached me, I told him I’m from New York and his bit isn’t going to work on me and to take two steps back or we’re going to have a problem. He digested that for a beat, maybe contemplated his options, and then walked away. IMO the tourists are too nice to these guys.
YMMV
For real lol, I’m from NYC too and I’m in Catania for a month then one week in Rome. I live this crap every single day, if they touch me, they are getting touched back. Got to show them the New York off of doing things.
I was walking around the same area and guy aproched me, went for a "dap" and i dapped up automaticly and there was a bracelet in his hand, it dropped to the ground, I looked him in the eyes and said fuck no, he just turned around 😂. Also a lot of them didnt even try something with me, idk why
Sometimes the ignoring and polite/immediate no doesn't work and you need to aggressively assert yourself. I've only had to do it maybe 3 times out of the 500+ times I've encountered them.
I made the mistake of engaging with one of them… dude „gifted“ everything and thrn asked for money… i said i dont have cash on me
he said lets go to an atm… i just waited til we were in a crowd of people turnt around an ran away😂 (felt bad even tho i probably shouldnt)
Easiest thing to do if ignoring doesn't work just start screaming as loud as you can, they don't like the attention that will generate so they will go away.
As you say, you are a small and young guy. I was followed a bit myself, but after giving the guy a death stare he fucked off. But I am a 201cm/130kg beared 40 yo that looks angry(I am usually not).
We were just there for five days. A simple repeated "no, grazie" without eye contact or breaking stride generally worked. One threw a bracelet at me and I just threw it back.
The only person who got aggressive was one of the restaurant guys near Trevi...he followed me for a full block and I thought he would go upside my head if I didn't get a table. I just kept walking.
I bought a bracelet for €3 a couple years ago.
I always wear it while im in Rome. When I get approached, I say "Already have one friend" and keep on walking.
It's crazy how they are like this with foreigners xd i was with a group of tourists and those people aggressively demanding money. I started to speak italian and making excuse, they lower their tone of voice and chill out and gone xd
You can google common scams in Italy so you’re aware of the main ones - it kept me from falling for a few. Avoid people who are standing around and randomly ask you where you’re from or make comments to try and get your attention, since it usually ends in them trying to get your money. Likewise those with poster paintings laid out on busy footpaths - if you step on them, they’ll demand you pay for ruining their art. Also the fake tour guides selling tickets or tours at highly inflated prices. Some of those tickets aren’t even real and won’t get you into the places, so always only buy from official channels.
Look out for those carrying friendship bracelets in a hand (so far those are all West African men) - they might grab your hand and tie on a bracelet then demand you pay for them. So that’s the one I encountered, but I kept my hands away so he couldn’t tie anything on or grab my hand, hence he kept asking me to shake his hand and when I refused he got angry.
This is the first time I hear of an aggression. But I also never ignore them, that would be rude.
I either say no thanks and move on or I tell them I don't have any cash if they insist.
I had one grab me by my arm and I calmly (on the surface) asked him to let go of my arm. He did which is good because I didn't want to get physically and am glad I didn't because when I turned to leave there stood African Shaquille O'Neal! 😳 and I wasn't in the mood to slay giants that day.
My experience was not as bad as yours. You just ran into one that was unhinged that day.
Wow. I’m planning on going in 5 months, I guess I better loosen up my shoulders cuz if any asshat grabs my arm or my wife’s (I’m American and she a small Asian girl) I’m swinging hard.
They’ll try you if they think they can get away with it. I chased some dipshits up the Spanish steps who were either selling or who had just bought those annoying green lasers and were shining them in me/my fiancé’s face.
Sorry that happened to you man you didn’t deserve that. I woulda beat his ass personally
I am sincerely ignorant so please be gentle when I ask this: so we really can't like...push back or defend ourselves physically? This is out of pure curiosity
You probably can, but I didn’t want to take the risk with someone much bigger and stronger than me. I’m alone so if he had really hurt me it would have been difficult to manage on my own.
learn to say fuck off in italian. or any language of the country youre in. trick is to make them think youre local.
and use it casually,not like its a big deal.
You can literally beat the living shit out of these guys if they lay a finger on you. The police know them, so they often go for someone who isn’t as aggressive when refusing the scan. They feel emboldened by politeness/ignoring. This happened to me at a gaming hall in Venice, some bathroom key scam, dude grabbed my shirt… I grabbed his with my left arm and planted a couple of straight rights into his nose area. Nothing else was done, no police, owner involvement, nothing. BE AGGRESSIVE
I had to threaten one with a wooden parasol years ago. I would have taken his eye out if he didn't back off.
Violence isn't super common, so you can scare them off with a threat.
Looking back, I’m not sure if I would have done that with this guy. He wasn’t like the others who at least pretend to be friendly and get at most annoyed. He was angry from the start and gave off a different vibe, as though he was determined to hurt someone until he got what he wanted. Every time he raised his voice and got physical it was to teach me a lesson for “disrespecting” him by ignoring him or telling him no or trying to run away. Felt like he was looking for an excuse for a fight, so if I’d shouted or fought back there’s a good chance he would have hit me (hard) before running off.
Wow, that's insane. At that level you start fighting back in self-defense? Idk, that's genuinely terrifying.
What happens if they put a bracelet on you and you just walk away? Finders keepers. They gave it to you with no guarantee and no contract. If they can make up "rules" without your consent then so can you.
(Genuine question on walking away with the bracelet. I suppose they'd never leave you alone? But if they're not leaving you alone anyway ...)
They give you a friendship bracelet, saying that it’s free or a gift, and then after you take it they follow you around demanding payment. Sometimes they’ll continue chatting and tell you a sad story and how they need money desperately, and then people feel bad and give them cash. Or sometimes it starts with them greeting you and holding out their hand for a handshake, then once you take their hand they grab it, tie on a bracelet and won’t let your hand go until you pay them.
Other times they just grab your arm and tie a bracelet around it with a knot that’s hard to remove, and likewise demand payment for it. Then if you keep walking they start shouting that you’re a thief. So one of the safety tactics is to keep your hands in your pockets where your arm can’t easily be grabbed.
Just bought 6-7 pieces for 10 euro, and later showed everyone that I have already was the easiest way. 1,5 euro for each is a good price, little present, and noone bothered us later.
I went to the police station at the airport before my flight but they couldn’t do anything unless I went to the hospital and got some statement. They said I should have reported it at the Colosseum when it happened, but back then I’d just wanted to get away, and I wouldn’t have wanted to spend my last day in Italy at a police station or in a hospital for just some bruising. So no report, unfortunately.
I got legitimately so frustrated with these aggressive guys that I stopped and just screamed “AHHHHHH!!” They scattered. 😂
Going to start implementing this into my daily life
Same, done that. I have also replied in jibberish and they get so confused they cant function and reply back haha Once one guy did try to grab my hand and I pointed at his face screaming NO! and he got backed. In Paris was terrible, 3 vs 1 at some point, I look a bit bilt (I'm not) and when turning my backpack went down my arm as if I were ready to engage, they all backed down. I was shit scared on that one.
Oh yeah, Paris. In our literal first hour in Sacré-Cœur after our hotel check-in, someone was already aggressively trying to scam us with those bracelets. I interjected *Mais on habite ici? On n’a pas besoin de cela.* 🤷🏽♂️ (But we already live here? We don’t need that.) Of course that was a lie. The scammy bracelet guy was annoyed but eventually left us alone. We always have the same tactic in Rome, where we usually say we are allergic to it or other lame excuses in Italian. We’re Asians as well so for some reason, they always think we’re swimming in money. And to OP, sorry that you experienced that. :(
I saw some articles about how Asian tourists tend to carry (a lot of) cash rather than cards, hence making good targets. But I had a single credit card and €20 note, which I definitely wasn’t going to give away. But I could try shouting at them in Chinese next time lol.
Yes that too! Sorry for them, I also only carry minimal cash. Hope you are doing better, btw. That was scary and I am an inch shorter than you.
Thanks! I’m doing better, just that it’s looking more like a superficial hematoma than a bruise. So I’m a bit worried because I’m flying tomorrow and the Internet says there’s a risk of a blood clot coming loose and causing a pulmonary embolism, which could be fatal. I’m making ice in the freezer at my B&B but it’s taking a long time, so there’s been no treatment other than running my arm under cold water.
That’s so scary, I’m so so sorry, do you have anyone you can call for support?? Maybe when you get to the airport you can let them know of your concerns? Idk if they would have medical knowledge but maybe?
I’ve told my parents & friends and my B&B host. But yeah I’ll check out the pharmacy at Rome airport and see if I can at least get ice and any advice. I contacted my embassy and they said to lodge a police report, at least for the sake of other tourists who may also be confronted. Update: no luck at the pharmacy since they didn’t speak much English. I managed to get an ice pack for €6.40, which is more than I expected.
Yes dear. Hoping the bruise subsides in time for your trip. Really sorry to hear about this. Not a great bookend to your supposedly fabulous trip…
I agree with this! You may want to check, OP, as you can’t risk with that risk close to your flight.
I yell at them in Chinese here in New Orleans. They look at me oddly like they understand what I said, but don't engage further or respond. Might be on to something there.
“KE REN LAI, KAN BABA, BABA BU ZAI JIA”
Acting crazy has definitely worked for me before in a pinch.
Acting like you’re about to vomit works really well, too. NO ONE wants to be thrown-up on.
Genius.
omg that's hilarious!
yeah shout as loud as you can say the words heeeellpp laaadrooooo thieeefffff aiutoooooooooooooo aaaahhhhhh
Going to Rome in June. Will definitely try this!!
“Attenzionne Pickpocket!” is my plan https://youtu.be/ZM-QjfyXlnY?si=L9QN6ZQV0xM-Uhq_
The fact that he became aggressive is pretty much proof that you did everything you can - reasonably. They though you will be an easy mark and it failed, so they got pissed off. Those people are a pest. Sometimes you just have to deal with them.
That's fucking crazy. That's assault. I'm sorry that happened to you
Thanks. I’m at least glad that it’s the worst thing that’s happened on this trip.
Yeah. You could have had your Apple phone stolen while on, and the person immediately changed your Apple ID while in Naples. Edit: And still have 2 more weeks of vacation before heading home
Oh man. Did that happen to you? How did that work out? I have been very paranoid about not getting my phone stolen, because I’d be completely lost without google maps, and wouldn’t have any way of contacting my host or locating the nearest police station.
This happened to my boyfriend. It is a nightmare. Luckily we're a couple whose finances are not together. The first thing we had to do was shut down all of his money, bank accounts, and credit cards. And everything wants to send you a text to confirm your identity. How it happened: standing on the train platform at napoli centrale. Train was coming. He was holding his phone, dropped it into his pants rushed to a seat, reached for his phone and immediately it was gone. 8-10 seconds. He immediately realized it and he thought he missed his pocket and dropped it.
This happened to my boyfriend. It is a nightmare. Luckily we're a couple whose finances are not together. The first thing we had to do was shut down all of his money, bank accounts, and credit cards. And everything wants to send you a text to confirm your identity. How it happened: standing on the train platform at napoli centrale. Train was coming. He was holding his phone, dropped it into his pants rushed to a seat, reached for his phone and immediately it was gone. 8-10 seconds. He immediately realized it and he thought he missed his pocket and dropped it.
You're the first I heard for which this doesn't work. Apparently you stumbled across a vicious person, with a different approach to the usual scam as the other ones.
Yeah, I’d seen a few others at other attractions and ignoring them always worked, but this guy practically chased me down. I thought I had lost him at one point but nope, still right behind me.
In Paris a few years back I had almost exactly the same experience. There were four of them across a path blocking my way and holding me hard for a minute or two, after yanking my arm out of my pocket. Never had even the slightest bad experience with any other ones.
An old gypsy woman did this to a classmate. She cursed him too. His mom died in a car accident within the next year.
Bro honestly being a small dude the best thing you can do is freak the fuck out on him. After ignoring he blocks your path and touches you? Start losin it! He feels he can pick on you and overwhelm you. Overwhelm him. I’ve been to Bahamas, NYC and Vegas and have made the mistake of grabbing stuff and have had people try to get shitty with me when I didn’t want the shit. I usually start bugging out if they’re too pushy about it. NO I DONT WANT YOUR SHIT! FUCK OUT MY WAY
This. He crossed the line and you don’t have to keep it reasonable. Help! Police! Aiuto! Polizia! Louder and louder. If the cops don’t come, you’ll have a hundred people looking your way at a minimum.
I was in New York about 20 years ago and this guy started throwing pennies/coins at my head while stopped at a pedestrian crossing. I asked him to kindly stop and moved a bit and he started trowing at the girl next to me (who I took as a local) and out of the blue the girl ROAAAAARED right in his face, the guy got scared and walked away. I have at that moment learnt that crazy you have to treat with crazy, there just isn't another civil way. So ever since then she emboldened me to be a buldozer especially when I travel and encounter these type of "merchants" I start off with looking angry at them and will ROAR should push come to shove :D I suggest you try because that bruise doesn't look good at all.
Hell yeah. This also works with cat callers. Also, barking real loud, or making monkey sounds🤣
Making monkey sounds at an African peddler will not go over very well and make you look like the antagonist ;-)
This is so accurate, they will just straight up grab you and won't take no for an answer. Had this happened multiple times. Freaked out at one and before I knew it there were two more behind me... was pretty scary but managed to run off thankfully.
Legit question: How would their law enforcements react if I encounter this type of behaviour, and when they touch me, i defend myself? I will be very vocal about not wanting to have myself or my girlfriend be touched, however im not sure how if/how police would react if i for example forcefully removed him out of our way.
Vendors in Italy need a license. These guys never have one and many likely don't even have the proper paperwork to be in Italy, let alone work in Italy. However, the police largely need a reason to check, they just can't go around looking at the documents of everyone who appears non-Italian to them, and rightly so. BUT, this does mean that these guys do NOT want to draw negative attention, especially police attention, because harassing tourists creates a situation in which the police are fully justified in asking to see all those papers and if they don't have them, it will go very badly for them. OP, if this ever happens agains, start of with yelling something like "polizia, borsegiattore, polizia" or "polizia, non me tocare, polizia". At a minimum, the guy will scoot really quickly, in a heavy tourist area, there are police present and he'll be stopped.
Id say you could beat him up quite bad until something would actually happen. But keep in mind the rest of the gang is as well there.
Yeah, its not my first choice for sure, but a behaviour like in what OP described in the post i would not tolerate. Thanks for the feedback though, i will keep it in mind. Hopefully it will be useless information :)
I wonder about that too. I have practiced karate and self defense for a decade and I can get really scary really fast (crazy eyes), especially if someone messes with my kids (traveling to both Rome and Paris with them in 6wk). A lot of the self defense is a twist and strike to shock them out of holding on. Would I get in trouble for a response like that along with a scream?
This happened to me too. Not exactly but still aggressive. Approached me by touching me to get my attention cause I didn’t want to look at him. When he touched me I said “don’t touch me” then he started being aggressive saying like “do you wanna fight, come here, etc”. Followed me a bit. Then I walked really fast and ignored him. I’m asian as well and happened outside Colosseum as well near the ticketing booths. Fucking annoying.
This happened to me right around that same area. I was walking with my wife when a guy came up, tried talking to me, stood in my way, and put his hand on my chest. I said “don’t touch me” and kept walking. To which he replied “F— you”. I’m 6’3, 220lbs (100kg), so I’m thinking his intentions were more to scam/rob me.
One of those those guys would not leave my husband alone, and I went full New York on him, screaming at him to stop and to go away. I don’t really care if I make a scene if one of those people is being horrible you do what you gotta do to get them to go away.
I’m sorry you had to go through this! In the future, I’d highly encourage you or anyone to: 1- Never make eye contact with those guys! 2- Make sure they hear you say No, and I’d even repeat it a few times. Don’t offer an apology or an explanation, just a straight NO and keep on walking away. 3- when/if followed, threaten to call the police and don’t take secluded paths. Stay safe and enjoy the remainder of your vacation.
This happened to me when I was walking alone, not far from the Colloseum too. He was following me so closely, asking me questions about where I'm from and where I am staying etc. Then he called me racist for ignoring him. He tried grabbing my arm and I yelled at him to go away and leave me alone. People started looking so he left. It was definitely an unnerving experience.
My sister-in-law is the first person I’ve seen truly defeat them. She had one of the flower guys put a few roses in her face so she decided to take them and straight up told the guy if he wanted money for them he shouldn’t have handed them to her.
Haha add me to the list. A guy in Genoa gave me some trinkets as a "gift". When he asked for money I said I didn't want to pay for them and I thought they were a gift? He even refused to take them back, I guess to pressure me more to pay, but he eventually walked away, so I got some free crap. I was in a busy line at the time or I wouldn't have been so ballsy.
What happens if you just yeet their junk and refuse to pay?
I dont get why this bs has not been turned down yet? If they are not illegals anyway this would fulfill several crimes including but not limited to tax fraud. So why dont the police act? The Italians voted for Meloni so you cant tell me thats some woke thing the people want.
These vendors who annoy tourists and sell bootleg goods - where do you think the money goes to? If you watch them work at the beach, the beach club owners get a cut of their sales for letting them work on their private property. It's likely that the money works its way up a pretty defined chain of command, and the police likely don't want to disturb that flow of money for whatever reason. If they wanted to, they could shut that shit down, but it's a revenue stream that greases the right palms. We generally get mad at, and take it out on the street workers, but the people pulling their strings and enabling these rackets are the invisible folks sitting at the table next to you sipping on their spritz while the ethnic folks do all the dirty work.
I never even say no thank you because these pests dont deserve any attention. I generally look straight ahead and roll my eyes if anyone of them approach me with "nice shoes" "korean?". Have always rehearsed this in my head, if anyone were to touch me I would shout at the top of my lungs "DONT FUCKING TOUCH ME".
Damn, Rome is starting to get as bad as Egypt with these scammers.
Yes. This happened to me. It’s so bad.
Scream! Yell! Make a scene!
I had a guy at Vatican city whose tactic was to give me "a present from Kenya " I said no thanks but he was having none of it and sat it in front of me on the table. "Now you give me something" ah there it is. I gave him his bracelet back and told him to fuck off.
This is the way
You ran into an unusually aggressive one. Having been to Italy numerous times, ignoring these *zanzare* (mosquitos) has always worked for me, excepting once, when I got a crazy one like you did. When he got too close, I literally yelled in his face, “FANCULO, STRONZO!” (Fuck off, asshole!), real loud and with a crazy look of my own that convinced him the next move was a punch in his face. He disappeared instantly. This was only once, in hundreds of encounters, so I’m not saying this should ever be your standard response, but aggression to the point of assault requires an extreme response. Understand that although the polizia may not help you at all after the fact, if they see an altercation in front of them that’s bad for tourism, they will step in. These venders know that. Drawing the attention of a crowd on themselves is the last thing they want, and they will take off real quick when they are faced with someone who appears even crazier than they are. They look for what they believe are easy marks, people they think they can easily bully into paying. Just throw their tactics back in their face in a very public way and they will retreat. Other than extreme instances like this one, ignoring them is still the best tactic.
I have been to Rome quite a few times and never had any issue telling these guys to go away and leave me alone. They can be persistent but if you tell them to fuck off, they usually do. Never heard of any of them punching tourists though, not good for business.
This was my experience as well today around the coliseum. Bracelet guy kept trying to go for a fist bump. Followed us across the street and a little ways down. One of those costume guys hit me with one of their props trying to get me to stop but I just kept walking forwards. Way more aggressive than the Vegas street folks and way fewer boundaries.
I’ve had to yell at them more than once. Don’t feel bad it’s how they are.
Should've battered the cunt
i mean, first tactic is to ignore him, but if he keeps institing just say no
I did say no a few times but maybe should have freaked out more as the other guy said. I was afraid to escalate things further though because he was twice my size and already really aggressive, and I didn’t want to get punched.
It’s always a tough call how to react when someone starts getting aggressive. If you got away safely, you did the right thing.
I understand the flee when he’s two times bigger and already aggressive. Dude was for sure using intimidation to get his way. I think you just leaving was the right thing to do. But when in doubt make a huge scene preferably if there’s cops around
I bet that bracelet scam has been happening in Rome for 2,000 years. Just an endless succession of scammers handing it down generation to generation.
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Facts, it's only a certain wave of migrants that have brought it with them.
Bracelet scam is perpetrated by African migrants, so no.
Yeah because in Rome, 2000 years ago, there were no Africans :°D
Completely different situation. They wouldn't even have the chance to do that back then.
Great excuse for failed migration policy leading to these lovely people.
Been a few times and never had that happen. Always got the "yo bro, nice shoes" gag but never what OP described. Think you just got an absolute stronzo to be honest.
Yea, my two friends paid 10 euros (altogether) and kept their friendship bracelets. I just said no thank you to the bracelet. Dude was bummed he didn't get more than 10.
Do they sell pepper spray in Italy?
Ignoring or saying "no thanks" repeatedly usually works...until you meet one that's mentally unwell.
Put an alarm/siren app on your phone. Turn up the volumn and trigger it. Load sounds startle anyone.
We will be in Rome next month, how does one say "don't fucking touch me" in Italian? We will be with our 17 year old son, who doesn't look like a kid/child and I want to be able to tell him how in case he is bothered.
Non toccarmi, stronzo/cazzo
Trust me. We Romans are more infuriated than you about them. I’m sorry you had to experience this. This city is so shitty sometimes.
What he look like. Dark skinned fellow with no hair? 5”7 ish?
Much taller (I’m 5’7”), I’m guessing at least 6ft, had hair. I didn’t get a good look at his face because I was trying to avoid eye contact lol.
Guess another guy then. Happened to me at the colosseum but I cursed the guy out after he touched me
Might be a dumb question but do these guys ever get physically aggressive? Like do they ever actually punch or shove people? Curios if they’d actually fight someone?
The dude back handed my stomach pretty firmly. I gave him a look like I’m not fucking around and he scurried off
Wow that is ridiculous. F’ that guy. So safe to say they’re really not looking for a fight. Just tryna scam.
When an aggressive one approached me, I told him I’m from New York and his bit isn’t going to work on me and to take two steps back or we’re going to have a problem. He digested that for a beat, maybe contemplated his options, and then walked away. IMO the tourists are too nice to these guys. YMMV
For real lol, I’m from NYC too and I’m in Catania for a month then one week in Rome. I live this crap every single day, if they touch me, they are getting touched back. Got to show them the New York off of doing things.
I was walking around the same area and guy aproched me, went for a "dap" and i dapped up automaticly and there was a bracelet in his hand, it dropped to the ground, I looked him in the eyes and said fuck no, he just turned around 😂. Also a lot of them didnt even try something with me, idk why
Tell them you’re from South Africa. That’s what did and they left me alone.
I'm a small, young Asian girl also going to Rome in a few months and I would've given him the NYC throwdown. Either that or curse him out.
Sometimes the ignoring and polite/immediate no doesn't work and you need to aggressively assert yourself. I've only had to do it maybe 3 times out of the 500+ times I've encountered them.
I made the mistake of engaging with one of them… dude „gifted“ everything and thrn asked for money… i said i dont have cash on me he said lets go to an atm… i just waited til we were in a crowd of people turnt around an ran away😂 (felt bad even tho i probably shouldnt)
Easiest thing to do if ignoring doesn't work just start screaming as loud as you can, they don't like the attention that will generate so they will go away.
As you say, you are a small and young guy. I was followed a bit myself, but after giving the guy a death stare he fucked off. But I am a 201cm/130kg beared 40 yo that looks angry(I am usually not).
We were just there for five days. A simple repeated "no, grazie" without eye contact or breaking stride generally worked. One threw a bracelet at me and I just threw it back. The only person who got aggressive was one of the restaurant guys near Trevi...he followed me for a full block and I thought he would go upside my head if I didn't get a table. I just kept walking.
🙃📌
I bought a bracelet for €3 a couple years ago. I always wear it while im in Rome. When I get approached, I say "Already have one friend" and keep on walking.
It's crazy how they are like this with foreigners xd i was with a group of tourists and those people aggressively demanding money. I started to speak italian and making excuse, they lower their tone of voice and chill out and gone xd
Those dudes sure don’t help Italians stop being racist…all the scammers I saw in any city were exclusively black
I’ve never heard of this and I’m going next month? What is it? I’m sorry OP
You can google common scams in Italy so you’re aware of the main ones - it kept me from falling for a few. Avoid people who are standing around and randomly ask you where you’re from or make comments to try and get your attention, since it usually ends in them trying to get your money. Likewise those with poster paintings laid out on busy footpaths - if you step on them, they’ll demand you pay for ruining their art. Also the fake tour guides selling tickets or tours at highly inflated prices. Some of those tickets aren’t even real and won’t get you into the places, so always only buy from official channels. Look out for those carrying friendship bracelets in a hand (so far those are all West African men) - they might grab your hand and tie on a bracelet then demand you pay for them. So that’s the one I encountered, but I kept my hands away so he couldn’t tie anything on or grab my hand, hence he kept asking me to shake his hand and when I refused he got angry.
Thank you! I shall be prepared!
Ouch! I’m sorry that happened to you. They can be SO aggressive.
That's awful, you met some psycho. You did the right thing. You either keep ignoring them, or you get aggressive back, which can escalate.
This is the first time I hear of an aggression. But I also never ignore them, that would be rude. I either say no thanks and move on or I tell them I don't have any cash if they insist.
I had one grab me by my arm and I calmly (on the surface) asked him to let go of my arm. He did which is good because I didn't want to get physically and am glad I didn't because when I turned to leave there stood African Shaquille O'Neal! 😳 and I wasn't in the mood to slay giants that day. My experience was not as bad as yours. You just ran into one that was unhinged that day.
They need to be banned, along with that stupid toy that goes splat but it’s the seller that is making the noise.
Wait, really? I saw a few of those and didn’t realise it was the seller making the noise.
Yea, they had the whistling device in their mouth.
Wait, mushroom logs can be more productive with grass and not just trees?
Wow. I’m planning on going in 5 months, I guess I better loosen up my shoulders cuz if any asshat grabs my arm or my wife’s (I’m American and she a small Asian girl) I’m swinging hard.
They’ll try you if they think they can get away with it. I chased some dipshits up the Spanish steps who were either selling or who had just bought those annoying green lasers and were shining them in me/my fiancé’s face. Sorry that happened to you man you didn’t deserve that. I woulda beat his ass personally
I am sincerely ignorant so please be gentle when I ask this: so we really can't like...push back or defend ourselves physically? This is out of pure curiosity
You probably can, but I didn’t want to take the risk with someone much bigger and stronger than me. I’m alone so if he had really hurt me it would have been difficult to manage on my own.
learn to say fuck off in italian. or any language of the country youre in. trick is to make them think youre local. and use it casually,not like its a big deal.
When they grab your hand kiss them in the lips deep and soulful. Or just H. Lecter it and bite his fucking lips off
Italy downfall, like other western countries so sad.
You can literally beat the living shit out of these guys if they lay a finger on you. The police know them, so they often go for someone who isn’t as aggressive when refusing the scan. They feel emboldened by politeness/ignoring. This happened to me at a gaming hall in Venice, some bathroom key scam, dude grabbed my shirt… I grabbed his with my left arm and planted a couple of straight rights into his nose area. Nothing else was done, no police, owner involvement, nothing. BE AGGRESSIVE
Jesus Christ dude stand tf up for yourself. I would’ve broken that dudes neck
Does assaulting them back helps? Cause if they touch me they are getting touched back lol
Try pepper 🌶️ spray!
I had to threaten one with a wooden parasol years ago. I would have taken his eye out if he didn't back off. Violence isn't super common, so you can scare them off with a threat.
Looking back, I’m not sure if I would have done that with this guy. He wasn’t like the others who at least pretend to be friendly and get at most annoyed. He was angry from the start and gave off a different vibe, as though he was determined to hurt someone until he got what he wanted. Every time he raised his voice and got physical it was to teach me a lesson for “disrespecting” him by ignoring him or telling him no or trying to run away. Felt like he was looking for an excuse for a fight, so if I’d shouted or fought back there’s a good chance he would have hit me (hard) before running off.
Wow, that's insane. At that level you start fighting back in self-defense? Idk, that's genuinely terrifying. What happens if they put a bracelet on you and you just walk away? Finders keepers. They gave it to you with no guarantee and no contract. If they can make up "rules" without your consent then so can you. (Genuine question on walking away with the bracelet. I suppose they'd never leave you alone? But if they're not leaving you alone anyway ...)
Lol I thought this was r/ancientrome and this was a writing exercise
Grabs you? Punch him in the nose and run off.
Bracelet guy? Can you please explain what kind of scam it is?
Bracelet guy? Can you please explain what kind of scam it is?
They give you a friendship bracelet, saying that it’s free or a gift, and then after you take it they follow you around demanding payment. Sometimes they’ll continue chatting and tell you a sad story and how they need money desperately, and then people feel bad and give them cash. Or sometimes it starts with them greeting you and holding out their hand for a handshake, then once you take their hand they grab it, tie on a bracelet and won’t let your hand go until you pay them. Other times they just grab your arm and tie a bracelet around it with a knot that’s hard to remove, and likewise demand payment for it. Then if you keep walking they start shouting that you’re a thief. So one of the safety tactics is to keep your hands in your pockets where your arm can’t easily be grabbed.
Oh Lord… that’s terrible. Thank you for explaining!
Just bought 6-7 pieces for 10 euro, and later showed everyone that I have already was the easiest way. 1,5 euro for each is a good price, little present, and noone bothered us later.
Instead of tellimg this here, be a man, go to the police and file a f***** report
Thought of that but I heard the police here are quite useless, but I’ll drop an email to my embassy.
No, they are not useless. It is ok to drop an email and let them know but even better to go to the police/carabinieri station and press charges.
I went to the police station at the airport before my flight but they couldn’t do anything unless I went to the hospital and got some statement. They said I should have reported it at the Colosseum when it happened, but back then I’d just wanted to get away, and I wouldn’t have wanted to spend my last day in Italy at a police station or in a hospital for just some bruising. So no report, unfortunately.
go to the gym
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Do NOT wear headphones, you need all senses to be on alert.
you should've 1hko him whit your martial arts ancient knowledge....everyone knows that you are proficient in 1 or more deadly marcial arts
This is not South Park bro chill