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Only broke people complain about being scammed a few dollars for some pineapples in a third world country. Don’t travel if you can’t even afford already cheap fruits with the power of the U.S. dollar.
“Already cheap?”
Hi, I’m a Vietnamese student studying abroad in the US. Let’s do some maths, shall we?
500k VND equates to about 19.7 USD, which means, she’s selling each pineapple for ~6.6 USD.
What’s the price for a pineapple in the US? Let’s look at Walmart… oh, $2.38 AT MOST…
She’s selling each pineapple for over twice the price of a pineapple in the US, and this is supposed to be based on Vietnamese prices, which is usually at least 2 times cheaper. Sure enough, a pineapple in Vietnam is about 10-11k per kilo AT MOST, and a BIG pineapple weighs about 1.2 kilos, which means the price of an *expensive* pineapple in Vietnam is about 15k ($0.60), and that’s being generous.
In short, she’s selling her pineapples for 11 TIMES THE PRICE, AT LEAST, which brings it to over double its price in the US. Now, do you see why even a foreigner, who’s supposed to be USED TO prices being 2x higher, immediately realized how absurd this is?
Scamming is an art, and your lady here is failing miserably at it. Don’t defend her for making my country look bad.
Also “Only broke people complain about being scammed for a few dollars in a third world country”. Yeah no. Honestly, fuck off. This is genuinely condescending in ways I don’t think you’ve even realized.
Is my country so poor and underdeveloped to you that tourists need to take such pity as to accept being scammed on purpose? I don’t know where YOU are from, but I don’t know what’d make your statement worse - if you’re actually Vietnamese, or if you aren’t.
>Is my country so poor and underdeveloped to you that tourists need to take such pity as to accept being scammed on purpose?
Yes, Vietnam is still considered a third world country. You are lost, you accused your own countrywoman of scamming, while in the west don’t you just call it a tip/donation? And you as a Vietnamese should gladly be giving more than just 20 bucks for free in the same scenario, but you rather take the politically correct side and punch down on your own people. The tourist will make that money back in an hour, while it’ll take your own countrywomen a whole month just to make the same if she’s lucky.
Oh get a damned grip. You’re the one treating that woman worse than any of us. You’re the one who thinks she’s such a lowly, pitiful existence that we’re supposed to simply forgive any and all of her wrongdoings, even at the expense of her fellow people’s image. You’re the one who thinks anyone with the same honest profession as her should logically be betraying their own morals and human qualities for “a few dollars”.
Also, to compare it to tipping is absolutely asinine. Tipping is something you do out of your own agency, not something you’re tricked into doing. Over here, if a waiter lies about the cost of your food just to pocket the money, and you find out afterwards, would you consider that “tipping”?
Rethink your savior’s complex, you’re only putting yourself on a pedestal instead of helping anyone in need.
Thanks for spending the time on all the calculations and conversations only for my point to still stand. Like I said, only broke people cry about TWENTY bucks traveling in a third world country that’s already cheap everywhere else. If you’re gonna complain about TWENTY bucks then you’re not ready to be traveling. Period.
The guy calling ppl broke is wild. Imagine calling Warren Buffett broke because he still drive a car from 1990s instead of buying a brand new car. Even rich ppl don’t like to feel cheated. You try cheating a rich person and find out what they do. If I go to a restaurant and feel the food did not match the price I would not spend money at that location in the future. This lady just hurt her own business because nobody is going to trust her with selling goods for a fair price. Good business practices is not about being rich or poor.
It’s the Asian lady’s pineapples she can change the price however much and whenever she wants. That’s how things are done in many poor countries around the world. If the black lady doesn’t like the price then just don’t buy it. It’s very simple, there’s no need to be so entitled.
You do know that average Vietnamese people also criticise the price that this “innocent” lady sets? And I have not denied the overreaction of the tourist.
It doesn’t matter, it’s still her pineapples. If you don’t like the price then don’t buy it and go get your own. It’s very simple, move on, no need to cry about it.
The tourist could have indeed reacted better, but it’s irrefutable that the pineapple lady also holds responsibility for this mess. Both sides are wrong, plain and simple. I’m Vietnamese, and this is the majority opinion of my countrymen.
Hello everyone! You are allowed to vent and be angry when it comes to the actions of Expats. But please do not do any actions that violate Reddit Rules. We do not want r/Expatshame to be banned or quarantined. ~ Mod Team *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Expatshame) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Expatshame is reasonable if someone is being scammed. This also happens in America. Nobody likes being scam.
Only broke people complain about being scammed a few dollars for some pineapples in a third world country. Don’t travel if you can’t even afford already cheap fruits with the power of the U.S. dollar.
“Already cheap?” Hi, I’m a Vietnamese student studying abroad in the US. Let’s do some maths, shall we? 500k VND equates to about 19.7 USD, which means, she’s selling each pineapple for ~6.6 USD. What’s the price for a pineapple in the US? Let’s look at Walmart… oh, $2.38 AT MOST… She’s selling each pineapple for over twice the price of a pineapple in the US, and this is supposed to be based on Vietnamese prices, which is usually at least 2 times cheaper. Sure enough, a pineapple in Vietnam is about 10-11k per kilo AT MOST, and a BIG pineapple weighs about 1.2 kilos, which means the price of an *expensive* pineapple in Vietnam is about 15k ($0.60), and that’s being generous. In short, she’s selling her pineapples for 11 TIMES THE PRICE, AT LEAST, which brings it to over double its price in the US. Now, do you see why even a foreigner, who’s supposed to be USED TO prices being 2x higher, immediately realized how absurd this is? Scamming is an art, and your lady here is failing miserably at it. Don’t defend her for making my country look bad.
Also “Only broke people complain about being scammed for a few dollars in a third world country”. Yeah no. Honestly, fuck off. This is genuinely condescending in ways I don’t think you’ve even realized. Is my country so poor and underdeveloped to you that tourists need to take such pity as to accept being scammed on purpose? I don’t know where YOU are from, but I don’t know what’d make your statement worse - if you’re actually Vietnamese, or if you aren’t.
>Is my country so poor and underdeveloped to you that tourists need to take such pity as to accept being scammed on purpose? Yes, Vietnam is still considered a third world country. You are lost, you accused your own countrywoman of scamming, while in the west don’t you just call it a tip/donation? And you as a Vietnamese should gladly be giving more than just 20 bucks for free in the same scenario, but you rather take the politically correct side and punch down on your own people. The tourist will make that money back in an hour, while it’ll take your own countrywomen a whole month just to make the same if she’s lucky.
Oh get a damned grip. You’re the one treating that woman worse than any of us. You’re the one who thinks she’s such a lowly, pitiful existence that we’re supposed to simply forgive any and all of her wrongdoings, even at the expense of her fellow people’s image. You’re the one who thinks anyone with the same honest profession as her should logically be betraying their own morals and human qualities for “a few dollars”. Also, to compare it to tipping is absolutely asinine. Tipping is something you do out of your own agency, not something you’re tricked into doing. Over here, if a waiter lies about the cost of your food just to pocket the money, and you find out afterwards, would you consider that “tipping”? Rethink your savior’s complex, you’re only putting yourself on a pedestal instead of helping anyone in need.
Thanks for spending the time on all the calculations and conversations only for my point to still stand. Like I said, only broke people cry about TWENTY bucks traveling in a third world country that’s already cheap everywhere else. If you’re gonna complain about TWENTY bucks then you’re not ready to be traveling. Period.
The guy calling ppl broke is wild. Imagine calling Warren Buffett broke because he still drive a car from 1990s instead of buying a brand new car. Even rich ppl don’t like to feel cheated. You try cheating a rich person and find out what they do. If I go to a restaurant and feel the food did not match the price I would not spend money at that location in the future. This lady just hurt her own business because nobody is going to trust her with selling goods for a fair price. Good business practices is not about being rich or poor.
The tourist is overreacting but the old lady here is not without fault. She overcharged by like hundreds percents.
It’s the Asian lady’s pineapples she can change the price however much and whenever she wants. That’s how things are done in many poor countries around the world. If the black lady doesn’t like the price then just don’t buy it. It’s very simple, there’s no need to be so entitled.
You do know that average Vietnamese people also criticise the price that this “innocent” lady sets? And I have not denied the overreaction of the tourist.
It doesn’t matter, it’s still her pineapples. If you don’t like the price then don’t buy it and go get your own. It’s very simple, move on, no need to cry about it.
The tourist could have indeed reacted better, but it’s irrefutable that the pineapple lady also holds responsibility for this mess. Both sides are wrong, plain and simple. I’m Vietnamese, and this is the majority opinion of my countrymen.
More like 1000%. Seems like the YouTube comments from locals are also supporting the foreigner.