EYWandBTV

Oh no! Progol, I remember our coffee talk at Gozobi in Oaxaca. It's the infamous bird poop scam, happened to a friend of mine a while ago in Queretaro. We stay at Red Tree House frequently (our sixth time coming up next Feb) and we love the Condesa area. On our trip to DF a few weeks ago we had an excellent dinner with Mexican friends at Merotoro (Amsterdam 204). We always feel safe and secure in Condesa...and *that* is the danger! Beware "safe" comfortable neighborhoods and "nice" well dressed people coming up to you to ask if you need directions (happened to me in Coyoacan, I shooed him away) or help wiping away bird poop. I always put everything in a money belt hanging low around my neck with my shirt buttoned up. Fingers crossed, hoping it works next time!

progol

Oh, thank you,,EYWandBTV! We both think that if we weren’t feeling ill (and we both were really feeling lousy at the time), we would’ve been more aware and conscious of what was going on. I kick myself for having my wallet with my CCs and IDs, and will never carry them all at the same time again. Why I needed my metro pass for NYC is really a question which I’ll never know the answer to!

The good news is that the CC companies texted me immediately to question charges, even before I was able to call them. And except for my metro pass and driver’s license, all have been replaced without problem, and I only have a week or so wait for the rest.

As I said, it was a very hard lesson but I’ve learned it - I hope!

EYWandBTV

Wow, very impressive quick action by your CC companies. Could you IM me the names of the companies you use?

suze

I am so sorry this happened to you. And I understand being a bit off your normal game when you are feeling sick and away from home.

As far as the scam though been around for ever and not only in Latin American countries. Sometimes the bird poop when outdoors. But catsup, mustard, etc. squirted then same scenario ensues.

I have to say you are sure dealing with this in a good spirit, compliments on your humor and attitude, and excellent reminder to others about not traveling with stuff from home you don't need. And even what you do need (back up credit card, alternate ID, etc.) don't have them all in one place on your person at the same time.

Very helpful post. Thanks for taking the time to tell us. suze

progol

Thanks, suze, I really appreciate your kind words. It makes me feel better to know that you find this post helpful and a good reminder. Believe me, it’s a good reminder for me for future travel, too!

lrice

Yes thank you Progol! Very helpful. My dad was pickpocketed in a Tokyo bar then on the Paris metro a couple years later. And he has been traveling all over the world for 62 years.

I hope you were able to enjoy Mexico City a bit.

ekscrunchy

I am also so very sorry that that happened to you. If it d
DOES happen, what is the best course of action....just get ride of the "helpful" poop throwers by screaming at them to get away? Do they just swoop in immediately after you get covered?? Really upsetting, not to mention disgusting.

crellston

Very orry to hear of your experience progol. Always distressing when something like that happens. We spent several months in Mexico and experienced nothing but kindness and goodwill but I guess **** can happen anywhere.

I have heard tell of the bird poop distraction technique many times during our time in Buenos Aires but was never a victim to it. Someone stole our camera in Ecuador - never noticed a thing and I consider myself a pretty savvy traveller. Someone tried to pick my pocket in an empty subway carriage in Barcelona (so obvious it was funny). I got sandbagged by four "sweet" Cholita ladies in Ecuador , hands all over me searching for my wallet! (Tried to persuade my wife that they just found me irresistible but she wast having any of that!). On arriving in my office in London, my PA pointed out a huge slash in my suit jacket. Someone on the underground had used a razor to try and get at my wallet.

The distraction technique is another, smarter level that works on our in built desire to always be polite. The reality is that if strangers approach using the street we should really be telling them to "go away" in a very loud voice.

thursdaysd

Hi eks, as I posted above this happened to me in the Buenos Aires metro, but I knew it was a scam. If you have doubts about the security of your possessions you should keep your distance from the perpetrators. I let them clean me up, but I knew I was safe - nothing in my pockets, money belt under my clothes, wallet with one day's money buried in my day bag, which was already in front of me because I was on the metro. I figured that since they created the mess they could d*** well clean it up. Fortunately I was wearing rain pants and a waterproof coat.

Note that my money belt was round my waist. I met a woman in BsAs who had her neck wallet stolen.

mlgb

Not specific to Mexico, but neck wallets and even crossbody bags can also create a personal danger if grabbed. Better to use any method to conceal valuables under your clothes if you must have them on you, such as when traveling between cities or in an airport. I had a small backpack somehow go missing in a bus station in Medellin Colombia (most likely in the bathroom by a mother-daughter team who followed me inside). Only thing of consequence was a US carrier (Tracfone) locked cheap cellphone, food, water and most unfortunately a rain poncho that I liked.

I'd like to hear about the Mexico City part of progol's trip other than the bird poop scam.

progol

<<I'd like to hear about the Mexico City part of progol's trip other than the bird poop scam.>>

mlgb, thank you! I will try to share about CDMX but I still haven’t finished Oaxaca, which is a separate post. And we absolutely loved Oaxaca, by the way. After we arrived in CDMX, first my husband and then I developed nasty respiratory colds so our energy level wasn’t great although we did see enough as we were there for 7 full days. I’ll be honest, between getting sick and being scammed (fortunately, at the end), we didn’t love Mexico City as we expected. But since this post is about the scam, you won’t see the rest of the trip here.

ekscrunchy, I think others have answered your question about what to do, but I will add that what we wished we did was to yell at the guys and just force them to leave us alone. We both think that our not feeling well affected our normal instinctive reactions.

Thanks, crellston and Irice, for your kind words.

KTtravel

I had never heard of this scam so thank you for posting this. I am so sorry this happened to you but thank you for making me more aware. What a disgusting experience!

progol

KTravel,
Thank you for your kind words! I thought I was aware of most scams but this one was one that I somehow missed. I’m glad you found it helpful and hope others avoid the experience!

volcanogirl

Sorry that that happened to you. This is a really helpful post; I had never heard of this one before. Darn crooks!

virginiafish

Hello Progol, I am so sorry to hear you both were not feeling well and this happened. At the end of our trip to Barcelona and the northeast coast of Spain, we were tired, getting gas and I had the trunk open, reached around to get some from the back seat, packing up, and didn't even see what we realized afterwards was the vespa with driver we had noticed. She had sped by the trunk and grabbed a backpack. Luckily, it only had our tour books and, though, copies of everything else (credit cards, passports, itinerary). We spent the rest of the night on the phone cancelling everything and alerting necessary offices. We always find the end of a trip (and in your case being tired and sick) makes us more vulnerable, less alert and on guard. I hope you are feeling better by now and know that you are not the only ones of us travelers that have had these experiences. It was thoughtful of you to take the time to post this for us all to be aware.

progol

volcanogirl and virginiafish, thank you both for the kind words. I'm glad that this post is a helpful reminder; it's the reason I posted it. We really were taken by surprise.

virginiafish, what an ugly experience in Spain. I agree completely that, at the end of the trip, we're often relaxed and less on guard. It was oddly validating to read the piece (link to article in an earlier post) written recently by a professor at a Pennsylvania university describing the same experience at what sounds like the same area (Condesa) only a few days before us. But it does remind me to be aware no matter where we travel.

EYWandBTV

Unfortunately the lovely Condesa neighborhood has seen a rash of crimes lately. Take a look at the blog of "Kim" (his screen name), called Elgringosuelto ( = https://gringosuelto.wordpress.com/). He reports that a few months ago armed bandits locked up the attendees in a theater near his apartment and robbed them all. Then a few days ago, "Thursday afternoon a worrisome message came across our street’s group WhatsApp account. At 3:30 PM in broad, friggin’, daylight there was a shootout a couple of blocks away from my house, and a block away from an elementary school. Supposedly a group of 3 motorcyclists shot at a car and then either stole it and/or kidnapped the occupant. According to the account, two cops in a car were nearby, along with 2 officers on foot, who apparently did nothing."

All this was near our favorite B&B, the wonderful Red Tree House. Very sad.

Fra_Diavolo

A friend who lives in Mexico visited the DF recently and reports that Condesa is lousy with digital nomad gringos, driving up the rents and hogging all the seats at the better cafes. I wonder if they are also attracting the attention of the criminal class.

progol

Well, geez, EYWandBTV, that is certainly a horrible thing to have happen around the corner from where you live! It looks like it’s in Roma Sur, which is right next door to Condesa. Honestly, I didn’t feel any uncomfortable vibe when we were walking around, which is what made our experience especially distressing.

And Fra_Diavolo, I could well imagine there are a lot of digital nomads in the area, though aren’t they the younger set? We, on the other hand, are creeping up there, so are perhaps a more likely target as older gringos who might have (potentially) more to steal.

ktrunner

thanks for sharing, sorry it happened, we head to CDMX in June, staying at Red Tree also so will keep our guard up. I will say when I read these posts, makes me nervous about traveling to Mexico. But trying to stay positive and will stay alert. We have 5 days in Mex City and 3 days in Tepoztlan. Excited about seeing another culture and researching safety. I will say we read similar scams that happened in Paris, but luckily when we were there, no bad actors spoiled our time there. Hoping for same in CDMX!