Cq1131 (US)
Last week, I was stopped by two women who asked me if I was American and if they could practice English with me. This took place in the shopping mall next to the Grand Hyatt Hotel. I had heard of this scam before, but they seemed sincere. They asked if we could have coffee so they could "practice English." I was suckered because I'm an ESL instructor!! Also, I was alone. I agreed, but instead of a coffee house, they headed down a sidestreet near the mall to a Chinese tea house.
They ordered tea and wine for the 3 of us. We chatted, but they were more interested in discussing me than themselves. Finally, it was time to pay. They produced a menu that listed each pot of tea at 750RMB! They passed the bill to me. The total bill was 3000RMB, or $500!It was obvious that they and the tea house were working together. They kept saying, just use your credit card. I realized by then it was a scam to bilk me on my credit card. Scared to death, I threw 300 RMB on the table and ran.
The original piece:http://bbs.chinadaily.com.cn/thread-810108-1-1.html