I almost got robbed...

I didn’t realize I was being robbed till Shoni and Lauren started screaming at me to run away. On Friday Lena, Shoni, Lauren, and I were walking back to the house and clearly we drew attention by talking in English…let’s face it, we’re obviously going to speak English to each other---we’re Americans afterall! As we were walking I heard people walking behind us so I turned around to scope out the group…3 women and one man---what could be so bad? To me they didn’t look sketchy so I kept on walking and talking. Legit, 2 minutes later we were mysteriously sprayed with what looked like water all over ourselves. Again, the four of us are 22 year old Americans, so take a guess on how we reacted…yeah, that’s rightà we shrieked at the top of our lungs because we thought birds pooped all over us. Ehh we were so WRONG. What actually happened was an intentional one-sided water fight, but it didn't end the way the other team hoped it would end.

All of a sudden we heard the people behind us screaming that they got hit too, so I looked at them but they were dry. The combination of my laughter and being shocked didn’t allow me to realize something weird was going on. It was only until Lauren told us to walk away because she noticed the group of people doing something weird. The guy started coming closer to me and saying that the water came from the balcony above; meanwhile, Shoni started telling me to stop talking to him and keep on walking. Again, I had no idea what was going on...there was just way too much going on...

As soon as I caught up with my friends, Lauren told me her Argentine friend told her that it is normal for a group of people to do this. They spray water on people; the women will come up to you and ask if you’re ok; then while they help dry you off, the guys come up to you and pickpocket you. Apparently this works because the person who gets the water thrown on is really flustered and then the group of people takes advantage of you. Craziness, I know…that is pretty much what happened to us, but we ran away before they could steal from us.  Also, as soon as we walked away from them we turned around and they were gone...just like magic. It was creepy.  

There is so much robbery and thievery in Buenos Aires. Whether you’re on the subte (subway), colectivo (bus), or walking on the street, it is all over…I know so many people who have gotten money, credit cards, or cameras stolen. It is important to watch yourself and your belongings like a hawk, and hopefully nothing will happen to you. It is weird to realize how certain cities have their own bizarre methods of pickpocketing. I later found out what we experienced is a known thing Portenos do to people. It is stupid but people fall for it…after all I almost fell for it until Lauren told me to keep on walking. It is insane to think that if I kept on talking to the man and women I could’ve fallen for their trap and gotten robbed. Ahhhhh insanity. Honestly, when I’m on the subte or colectivo I literally watch my bags as if I’m in the FBI. No one is getting inside my zipped purses! Trust me…jajajaja