6000 year old rip off
Egypt. I was staying in a hostel in Cairo and the receptionist asked me if I wanted to go on a tour of the pyramids for 5 Egyptian pounds (no idea how much that was in real money, but it seemed cheap). I said yes. He called someone and about two minutes later a taxi driver appeared. I was to be the only person on the 'tour' ... which should have been my tip off.

First off, he took the five pounds. No problem. Then he drove me to a papyrus 'museum' . I told him I wasn't interested, but he asked me just to have a look around and then we'd be on our way. I looked around and was called a choice selection of spit-flecked and abusive names when I didn't buy a £100 image of a pharoah rendered lovingly on papyrus.

Then I was taken to the pyramids ... or at least to a stinking stables within a stone's throw of them. Here, I was told by a James Bond villain that I was going to pay 200 Egyptiam pounds to ride a flea-bitten camel around the pyramids.

ME: But this is a five-pound tour.
THEM: [Much hilarious laughter]
ME: I'm not paying more than five pounds. I don't want a camel.
THEM: What about a donkey?
ME: No.
THEM: If you don't pay 200, we'll leave you here.
ME: [Worried]. I suppose I could give you another 5 pounds.
THEM: 100, or you walk back. Do you know the way?

In short, I paid 140 Egyptian pounds to allow a ten year-old boy lead me within ten metres of the pyramids on a thread-bare donkey, whereupon a guard stopped us for not paying official entrance and fined me a further 50 (which went in his pocket). Every moment of this brief and illegal trip was contaminated by brown-toothed beggars swearing at me beacuse I wouldn't buy their tacky shit. And flies buzzing round the donkey's soiled arse.

I said to the boy, "Do you know, I came across Europe to see this?" And he said, "Why?"

Fucking Egypt.
(frankspencer, Fri 16 Feb 2007, 15:32, Reply)