A nurse colleage of mine told me this story about her son/his girlfriend taking the train in Hungary. They went to the station and bought tickets at an automatic ticking station, boarded the train, then soon after a woman asked them to present her their tickers. When they did, she raised a ruckus calling them liars and their tickets were no good and demanded that immediately they pay a fine ($300 cash) and get off the train or they would be arrested. After standing their ground, they took her off the train with them and walked over to the ticket-machine where a teenage boy had helped them buy the tickets, although he had not bought the tickets for them. The boy absolutely stood his ground that he had never seen them before. She again told them to pay the fine, and they began to talk about getting police involved. When those words came out, the boy said he helped them, and the woman let it drop and "let" them back onto the train.
Posted by
Ballwin
833 posts
If you are able to buy tickets on your own, refuse the assistance of anyone standing near you. Sometimes it can be an experience like this, sometimes they are beggars wanting a euro or two in return for their help, and other times they are distracting you while their friend starts to dig in your pocket.