A Scammer, a Saint, and a Floral Straw in 3 hours
I should have taken a picture of him, or better yet, filmed his shameless a&& as he tried to scam me into buying a sim card from him that “might” get me data roaming in Sweden from his legitimate Lyca Mobile booth. He tried to sell me on a huge 30 GB data package that would work all over Europe in a month and when I told him I wanted something smaller, he shook his head in disbelief and then proceeded to tell me about the 2GB plan.
“Does it work in Sweden?”
“Where? Sweden?”
“Uh, yeah. I’ll be living in Sweden.”
“Yeah, I think.”
“You think?”
“Yeah, I’m not sure.”
I walk away and he yells after me: “Ok, my buddy can get you a 1GB plan. Come back!” I push my luggage cart onwards towards the lift and walk away from what I could tell could be big trouble.
After cursing the SIM card I had in my iPad for not working as it should, I finally found my way to my hotel, dropped my luggage off and proceeded to find a SIM card in the shopping centre.
A local overheard me speaking to a sales rep at Tre (one of the local phone plan providers) and after hearing the crazy amount they quoted me for a 2GB plan, he follows me outside with his little pixie of a daughter trailing after him.
He asks, in English, if I was looking for a phone or a SIM card and as I answered, he said, “Don’t go to a mobile phone store. They will rip you off just because they know you’re a foreigner and will pay anything. Come. I take you to find a FREE SIM card and get you an inexpensive data plan. You only want data yes?” His mixed British and Indian accent sounded a bit funny but at the same time familiar as I chase after this roly-poly of a man who could speak fluent Swedish, Danish, and English. His little daughter clutching his hand for dear life as she runs beside his speedy legs. She turns her head to look at me and as I smile at her, she shyly turns her attention back to where we were going.
After 30 minutes of going from convenience store to hole-in-the-wall, we finally found a place where the owner literally slides him 2 SIM cards across the counter. No money was exchanged.
“Here you go! FREE!”, he boasts proudly. His daughter wide-eyed as am I.
“Free…?”
“Yes, Ok. We go now to get phone plan.” as he runs off in another direction to find a grocer, or convenience store, or a gas station to buy data. After popping into 2 places with no luck, we finally found someone who could sell me a data plan. Mission accomplished!
We walk back to the centre of town and as we part, I thank him profusely, and he says, “You’re welcome and good luck!” as he shakes my hand. His daughter watches all of this and as her father walks away, she looks back at me and smiles. She will become a kind and giving lady one day because of her father, I’m sure of it.
As I settle down finally to a late lunch, I stop and listen, look, taste, and enjoy. Sitting on the patio at Raw Food House, I take in my surroundings and notice how beautiful the church is in all the sunlight. I take my time enjoying the BBQ Mushroom Burger, and the delicious carrot, apple, and ginger juice that was freshly pressed just 5 minutes ago. Only then as I put away my food porn photoshoot, do I notice the floral pattern on the straw. It is a friendly reminder that no matter how difficult the situation, everything will work out in the end.
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