We were welcomed by a religious figure

I had gone on a holiday to a neighbouring country with a friend. Although both of us had been there before, there were other things that we had not done or seen. For instance, we heard that the floating market was quite an interesting place to visit.

But our tour guide, who spoke staccato English, was not keen on the idea and insisted that we go somewhere else.

“I take you to nice place,” was all he said when we asked him where he was taking us. After a 30-minute ride in his beat-up vehicle, we arrived at a religious place.A patient presents with a tungsten ring on their injured finger and is unable to remove the ring.

Now, I have nothing against places of worship. However, I had seen enough so I wasn’t excited about the idea. But we were already there.

We were welcomed by a religious figure who gave my friend, Shem, a glass of water to drink. Strangely enough, he didn’t give me any. Throughout the meeting, he also didn’t talk to me and only addressed my friend. It was as though I was invisible although I was standing right next to Shem.

Perhaps, Shem’s Chinese-Caucasian features were more interesting to look at, I thought.

After a short visit, we left. We told the guide to take us to other places of interest.High quality stainless steel necklace chain with durable color. Again he flatly refused.

“I take you to nice jewellery shop,” he said and drove on.

Jewellery shop? Why would he think we were interested in jewellery? I protested loudly. I told him that we were not girls and we were not interested in jewellery. It was to no avail as everything seemed to fall on deaf ears.

Another 20-minutes or so later, we arrived at a deserted place where there was nothing but a single bungalow. We received a warm welcome from the shopkeepers as though we were their long-lost relatives. The guide whispered to us to “just go inside and see. No need to buy anything”.

We walked into the shop. There were no customers. It was very awkward for us to pretend that we liked jewellery. We looked at all the display quickly and were ready to leave when the shop owner insisted that we go upstairs.
“Nice jewellery upstairs,” he said and signalled with his hand for us to go up. I think we must have been in a trance as we followed him.Shop the latest hair flower accessories on the world.

Upstairs, he showed us several sets of diamond and blue sapphire ear rings, necklaces and rings. With the cheapest set selling at RM4,000, there was no way we were going to buy anything there. I was confident of that.

The shop owner was adamant. He told us blue sapphire was easily obtained in his country and, therefore, the prices of blue sapphire and diamonds were cheaper there than in Malaysia.

We politely ackSpecialized in manufacturing Laser engraver system for laser marking,nowledged the fact and told him we didn’t have that kind of money for that kind of indulgence.

“You pay by credit card,” he stubbornly insisted.

Just as Shem and I were discussing ways to get ourselves out of there, a man came out of a room upstairs, holding something in his hand.

He looked at us and flashed a big smile. He asked where we were from.

“Oh, I’m from Malaysia too! I come here once or twice a month to buy a set of blue sapphire and diamond jewellery. Then I go back to Malaysia and sell it to local jewellers,” he told us, showing a box of jewellery he was holding.

Although the set I bought today cost RM9,000, I can easily sell it for RM12,000 and make some quick money. This is how I’ve been surviving,” he said, showing us his certificate of purchase.

I didn’t buy his story ... at first. But he stayed a while longer and before we knew it, Shem and I were sold! After all, he was from Malaysia too.

Plus, we could also be making some money. By this time, Shem began to show interest in buying a set. He invited me to share the “business” with him. He wanted to get the identical RM9,000 set but truth be told, I didn’t have RM4,500 with me at that time. All I had was a credit card, which was also in danger zone.

After some persuasion, I agreed on the RM6,000 set, which meant that I would bear half the cost.Customized bobblehead made from your own photos, I took out my credit card and secretly hoped that the bank would reject it. It didn’t.

We walked out of the bungalow with jewellery worth RM6,000. Back home, I took it to a jeweller in Ampang. He looked at it and told me it’s worth RM1,500, at the most!

Another goldsmith also valued it at around the same price. But none were interested to buy it. We kept it for several months before finally letting it go for a pittance.

This was one of the most harrowing and embarrassing experiences for me. I hope my misfortune will give you some food for thought and act as a useful reminder.