In Reply to: Get some coins and grind posted by bogden on Friday, 13. June 2008 at 13:18 Bali Time:
There are many scams in Bali, most affecting only the locals. The Coin Scam is unique as it affects only Australian tourists and goes like this. A local offers you to make a bracelet out your Australian coins for 35,000 Rp. You hand over five $A2 coins and 35,000 Rp. The local then pays a metalsmith 10,000Rp to make the bracelet out of scrap brass worth 1,000 Rp. The local also sells the five coins to an airport employee for say 50,000 Rp. The airport employee wraps the coins in plastic and sells them to a departing tourist for $A10. The airport employee then exchanges the $A10 for 88,000 Rp.
The gullible Australian tourist marvels at the ingenuity of the local in making a bracelet out of coins for $A4 and a few loose coins. The local has made a profit of 75,000 Rp, the metalsmith a profit of 9,000 Rp and the airport employee a profit of 38,000 Rp.
To a wealthy tourist this scam may appear trivial, but in Bali where a hotel receptionist may only receive a monthly salary of 250,000 Rp plus board, such profits are not trivial.
When I am asked for Australian coins in the street, I turn around and offer them some Indonesian coins which are of course legal tender. My offer of Indonesian coins is quickly rejected. They know that an Australian $2 coin is worth Rp 17,600, even if the Australian tourist does not.