I was sitting at a sidewalk cafe in Barcelona, drinking a $30(!) glass of sangria. So many people came up to us to ask for money that at one point, they had to form a line. It was both funny and sad.

I learned at an early age to strongly rebuff anyone who comes up to me unexpectedly. But this guy in Budapest, and a few others like him, still make me feel bad when I think about it. To them, we’re inexplicably rich morons, blundering through the world with money dripping from every pore. Which of course, isn’t true. Then again, I can’t say I’d do anything different in their position. Just by being born in wealthy countries, we are some of the richest people in the world.

Then there are the begpackers and assorted scumbags who come from wealthy countries and still resort to scamming. That’s a topic for a different article…