General Info

For the guys who asked again If I were going anywhere on a trip I'the get a cheap GSM unlocked droid or Google Pixel.

Why a droid? Because it's easier to create profiles that hide apps that you'the need an additional passcode to get into. This is not stopping any Law enforcement agency that wants to get into your phone this stops some criminals and bored Customs officials You'the want either Trip It or Wanderlog on the front facing profile so when they ask you why you're in Colombia you can book some fake tours. Obviously you need what's app but in the other profile you should have Signal not Whats app. WA is totally compromised nothing that you say is Encrypted in a way that any Cop can't easily crack in fact Meta will gladly allow access to any government official who asks. If you must save pictures you should run them through EXIF to scrub location data off the pictures and use Photon Drive They have a limited free option again not going to save you from a real investigation but if it's in a profile maybe a strong two factor passcode generated by vault warden It will get you pass a bored and busy Customs official who will just wave you through and focus on the guy bringing in 87 18 in dildos.

Hope this Helps.

Trip.

They're going to Colombia more and more and more! For the uh "birds". Hehehe!

[URL]https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/birding-paradise-flourishes-in-colombian-region-that-was-once-a-war-zone-60-minutes-transcript/[/URL]

[QUOTE=TheCane;3064234]They're going to Colombia more and more and more! For the uh "birds". Hehehe!

[URL]https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/birding-paradise-flourishes-in-colombian-region-that-was-once-a-war-zone-60-minutes-transcript/[/URL][/QUOTE]Colombia detains and deports 10 "birders" in a single day as part of Fico's War on birding enthusiasts. Upon inspecting the group's luggage, authorities found large quantities of birding equipment. The measures are a part of broader government efforts to curb wildlife trafficking and exploitation.

[URL]https://thecitypaperbogota.com/news/colombia-bars-10-foreigners-in-single-day-crackdown-on-suspected-sex-tourism/[/URL]

From 5/28 to 5/31 I was getting lots of random alerts on my phone from my bank. It was telling me they were refunding charges that were made in February and March. Odd, I didn't pay it any mind until I noticed they then recharged me for the same transaction at a few cents higher.

When given the option I always select Pesos but I don't get why they are refunding transactions and recharging at a higher rate 2 months later.

Anyone else seeing this?

To reduce the risk of not being admitted to the country observe the following:

Avoid flying into Medellin, avoid traveling on a US passport, avoid looking like a sex-tourist, and importantly when questioned don't tell officials you intend to "select women to have sexual relations" in your home country.

Basically, look and talk like a normal person and you'll be fine, even if you bring a big box of condoms (to enjoy with your girlfriend, obviously). Remember, sex is legal in Colombia, even for foreigners.

Authorities have to be seen to be keeping the country safe, so they make an example every now and then. But 99.99% of tourists have no issue at the border and even 99.9% of sex tourists get in without a problem.

[QUOTE=Arcangel;3068761]To reduce the risk of not being admitted to the country observe the following:

Avoid flying into Medellin, avoid traveling on a US passport, avoid looking like a sex-tourist, and importantly when questioned don't tell officials you intend to "select women to have sexual relations" in your home country.

Basically, look and talk like a normal person and you'll be fine, even if you bring a big box of condoms (to enjoy with your girlfriend, obviously). Remember, sex is legal in Colombia, even for foreigners.

Authorities have to be seen to be keeping the country safe, so they make an example every now and then. But 99.99% of tourists have no issue at the border and even 99.9% of sex tourists get in without a problem.[/QUOTE]Yeah, there are always a lot of bum looking dudes and clear sex tourists that get through every time I'm there. It must be something the people getting caught are doing wrong, I can't imagine just a normal acting dude getting denied.

To be safe if just say put any prior pics of escorts into a secure folder and clear your chats.

[QUOTE=Nypher;3068685]From 5/28 to 5/31 I was getting lots of random alerts on my phone from my bank. It was telling me they were refunding charges that were made in February and March. Odd, I didn't pay it any mind until I noticed they then recharged me for the same transaction at a few cents higher.

When given the option I always select Pesos but I don't get why they are refunding transactions and recharging at a higher rate 2 months later.

Anyone else seeing this?[/QUOTE]Something similar. Or maybe the same exact thing.

I have Citibank Visa (Costco branded).

In March and April, I was "accidentally" charged in US dollars on 4 occasions.

I'm am looking at the charges right now on my internet site.

All those charges got re-posted in US dollars on May 22. Then I got a refund for the original peso amount re-posted on May 29. I got back 93%. Must be a glitch. Not complaining at all.

Hence, didn't we get the meal for virtually free? At 7% of the original cost?

Look at the charges sequentially. The first charge should be the US dollar amount. The waiters pressed the wrong button. I think that happened to you.

Then the next charge will be the refund for the peso amount.

That means overall, we were charged only 7% of the original amount.

Correct?

Backstory:

Yes, always ask to be charged in the local currency, or they will rip you off. But now, you have to do it yourself. The waiters are ignorant.

Those MFers changed something in the credit card charging system.

Note: It depends on how the owners / management sets up the credit card machine. It has the capability to automatically charge in pesos if they don't want to overcharge their foreign guest.

Previously, many machines would ask if you want to be charged in pesos or US dollars. You press either 1 or 2. If you press 1 or the green button (next), you would get ripped off. It was fairly easy to understand.

Now many places has this new system in which they ask you (a long question) if you want to decline or accept the charges, with a mention of the currency conversion. They charge 7% extra. I thought many years ago, it was around 4%.

But that question can get confusing. Initially I thought you had to accept it to get charged. But nope. Read it carefully. You have to decline to be charged in pesos (It doesn't clearly state this). What's more confusing is that sometimes they will ask if you want the menu / question to be in English or Spanish. If it's in Spanish, we will get confused. If it's in English, the waiter will get confused.

I'm very happy right now. If I knew, I would have charged everything to US dollars. I hope my bank / Visa doesn't catch the glitch and recharge me.

I'm guessing / speculating that our banks / Visa attempted (incorrectly) to either give us back our 7%, or rejected their attempt to rip us off.

[QUOTE=GreenBud;3068770]

In March and April, I was "accidentally" charged in US dollars on 4 occasions.

I'm am looking at the charges right now on my internet site.

All those charges got re-posted in US dollars on May 22. Then I got a refund for the original peso amount re-posted on May 29. I got back 93%. Must be a glitch. Not complaining at all.

Hence, didn't we get the meal for virtually free? At 7% of the original cost?[/QUOTE]I must be missing something in your expanation. You say you were charged in March and April, then the charges got "re-posted" on May 22. That says they were posted twice. You then say you got a refund for the original peso amount on May 29. You got charged twicw in USD and one refund in COP. That doesn't look like a good deal to me. If you got a refund in USD that's not in your report, then you did get a good deal.

I almost always use the Davivienda ATM's, so this report is about them. I don't know if it is the same with other banks. In the past, the ATM rate corresponded to the Visa Exchange Rate, maybe a few cents different. The Visa Exchange Rate lags the mid-market rate by one full day. Today, the dollar took a big hit against the COP, dropping 100 COP to the USD. I went to the ATM, thinking I will beat the drop. Before and after doing the transaction, I checked the VISA Exchange Rate and it was 3678 COP / USD. When I checked my bank account, I received 3560 COP / USD. I declined the bank conversion rate. Looking at today's rate history, the rate was 3560 around 7 am (noon UTC) and 3562 at 10 am (1500 UTC). Other times were vastly different. It appears I'm no longer able to watch the Visa Exchange Rate and get a good rate.

[QUOTE=FunLuvr;3068779]You say you were charged in March and April, then the charges got "re-posted" on May 22. That says they were posted twice.[/QUOTE]I charged it in March and April.

The charges are still listed in the March and April sequential list, but in the detail information, it states that the charge got posted on May 22. I did not get charged twice.

When I checked my current charges back in March and April, it did not show the refunds. It seems that my bank redid everything on May 22 and May 29.

I'm confused, but happy.

[QUOTE=FunLuvr;3068783]I almost always use the Davivienda ATM's, so this report is about them. I don't know if it is the same with other banks. In the past, the ATM rate corresponded to the Visa Exchange Rate, maybe a few cents different. The Visa Exchange Rate lags the mid-market rate by one full day. Today, the dollar took a big hit against the COP, dropping 100 COP to the USD. I went to the ATM, thinking I will beat the drop. Before and after doing the transaction, I checked the VISA Exchange Rate and it was 3678 COP / USD. When I checked my bank account, I received 3560 COP / USD. I declined the bank conversion rate. Looking at today's rate history, the rate was 3560 around 7 am (noon UTC) and 3562 at 10 am (1500 UTC). Other times were vastly different. It appears I'm no longer able to watch the Visa Exchange Rate and get a good rate.[/QUOTE]Did you include the ATM fees in your equation? I believe that bank charges the withdrawal fees.

The equation should be: (pesos taken out + pesos withdrawal fee) / amount your bank charges = exchange rate.

FYI, the exchange rate is determined by your bank. The exchange rate you get in one particular country using the same debit card will be exactly the same using any ATM in that country.

The exchange rate using Schwab is slightly better than Citigold in Colombia and Philippines. Citigold is slightly better in Spain and / or Portugal. The difference maybe was around / less than 0. 25%. It adds up if you take out a lot of cash. In Thailand, the exchange rate was virtually the same. Schwab was better by a few Baht.

[QUOTE=GreenBud;3068791]Did you include the ATM fees in your equation? I believe that bank charges the withdrawal fees.

The exchange rate using Schwab is slightly better than Citigold in Colombia and Philippines. [/QUOTE]I included the 26 mil Davivienda charges in the calculation. I use the Schwab card.

[QUOTE=GreenBud;3068787]I charged it in March and April.

The charges are still listed in the March and April sequential list, but in the detail information, it states that the charge got posted on May 22. I did not get charged twice.

When I checked my current charges back in March and April, it did not show the refunds. It seems that my bank redid everything on May 22 and May 29.

I'm confused, but happy.[/QUOTE]So after a bit of digging, it seems like it had something to do with Dynamic Currency Conversion and transactions that were processed in Pesos which allowed my bank to do the conversion were refunded then recharged in Dollars months later which allowed the Colombian bank to process the conversion rate for their benefit which then came out at a higher rate to the card holder.

Pretty sneaky as there was no notice from the bank to card holders and this was all automatically done.

[QUOTE=Arcangel;3068761]To reduce the risk of not being admitted to the country observe the following:

Avoid flying into Medellin, avoid traveling on a US passport, avoid looking like a sex-tourist, and importantly when questioned don't tell officials you intend to "select women to have sexual relations" in your home country.

Basically, look and talk like a normal person and you'll be fine, even if you bring a big box of condoms (to enjoy with your girlfriend, obviously). Remember, sex is legal in Colombia, even for foreigners.

Authorities have to be seen to be keeping the country safe, so they make an example every now and then. But 99.99% of tourists have no issue at the border and even 99.9% of sex tourists get in without a problem.[/QUOTE]JAJAJAA That's way too much.

Normal people are not getting denied.

The ones that are getting denied are flagged before they get on the plane or they are in some database in Colombia such as having reports filed against them.

Colombia can deny someone based on what's on their criminal record, so if guys were convicted of playing with minors, they are on that Angel Watch list and countries can decide if they want them Allot of these people who committed violations while in Colombia and now getting denied entry years later is lucky they were denied entry because Colombia could have allowed them in then arrest them and lock them up in Colombia.

Every time I enter they only ask where I'm staying and a phone number, in all my years they have never asked me any other question that would lead me to say anything about women.

[QUOTE=Nypher;3068926]So after a bit of digging, it seems like it had something to do with Dynamic Currency Conversion and transactions that were processed in Pesos which allowed my bank to do the conversion were refunded then recharged in Dollars months later which allowed the Colombian bank to process the conversion rate for their benefit which then came out at a higher rate to the card holder.

Pretty sneaky as there was no notice from the bank to card holders and this was all automatically done.[/QUOTE]Ya, you're right. I got confused.

What happened is that a few months ago, I was charged in pesos on my credit card bill, even though those waiters selected US dollar. I paid the credit card bill.

Then on this current statement, the banks did the charge and charge back to get their 7%.

This only happened for the charges in which the waiters selected US dollar conversion. Watch out and be careful, if you don't want to pay the extra 7%.