Hawkers at all the tourist spots. The Eiffel tower and Montmartre were the worst. The guys at Montmartre kept grabbing at Gus and Theo to try to make them braided bracelets. I had to employ my teacher death stare and avery firm NON! Mind you the "tower sellers" as they were christened by Gus and Theo, inadvertantly became a highlight with the arrival of a couple of policemen on bikes. There was a general scattering with African gentlemen sprinting off towards the Trocadero and trying to blend into the crowds, as the police just rode on through. It was like some funny comedy sequence. They were all back again about 5 minutes later though and the whole sequence repeated itself every 20 minutes or so.
More disturbing were the women beggars (I hesitate to say gypsies, although I think they probably would class themselves as such) draped in shawls and headscarfes. Their line - "Do you speeeeeek Eeeenglish?" the answer is "YES - GO AWAY!"
We even had one guy try the old "Oh, you've dropped your gold ring" trick on us. He wasn't very good at it though, as I actually saw him put it on the ground. He'll need a bit more practise if he is ever going to fleece anybody.
Rod's low light would have to be the cost of a beer! Even in our quiet little local area a beer at the local cafe can cost anything up to 8 Euros - that's roughly $12 Australian. Too much for a big night out, that's for sure!