People are saying that the kidnapping and extortion incident involving Lan Zhanfei shows how bad public security is abroad. It reminded me of my own experience in Kuala Lumpur a few years ago.

Five of us girls were waiting for a car downstairs at our hotel when we got robbed! And it happened right in front of a five-star hotel in the city center! All our phones, cameras, passports, IDs, and cash were in one bag, and we lost everything together!

The strange thing was, we had called a Grab, but the car kept driving in the wrong direction, the driver was unreachable, and the phone didn’t work, just circling around in the same spot. Then a motorcycle rode up onto the steps and hit me, and my other friends came over. After that, a second motorcycle just snatched our bag away. Coincidentally, right after the robbery, Grab canceled the order too. It must have been a coordinated gang—using Grab to lock our location, then the motorcycle gang came straight to rob us. I wanted to chase them, but my friend said not to, afraid they might pull a knife or attack us…

When we called the police, as soon as they heard we were Chinese, they just hung up on us.

Then we contacted the embassy, and they said there was no way to recover our belongings and that we could only explain the situation and reapply for our passports.

But honestly, most people were really friendly.

When I first arrived in Kuala Lumpur, there was a little mix-up at the airport. My friend and I flew in from different airports in China and agreed to meet at the airport. After I landed, I sent a message in our group chat and then immediately dropped my phone, smashing it to pieces. My friend couldn’t find me, and I couldn’t contact anyone, so I was basically missing from the morning. I went outside the airport by myself and asked a local girl where I could get my phone fixed. She was super nice—she drew me a map, helped me get a taxi, and told me how much the ride and repairs should cost so I wouldn’t get scammed. My phone was fixed by around 3 p.m., and when I turned it on, I saw over a hundred missed calls. My friend was crying, saying she couldn't find me at all and had even called the embassy, who told her I might have been kidnapped and had my phone confiscated!! I swear, I nearly gave her a heart attack! The news almost reached my family that I’d been kidnapped! Thank goodness the repair was quick!!

When I was in Thailand, I also ran into a black taxi that drove me to a deserted road and asked me for more money! He said if I didn’t pay, he’d leave me stranded! Damn! For my safety, I just agreed to pay. When we got to the destination, I said I didn’t have enough cash and needed to exchange some. Then, at the store, I told the boss, and he went out and spoke to the driver in Thai. I couldn’t understand, but it sounded fierce! I think he really scolded the driver, and the guy just left! Honestly, there are still more good people than bad!

After that, I learned to be smarter when traveling abroad: always dress a little shabby,
don’t look too much like a tourist or too well put together!
Never show off big-logo designer bags.
Only wear pretty clothes for photos and then change out, haha.
People in crypto shouldn’t show off exchange merchandise either.
Otherwise, bad guys will spot you right away.
Don’t flaunt your wealth,
and never post your location online in real time.

Public security at home is still way better than outside, not perfect, but when you’re abroad, you really have to stay alert and vigilant.

In the end, Kota Kinabalu and Semporna were absolutely beautiful, the locals were super friendly, the diving instructor was handsome, haha, and the glassy sea is a place I’d love to visit again!