Crazy-ass trip report

So I took care of some job applications recently and had a little time for some R&R and scheduled a trip down to Mexico. I crossed over into Tijuana and took the taxi to Rosarito and was looking forward to about 10 days in Puerto Vallarta and a week in Cabo San Lucas. Everything was looking good.
I flew to Guadalajara the next day and checked into my tiny little hotel room. I took the bus to Tepic the next morning. In Tepic my bank alerted me that some company called cndys.info was trying to take 49 bucks from my account. I had had some trouble with them before but the bank told me I could decline the charges without cancelling the card. This time their tune changed. They told me fraud was likely and they would have to cancel the card immediately. I asked them to reactivate the card for 10 minutes to run to the nearest ATM and they obliged. I was able to pull out 3000 pesos and started to wonder about my next move.
I went to Azteca Bank in Tepic, which has a Western Union. I explained my situation and they said normally they could give me cash if I sent money to myself but their ATM was broken, and that it would most likely be working the next morning--so I should come back. However the next morning there were different ladies working and they said there would be a problem since I did not have a "clave" (whatever that is) for my Western Union account. I told them I had an account with both Western Union and Bank of America and asked how I was supposed to come up with this elusive "clave." They started saying something about an "envio" and I realized my Spanish was too limited to have this conversation and started feeling queasy.
I went back to my hotel and called my siblings in California via Skype. One was sick, my mom is a little too old to figure out the Western Union online app and the two other siblings were not answering their phones.
Realizing I might be in deep shit, I came to the conclusion it was probably better to get out of Mexico ASAP. I walked to the nearest bus station in Tepic and bought a ticket to Tijuana for 2200 pesos.
The bus left in two hours and I spent the next 31 hours traveling through Mazatlan, Culiacan, Los Mochis, Hermosillo, Caborca, Mexicali and finally reached Tijuana at 11:30 PM. The guy sitting next to me had some similar bad luck with a bank and we had plenty to talk about, making the time go by faster. I crossed the border at San Ysidro in 20 minutes and took the trolley to Amtrak, Santa Fe station in San Diego and realized it was going to be a cold rainy Dark Night of the Soul. There was no way I was going to ask my sister, sick with the flu, to come down at midnight to pick me up, so I walked to American Plaza and fashioned a pillow out of my dirty t shirts and socks and backpack. An attractive young woman approached me and asked if she could sit next to me.
"Sure, no problem."
"It's nice to talk to someone--everyone here seems so cold."
"I'm typing an email to my sister but I can chat with you, nothing else to do."
"I agree."
"Nice to meet you." I said.
"By the way," she said. "Could you rub the back of my head--it helps the voices go away."
"The what????" I asked.
"The voices--the ones that keep telling me to do bad things. It just helps so much."
"I just got a phone call. Stay here, I will be back shortly" I responded, with every intent of finding a new place to sleep. I walked over toward the bay and found a spot under a coffee table across from a sandwich shop and shivered the next 3 hours away.
When I got up after an awfully uncomfortable 3 hours of semi-sleep, and sore legs, I walked to the Santa Fe station, with the faintest sunlight visible now to the East, where they informed that the trains were not running and I would have to take a bus.
"How much?"
"Twenty seven dollars."
"I only have twenty four, can I just go to San Clemente instead of Irvine?"
"Sorry, rules are rules."
"San Juan Capistrano? Oceanside?"
I asked about some other way to get to Orange County, and they said perhaps Greyhound would be appropriate. I asked where the station was and they said it was permanently closed and that I would have to make arrangements via the internet, once again establishing that Greyhound is the crappiest company under Heaven. Discouraged, I walked back to the Amtrak station and talked to the clerk directly (instead of the earlier chat was was done indirectly across a locked door through an intermediate--a security guard.) The clerk told me price was coming up as $11 instead of the expected $27 and I paid the fee and hopped on the bus. I hopped aboard and got to Irvine by 7 AM. My sister picked me up and dropped my off near my mom's estate at Einstein Bros Bagels in Mission Viejo where I had one hell of a pleasant, warm breakfast and was happy just to be alive.
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So here is my question--we have been to the moon and sent spacecraft to the outer edges of the solar system, so why in the world is it so hard for a bloke with a WU account and a Bank account, and proper documentation to get some cash in a foreign country when someone else clearly started the trouble with an illegal attempt at a cash grab? Where was this "clave" supposed to come from? And what the hell is an envio? Is it possible to file for damages from "Cndys.info." They caused me a hell of a lot of grief. They said via email yesterday I was on their "list" and that they offer unlimited streaming (that I never asked for) but I am demanding *specific* services associated with these charges and they are not getting back to me...possibly because they are realizing how much trouble they caused me and that they might be under investigation for fraud...

'clave' is 'clue' in English. I'm guessing it's your security password to use when you lose your card. My bank has the same system here in Canada.

Wholly shi*! That lady scared me just by reading what she said to you. Glad you're ok.

The guy on the bus said it meant pin, but if the WU account or the Bank of AMerica account don't didn't offer me a pin I don't get where it was supposed to come from. I showed the clerk at Azteca/WU my online WU account and she shook her head and said there was no clave.

Yeah, I will never again assume that cuteness and mental illness are mutually exclusive.

you might want to establish another account at another bank and have an ATM card for that account. We have two checking accounts at two different banks, one of which we use exclusively for travel. Thus if one of the accounts is not working we can just use the other. in addition, in extreme circumstances we could use out American Express card for a cash advance from our checking account, this generates a fee, so we don't use it.

So I took care of some job applications recently and had a little time for some R&R and scheduled a trip down to Mexico. I crossed over into Tijuana and took the taxi to Rosarito and was looking forward to about 10 days in Puerto Vallarta and a week in Cabo San Lucas. Everything was looking good.
I flew to Guadalajara the next day and checked into my tiny little hotel room. I took the bus to Tepic the next morning. In Tepic my bank alerted me that some company called cndys.info was trying to take 49 bucks from my account. I had had some trouble with them before but the bank told me I could decline the charges without cancelling the card. This time their tune changed. They told me fraud was likely and they would have to cancel the card immediately. I asked them to reactivate the card for 10 minutes to run to the nearest ATM and they obliged. I was able to pull out 3000 pesos and started to wonder about my next move.
I went to Azteca Bank in Tepic, which has a Western Union. I explained my situation and they said normally they could give me cash if I sent money to myself but their ATM was broken, and that it would most likely be working the next morning--so I should come back. However the next morning there were different ladies working and they said there would be a problem since I did not have a "clave" (whatever that is) for my Western Union account. I told them I had an account with both Western Union and Bank of America and asked how I was supposed to come up with this elusive "clave." They started saying something about an "envio" and I realized my Spanish was too limited to have this conversation and started feeling queasy.
I went back to my hotel and called my siblings in California via Skype. One was sick, my mom is a little too old to figure out the Western Union online app and the two other siblings were not answering their phones.
Realizing I might be in deep shit, I came to the conclusion it was probably better to get out of Mexico ASAP. I walked to the nearest bus station in Tepic and bought a ticket to Tijuana for 2200 pesos.
The bus left in two hours and I spent the next 31 hours traveling through Mazatlan, Culiacan, Los Mochis, Hermosillo, Caborca, Mexicali and finally reached Tijuana at 11:30 PM. The guy sitting next to me had some similar bad luck with a bank and we had plenty to talk about, making the time go by faster. I crossed the border at San Ysidro in 20 minutes and took the trolley to Amtrak, Santa Fe station in San Diego and realized it was going to be a cold rainy Dark Night of the Soul. There was no way I was going to ask my sister, sick with the flu, to come down at midnight to pick me up, so I walked to American Plaza and fashioned a pillow out of my dirty t shirts and socks and backpack. An attractive young woman approached me and asked if she could sit next to me.
"Sure, no problem."
"It's nice to talk to someone--everyone here seems so cold."
"I'm typing an email to my sister but I can chat with you, nothing else to do."
"I agree."
"Nice to meet you." I said.
"By the way," she said. "Could you rub the back of my head--it helps the voices go away."
"The what????" I asked.
"The voices--the ones that keep telling me to do bad things. It just helps so much."
"I just got a phone call. Stay here, I will be back shortly" I responded, with every intent of finding a new place to sleep. I walked over toward the bay and found a spot under a coffee table across from a sandwich shop and shivered the next 3 hours away.
When I got up after an awfully uncomfortable 3 hours of semi-sleep, and sore legs, I walked to the Santa Fe station, with the faintest sunlight visible now to the East, where they informed that the trains were not running and I would have to take a bus.
"How much?"
"Twenty seven dollars."
"I only have twenty four, can I just go to San Clemente instead of Irvine?"
"Sorry, rules are rules."
"San Juan Capistrano? Oceanside?"
I asked about some other way to get to Orange County, and they said perhaps Greyhound would be appropriate. I asked where the station was and they said it was permanently closed and that I would have to make arrangements via the internet, once again establishing that Greyhound is the crappiest company under Heaven. Discouraged, I walked back to the Amtrak station and talked to the clerk directly (instead of the earlier chat was was done indirectly across a locked door through an intermediate--a security guard.) The clerk told me price was coming up as $11 instead of the expected $27 and I paid the fee and hopped on the bus. I hopped aboard and got to Irvine by 7 AM. My sister picked me up and dropped my off near my mom's estate at Einstein Bros Bagels in Mission Viejo where I had one hell of a pleasant, warm breakfast and was happy just to be alive.
---------------------
So here is my question--we have been to the moon and sent spacecraft to the outer edges of the solar system, so why in the world is it so hard for a bloke with a WU account and a Bank account, and proper documentation to get some cash in a foreign country when someone else clearly started the trouble with an illegal attempt at a cash grab? Where was this "clave" supposed to come from? And what the hell is an envio? Is it possible to file for damages from "Cndys.info." They caused me a hell of a lot of grief. They said via email yesterday I was on their "list" and that they offer unlimited streaming (that I never asked for) but I am demanding *specific* services associated with these charges and they are not getting back to me...possibly because they are realizing how much trouble they caused me and that they might be under investigation for fraud...

My guess is that 'clave' really is:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CLABE

Your CLABE is your banking code for sending and receiving money from your account, something you should always have with you if you're traveling and relying on your bank for money. An "envío" is a shipment, or in your case, a money transfer. They were trying to help you send yourself money. A shame you didn't understand.

you might want to establish another account at another bank and have an ATM card for that account.

This is wise advise. From this forum, I learned about Schwab Bank. They will reimburse you the ATM fee from any bank in the world. At first, I didn't believe it. However, after speaking with one of their representatives about this perk, they said it was because it would cost them billions to create their own ATM network. I typically use the Inbursa ATM in Zihuatanejo across from Los Braseros (near Any's). They seem to have the lowest ATM fees. (No use in creating extra costs for Schwab.)

When you open a bank account at Schwab, you are also opening a brokerage account with them. Therefore, if you already have an account with another brokerage (or if you are a professional -- you know the drill), be sure to tell both Schwab and your brokerage account that you are opening the Schwab account. You don't want to run afoul of any regulatory issues.

Note: Whenever you have more than one securities account, aka brokerage account, you must disclose this to your companies. They will then make sure that you are not trading between your two accounts. Unscrupulous individuals will use low-priced stocks and buy and sell between their own accounts to give the appearance that a particular stock's price is rising. This attracts suckers who want to "get in on the action." The scammer (or scammers) raise the price until they believe they have stolen a sufficient amount and then disappear, leaving the sucker or suckers holding the worthless shares. This is an age-old scam called "pump and dump."

P.S. Low-priced stocks are typically called "centavo" stocks but this system will not allow you to use the word penny with the word stock.

Yes, that was the lesson learned here. I am applying for Discover or Master card in the next couple days.

FWIW discover is not as widely accepted.

Yes, that was the lesson learned here. I am applying for Discover or Master card in the next couple days.

Discover stinks.

Get yourself a Schwab account. Free ATM withdrawals all over the world. 100% great support.

We were switched to Schwab in September. Like you, we have been thrilled with the ATM fee refund.

In December, I used the INBURSA ATM exlusively, and no reimbursement. So, in January I finally called Schwab. They could find no trace of a charge for the ATM use, credited me $20 anyway and suggested that I get and keep receipts for future reference.

Used INBURSA twice Saturday. According to the receipts, no ATM charge.

What are you seeing???

We were switched to Schwab in September. Like you, we have been thrilled with the ATM fee refund.

In December, I used the INBURSA ATM exlusively, and no reimbursement. So, in January I finally called Schwab. They could find no trace of a charge for the ATM use, credited me $20 anyway and suggested that I get and keep receipts for future reference.

Used INBURSA twice Saturday. According to the receipts, no ATM charge.

What are you seeing???

On my last trip down last week, I didn't use the Inbursa ATM, instead relying on the BBVA (nee Bancomer) ATM since I have a BBVA account. However, I recommended the Inbursa ATM to a friend that I met there. She said that she, too, did not notice any ATM fee. Curiouser and curiouser.

FWIW discover is not as widely accepted.

I had a Discover account with a debit card for awhile. Found out that it did not work outside the US, so I closed it.

On it.

Fidelity also, with their Cash Management Account

Fidelity also, with their Cash Management Account

Careful. It seems to have that cursed 1% foreign transaction fee. Boo.

(Search for "foreign" -- it's in the fine print.)

Fidelity also, with their Cash Management Account

Not giving up 1% of my money for their foreign fee conversion.

Fidelity also, with their Cash Management Account

Careful. It seems to have that cursed 1% foreign transaction fee. Boo.

(Search for "foreign" -- it's in the fine print.)

Used my Fidelity debit card in a foreign country recently and did not get charged the 1% foreign transaction fee. The ATM fee was rebated within 3 days, not at the end of the month like Schwab. I only got the Fidelity card after a trip where my Schwab card was hacked and I had to use my main bank debit card, which cost me the standard 3% foreign transcation fee. One of my life-long principles has been to avoid paying bank fees or credit card interest and I'm pretty successful at it.

... One of my life-long principles has been to avoid paying bank fees or credit card interest and I'm pretty successful at it.

Question: How do you know a bank is making money?
Answer: Their doors are open.

Pshaw...Don't those bankers know Usury is a sin?

Pshaw...Don't those bankers know Usury is a sin?

Usury is kinda' a sin in the Bible but not entirely. The Bible also says that you should never touch a woman during their menstruation. However, they get really touchy when I ask them if they are on their period before I shake hands with them.

And let's not even mention selling your daughters into slavery, okay? There are some on the political spectrum who are trying to rehabilitate the "Peculiar Institution" down in Florida.