Russians' luggage opened. Embarrassing video reaches 2.2 million views
A video from Alanya, Turkey, has gone viral on TikTok. In less than a day, it garnered 2.2 million views. The footage implies that Russian tourists were caught attempting to smuggle hotel souvenirs, including soaps and snacks.
8:43 AM EST, November 20, 2023
Politico reported that roughly 7 million Russians vacationed in Turkey this year. It's usually the wealthier citizens who choose to holiday abroad. The weak position of the ruble has led many Russians to spend their summers and autumns domestically.
Russian citizens have always been partial to Turkey. There are places where signs in Russian are more prevalent than in English, and the Russian language is commonly spoken.
Russian tourists accused of stealing from a Turkish hotel
Anton Heraszczenko, a Ukrainian advisor to the Minister of Internal Affairs, shared a video on portal X showing the kind of "souvenirs" Russian tourists allegedly tried to take back to their home country. The items included disposable slippers, soap, and shower gel.
That’s not all. Upon examining the refrigerator, hotel staff found about 77 pounds of various snacks, reportedly taken by the Russians from the buffet. The video depicts an array of items, including chips, sweet beverages, tea packets, and small packages of butter. The Russians argued they would consume all these during their train journey and requested to keep some food as they were slated to return home the same day.
Each time the hotel service unearthed more items, a Russian tourist argued, "We got them. Can't we take them home?" Staff members had to explain that the goods were for hotel use, not for guests to take away.
Interestingly, when asked why they wanted to take so many items, one tourist replied that they "wanted to keep them as souvenirs." As more luggage was opened, the discoveries became increasingly more awkward. The tourists purported to be carrying a plastic bottle full of water, but it turned out to be vodka.
