Taxi Drivers
Quote of the Day: Where are you going?
Have been bouncing around from blog to blog recently and finally came across something interesting to write about. Credit goes to Sparkie's friend starry .
Anyway, i've taken cabs in many different places but i reckon the most scary has to be in New York. The cab drivers here are a law unto themselves. No Stopping signs don't mean a thing, neither does swerving across two lanes to grab a customer! When finally in a cab, you're subjected to this constant jerking motion as the driver tries to swerve into slightly faster lanes or avoid one of his fellow denizens of the road. You wanna know what horseriding is like, take a cab in NYC. Needless to say, the cabbie would complain about people swerving across lanes even though he'd just done so moments ago. It's amazing there aren't more accidents in the city.
I think the most entertaining cabbies are singaporean cabbies. Sure they talk a lot but most of the time it's interesting. hehe...they love to talk about a few things. 1. The government. 2. By extension, the shortage/excess in number of taxi licenses given out.
In terms of skill, i'll say japanese cab drivers are the best. Keep in mind that Tokyo city was rebuilt in a pretty darn haphazard manner after the war. This means lots of very very narrow streets. The cabbies there seem to have no problem speeding down narrow lanes that have walls no more than a few inches from their side view mirrors! And their cabs are pretty cool too, with automatic doors! haha. Don't know if it's more for courtesy or keeping people from fleeing without paying :P Both i reckon.
Variety wise, i think Quebec has the best. There didn't seem to be any restriction on what kind of car can qualify for use as a taxi. There are the usual sedans but i did see some flashy ones. Imagine a sports car with a "taxi" sign on top. hehe. The cabbie who took me from hotel to airport recently gave the most interesting convo ever in a cab. Heard all about thie hippie days where he would just go and stay in strangers houses and sleep with all kinds of girls, in his words "big tats, small tats, no tats (must have been when he was drunk)" Of course that doesn't happen now, he's 58. Also heard all about his fishing trips and how Quebec should maintain their French identity.
Hardest place to flag a cab off the road has to be Australia! If you stay there, how many cabs have you seen on the roads?! Zip, zilch, nada! Only way you can get one is by calling for it OR, walking out of the arrivals hall at the airport!
Have been bouncing around from blog to blog recently and finally came across something interesting to write about. Credit goes to Sparkie's friend starry .
Anyway, i've taken cabs in many different places but i reckon the most scary has to be in New York. The cab drivers here are a law unto themselves. No Stopping signs don't mean a thing, neither does swerving across two lanes to grab a customer! When finally in a cab, you're subjected to this constant jerking motion as the driver tries to swerve into slightly faster lanes or avoid one of his fellow denizens of the road. You wanna know what horseriding is like, take a cab in NYC. Needless to say, the cabbie would complain about people swerving across lanes even though he'd just done so moments ago. It's amazing there aren't more accidents in the city.
I think the most entertaining cabbies are singaporean cabbies. Sure they talk a lot but most of the time it's interesting. hehe...they love to talk about a few things. 1. The government. 2. By extension, the shortage/excess in number of taxi licenses given out.
In terms of skill, i'll say japanese cab drivers are the best. Keep in mind that Tokyo city was rebuilt in a pretty darn haphazard manner after the war. This means lots of very very narrow streets. The cabbies there seem to have no problem speeding down narrow lanes that have walls no more than a few inches from their side view mirrors! And their cabs are pretty cool too, with automatic doors! haha. Don't know if it's more for courtesy or keeping people from fleeing without paying :P Both i reckon.
Variety wise, i think Quebec has the best. There didn't seem to be any restriction on what kind of car can qualify for use as a taxi. There are the usual sedans but i did see some flashy ones. Imagine a sports car with a "taxi" sign on top. hehe. The cabbie who took me from hotel to airport recently gave the most interesting convo ever in a cab. Heard all about thie hippie days where he would just go and stay in strangers houses and sleep with all kinds of girls, in his words "big tats, small tats, no tats (must have been when he was drunk)" Of course that doesn't happen now, he's 58. Also heard all about his fishing trips and how Quebec should maintain their French identity.
Hardest place to flag a cab off the road has to be Australia! If you stay there, how many cabs have you seen on the roads?! Zip, zilch, nada! Only way you can get one is by calling for it OR, walking out of the arrivals hall at the airport!
posted by cokecat at 11:44 am
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