As someone who has pretty extraordinary cross-culturally informative cab rides on an almost weekly basis I LOVED this post. (By the way – I had another great cab ride yesterday – the driver told me all about her plans to open up a manicure shop – she told me she had a “rough life” and that she wasn’t really a “college person” although she loved to read – and that she has “worked really hard, and deserves to be the boss of somebody else for a change”. Her nails were spectacular, long and frosty white. She was great.)
I am a person who has discussed with cab drivers (among other things):
1. The blowing up of Buddhist statues in Afghanistan (which involved me saying, “Why’d you guys blow ’em up, ya think?” Uhm – “you guys’, Sheila?? Did he do it personally? Good conversaiton though, about religious extremism) This was before 9/11 too.)
2. The tragedy of Mount Ararat for the Armenian people
3. My Bangladeshi driver’s upcoming arranged marriage
and
4. My psychological profile
So I totally loved the story she told in that post The frustration of all-day traffic gridlock – and then – suddenly – a whiff of beautiful humanity. I love that passenger she describes!!
There is a blog I ran across last night that is written by a cabbie in Australia who is discussing his trips and passengers. some of them are truly funny and some of them are interesting. There’s a funny one where he gets a couple of passengers who get in and want him to take them to a brothel.