riding in taxis

 

Living in the big city and not having a car means that I take taxis pretty often.  I go to about 3 meetings a week outside of my neighborhood, so that makes for 6 taxi rides, 6 different taxi drivers.  It is kind of a drag having to walk the 1/4 mile to the paved road and wait for a taxi to come by and then discuss destination and price.  The taxis are not usually in great condition, and there is never air conditioning, so the windows are open and I have to wear a scarf on my head while I inhale dust and exhaust fumes from all the other vehicles on the roads.  But I try to think of it as an adventure (and if you know what traffic is like here you know that it isn't just simply getting from point A to point B, but it is in fact an adventure!)  And I try to chat with the taxi drivers and that can be at least interesting if not entertaining.  Sometimes they don't speak much French at all, so I try to communicate with them in Bambara, and that is always good for a laugh!
Probably every week I could share some kind of strange taxi story, but I'm not sure if everyone would find them as amusing as I do.  There are a few that I can share now though:

One time I opened the door (front door, it is normal to sit up front with the driver) and saw that there was a towel on the seat.  I touched it and it was pretty damp, so I got into the back of the taxi instead.  There was no towel there, but in sitting down I discovered that it was also wet.  I went to my meeting with a damp skirt that day.  They taxi had just been washed, not vacuumed, but washed with lots of water, and it hadn't quite dried yet.

In getting in a taxi I noticed a beeping sound coming from the dash.  It kept beeping, so I asked the driver what the problem was.  He laughed and said it just does that.  I had to listen to it for my 15 minute ride, and I got out very thankful that I didn't have to listen to it all day long like the taximan.

More than once I've been asked by a taximan if I am French.  This is kind of a compliment to my French-speaking ability, but more so it is a confirmation that French is not this guy's first language!

When I got in a taxi one day this week the taximan was smoking a cigarette.  He asked me if it bothered me and I said "no big deal."  The windows were all wide open, and I figure I am already breathing in plenty of nastiness just by being on the road!  He finished smoking and then proceeded to explain to me how terrible smoking is for one's health, that is gives people cancer, and that it is a waste of money. 

Also this week I took a taxi ride and the only money I had was a 10,000cfa note - equal to about $20.  This is the largest note and often very hard to break. The taximan did not have enough change (the price for my ride was 1,000cfa) so we had to stop near my destination so that I could buy some eggs and get change.  I walked into my meeting with a bag of eggs (no cartons here) but no one seemed to think that it was strange.