Taxi Hail...

Ok, maybe I spelled that wrong, but you get the idea, right?

Living in Singapore has its nice cushy spots and its inconveniences.  Inconveniences = Taxi

I like having my own transportation; my own car to get in and drive whenever I chose to do so.  I hate depending on other people, but depend I must.   We are going into our third year of owning a car and a truck that are parked (semi) permanently in a warehouse waiting on their faithful owners to come claim them.  Ha!

Not looking like this will happen anytime soon, but we always have taxis for transportation, right?

Taxis in Singapore are plentiful:

They are pretty much everywhere you look:

Even when I look down from our balcony they are right there:

If for some reason you don't see one, what do you do?  You call for one and they come right away to pick you up  :-)

Unless it is raining.  Then hold on, to your phone - they are "PROcessing your BOOKing now!" - for the next 10-20 minutes.  And sometimes, it says there no taxi available and hangs up on you.  Repeat step one... Don't plan on being in a hurry when it looks like it is raining anywhere on the island.

When you get a taxi, you have many different kids of drivers - and you know almost immediately what kind you have.  Let me give you a few examples...

Upon getting in the taxi, you might have:

- one that smokes and quickly rolls down the windows to get the billowing smoke out of the taxi

- one that likes to use their 'air con' to blow the 5 bowls of air freshener around the tiny interior of the car - leaving you to smell like a toilet bowl deodorizer when you step out of the taxi.

- or he may put a pandan tree in the trunk to ward off evil spirits.  Ok, so it is leaves, but it smells like the whole tree...

- and there are the ones who act like they don't understand your language/dialect, corrects you when you pronounce something... now the problem with this is you have Singaporeans that pronounce Arang one way and the Malays pronounce Arang another way.

Some roll the 'R's" and insist you roll yours -  prompting you to say it after them.  Others insist is all where you put the emphasis... I don't know how I am supposed to know the correct pronunciation, but I am.  

The Malay taxi driver I just learned it from (again) obviously pronounces it wrong, because once I get it exactly right for him and say it the same way for the next driver, I get "Eh?  Eh??  Uhhh, cannot!"  "Ahhhh!  Kompang A-rong!"  

Isn't that what I just said?

Finally on the way to your destination, you find that your taxi driver:

- May be the stiff armed driver:

With really stiff arms:

Making extremely exaggerated moves to turn the car, whipping you from one side of the seat to the other.

Or, how do you take pictures of the taxi drivers that step on the gas, let off, step on the gas, let off - like frantic little surges? (Norma style for my family members)  There are days when I get out of those taxis with an upset stomach.

And there are the ones that tailgate, nearly sideswipe or cuts off other drivers... it has been noted that the less I feel safe in the car, the more I move to the center of the car, protecting me with a shield of distance between me and the door.

There is the talking taxi driver:  

"You live in Singapore?"  "Yes, I live here."  "You like Singapore?"  "Yes, I like Singapore fine."  "How long in Singapore?"  "2 years"  "You live in quite nice condo, how much you pay?"  "I don't have any idea, not my problem"  "$5000 per month!  Singaporeans cannot afford (pay that much)"  "Why you live in Singapore?"  "My husband works here"  "Where you from?"  "States"  "Oh!  Barack Obama great president - you very lucky!  How you feel having Muslim president?"   (I SWEAR I have heard this over and over again - I am NOT making this up.)

That is where the discussion gets nasty.  They usually shut up after I have said my piece. 

* * * * * * * * * * *

Or you may get the taxi drivers who "cannot".  No matter what you say, they "cannot" (cannot understand, cannot go that way, do not know where, cannot take you because of shift change)... whatever, they "cannot!"

We have taxi drivers that are quite into car toys:

Some toys even whirr and make noises - clicking is common - but this one is a whirrr... thankfully:

Some have their gods, lucky knots, buddas, temples and other religious stuff adorning the car dashes and mirrors:

And some you wonder how they can even drive with so many car toys:

Some flat out cannot drive:

 (Notice I was sitting in the center of the car with this one)

Some drive down the dotted line like it is supposed to be centered under the car:

It is not supposed to be centered under the car.  The dotted line is supposed to be between the cars - just like in the states.

And then there are the ones that think it is best if you don't SEE their driving:

Most take you the correct and quickest route - this is down East Coast Park near where I live.  However you do have some that take you for a ride - pardon the pun.   

Imagine an "I".  We live on the bottom of that "I" and the airport is on the top of the "I".  How does a taxi driver take the curved part of the R from the airport to get to our place?  It is a straight shot folks.  Thankfully I knew that and corrected him - what did he think I was - a woman?  He tried to convince me there were seven ways to China...  I am not going to China thank you.  I am going home.  Straight shot dude!  And deduct that extra S$4.00 your meter charged me.

 

It took me over a year to realize I only wanted to travel with one company.  I only use Comfort, CityCab, or LimoCab.  (No it is not a limousine)  All three are owned by the same cab company.  I have found them to be the safest drivers (in my opinion) and am overall very happy with them.  In case you are interested, they are the ones that look less like bumper cars and appear to be much better taken care of mechanically and aesthetically.  The taxi drivers are quick to tell you that they are held to a higher standard than the other drivers; now how true that is I don't know.  However, they do seem to be better, safer drivers and less likely to take you for a ride.  Why did it take me so long to figure this out?

This post is a tongue in cheek post - honestly, taking a taxi is fairly painless, but there are drivers that are doozies - the ones that sends shivers down your spine.  This post is about the doozies.

Using a taxi limits the amount of shopping you can do - which normally is a good thing.  However, we have discovered we like to eat, so there is the problem of getting all the groceries home.  Stop and think about that when you go shopping next time.  Count your bags and imagine our predicament.  Can you feel our pain?

Oh, and did you want to make 2 stops?  Sorry, get out, unload and carry all of your bags from the first stop into the second stop - and then hail another taxi when you are done.

Do I miss my car?  Hail yes!  Can you imagine being without a car for several years?  

No?

Neither could I - but I am  :-(

I take a lot of mass transit now... it is easier - but it is not as easy as walking out to my driveway and getting in my car.  I keep telling myself it is healthier as I have to do a lot of walking.

Wonder if I will keep that up on the flip side?  

I don't think so either...