WTW: Taxi Drivers aka The Koreans Born Without Fear

Now I know I've talked about driving before, but taxi drivers...they are a different story. These are the men and women of Korea who are born without fear, perhaps without souls, I'm not sure. I've not had the greatest luck with these guys. I've ridden in my fair share of taxis here and the first ten times were when another person spoke to the driver, giving him the appropriate Korean or Konglish. However, lately I've grown a bit bolder nay braver and welcomed adventure where it is (bolder, braver, stupider, whatever). This boldness and bravery has led to a bit of frustration and laughter in the pass few weeks, so for this WTW I bring you-The Taxi Driver.

The green light changes to green and he doesn't stop. The rain pours against his window, obscuring his view, and he accelerates into the curve. The leather seats in the back have just been cleaned and glossed and the waygook in the back flies to the other side of the cab, arms and legs flailing. It's just another taxi ride in the city. When you see that little bullet of silver with a light on top you know it's a car that means business. I have a love/hate relationship with these little cars. Their cabs are clean. It doesn't reek of smoke, or nasty people. Seats are leather and the TV is always on. TV?! Oh did I not mention that before? Drivers have a little TV mounted next to their GPS so they can drive and watch TV at the same time. Convenient, no?

A few of my own experiences in a taxi for you:
A couple of weeks ago my friend Aimee and I went into the city for Seollal. After a brief stint of shopping we decided it was time to head to the hotel. It was raining, we were tired and didn't want to walk to the subway stop. The question "want to take a taxi" was a question that made the evening all the more interesting. After a short call to a friend to get the Korean for our hotel, we hopped into the taxi. After pronouncing EVERY WORD CORRECTLY the taxi driver still asked, "What? Where?" in Korean. After a few more attempts, Aimee and I exited the taxi. We made a dash for taxi round 2. This time I tried different directions. YMCA 가 주 세 요 (take me to the YMCA please).  He repeated, "YMCA?" You got it buddy. That's the one. Take me there. To the YMCA.
We started driving in the right direction and I relaxed thinking that I had mastered the taxi. Then, 10 minutes later we turn down a dark alley. Good feeling gone. We pull to a stop in front of the YWCA. Oh for the love of God. I say to him "No, yMca" I point to the building and say, "yWca" this happens a few more times, all the while the driver points to the building saying, "ne, yogi" (yes, here). Yogi yogi yogi!! Finally he points angrily to the fare screen which means, "look girls, you're on your own. Now get the hell outta my cab." Aimee and I get out, in the rain, in a dark alley, in a part of town I've never seen. About five seconds later I look down the alley at the taillights of the cab and say to Aimee, "My umbrella is in the back of that taxi."

Then last week on my way to the radio station to record the show (which was awesome by the way!) I grabbed a taxi. As he crosses the three lanes of traffic to retrieve me, he almost side swipes another car. This should have been my warning. Is it bad that I'm numb to the horn blowing and almost car crashing? I get in and tell him where to go and he has no clue what I said. That's okay, I brought the Korean with me too. He glances at it a few times...a few times more...sucks in his breath and says, "okay okay" in English. I was too busy thinking about the show and being nervous about being on the radio to look at where we were going. Mistake #2 of the night. Then after about 15 minutes I start to notice that this taxi driver has no idea where we are going. I can't help him. I've never been there either and there is that whole language barrier thing. Two equally lost people, one who loves the brakes so much the other is a bit carsick. Finally, he pulls to the side of the road, asks a pedestrian the equivalent of, "where the hell is this?" in Korean. Something I have never ever ever of evers seen or heard of happening. Aren't taxi drivers like a walking GPS? Don't they have a GPS? Shouldn't it be a requirement that you know every freaking neighborhood in your city before you get behind the wheel of a taxi? How is it that I manage to hail the only taxi drivers in the entire city who don't know where the hell they're going!? I digress. He stops in front of another building hesitantly asks, "okay?" Sure. Okay. I HAVE NO CLUE! It's your job to know the city. I get out and after a more competent taxi ride, I arrive at the freaking radio station. Late.

Not all taxi experiences are bad. I've done well a few times and without any help. Taxi drivers have usually been kind and patient with me and I'll be damned if some of them aren't the best drivers I've ever seen (breaking road laws aside). I'm never freaked out by the drivers themselves as they are never very shady characters. Also, it's freaking cheap to take a taxi. A recent ride was $8 and Aimee said it would have been $22 in Chicago. I do love a good deal people. Taxis, love them or hate them, I couldn't live without them.