One of my favorite things to do in China is to chat with the cabbies. Its always a bit of a challenge because my Chinese is far from good and Beijing cab drivers are notorious for having harsh Beijing accents ("rrrrrrrr"). But they are often the nicest people you'll meet, and its always great to hear a little bit about their life and their stories. I remember one of my favorite cab experiences was actually in Shanghai earlier this year with Dan. After telling this driver that my parents were from Burma, he proceeded to give me an incredibly detailed 20 minute history on Chinese/Burmese relations...including famous moments, notable individuals, and the current political climate. Very interesting indeed.
I caught a cab from Wudaokou to my apartment last night, and although it was a bit of a drive, it was a great opportunity to chat it up with the cabbie. I asked him all sorts of questions about his job, and in case you were wondering, here are some of the key facts:
(disclaimer: this is according to this particular cab driver, so the actual truth of it has yet to be verified)
-Cab drivers don't think it is rude if you sit in the back (contrary to my original belief). Truth is, you can sit in either the front or the back and they won't think any less of you
-The average cabbie makes approximately 3000-5000 RMB a month. This is after they have to pay a fixed rate of 3000 RMB to the cab company for the car rental. In addition, all other expenses such as auto insurance and gas are the responsibility of the driver.
-The average cabbie works approximately 12 hours a day (ouch)
-Do NOT tip a cab. In fact, the driver said that it was considered rude and unpolite to tip. He believes that people should not be compensated extra just because of their "good service". He believes that such service should be expected and included in the cost of the ride. After living in Philadelphia for 4.5 years, I could not agree with this any more.
-He, as with everybody I seem to meet in Beijing, originally thought that I was Korean (I seem to get this a lot!)
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