Mapping with meters

You can tell the character of a country or city by the conduct of its taxi drivers. Last year my wife and I visited Prague. We took a taxi t...

You can tell the character of a country or city by the conduct of its taxi drivers. Last year my wife and I visited Prague. We took a taxi to the hotel. The driver drove us for about 20 minutes and reached us there. He took an equivalent of 20, which included a 2 tip. He was very courteous and wished us an enjoyable stay. Four days later, we were checking out and asked the concierge to arrange for a taxi. 8220;Where do you wish to go?8221; he asked. 8220;The central railway station,8221; I said. 8220;It is exactly opposite the hotel,8221; he said.

In Tokyo, I took a taxi to the office. I showed the address to the driver. He nodded and began the journey, which usually takes 45 minutes. Having done almost an hour, we had not yet reached the office building. I sensed something was wrong. I asked him to pull over and went to the yellow booth meant for foreigners who get lost and can speak to someone in English. I asked for the phone to be handed over to the driver for instructions. He returned apologising profusely. Finally, when I did reach our destination, I was about two hours late for my meeting. The driver bowed courteously and drove away without taking a single penny.

In Florida we were returning late at night from Disneyworld. The driver hit the highway towards our hotel. After driving for ten minutes, he realised he had missed the turn. He apologised for his mistake. In the US when you miss an exit on the highway, you travel an extra 12 km to get back. At the hotel, he charged us half the fare. He was a Sardar. That is why it is always prudent to get into a Sardar8217;s taxi whether you are in Kolkata or Delhi. Or for that matter anywhere else you can spot them.

In Rome, you must never get off the taxi until you have received your change. The Italians cannot take their feet off the accelerator. In New York, you must be prepared for rude behaviour 8212; unless you are lucky to get an Indian or a Pakistani driver. In New York the taxi drivers do not cheat you. They just want a fat tip. Once I gave a driver 2 as tip. He returned it to me saying, 8220;Your need seems to be greater than mine.8221;

In the Bahamas, the taxi driver was a woman. As we got in she asked, 8220;Are you in a hurry to get to the hotel? At no extra charge I could take you by a longer route just to show you some of the interesting places.8221; We gratefully agreed. She was a professional guide as well.

But in Paris the drivers are grumpy and unwilling to take anyone who cannot speak French. I8217;ve never understood how the French taxi meters work.

In most parts of the world, the taxi drivers never seem to know the shortest route to any place.