Hubby asked me to go Raffles IS to take the bus form for the kids. He was away in Teheran so I had to do it all by myself. I refused to go. It's not that I do not care about the kids' school matters but we squabbled for a reason...
1) If I have a car, there's no problem at all. I can just drive and go. But, taxi is the big issue here in Dubai. He expected me to drag along all my three kids and wait nonchalantly for the taxis which already have a bad reputation in Dubai.
2) There may not be a problem to get a taxi at Al Attar Escala because many taxi drivers stop at Al Ismaily Cafe for their cup of tea and at Eppco gas station nearby. But getting a taxi at Raffles is difficult. When we went there for Along and Ain entrance test last time, we had a nightmare getting a taxi. And now hubby expected me and the kids to go through the nightmarish experience again??
Once at Raffles IS, hubby had to call for a taxi twice but after nearly an hour, no taxi came. The guard, seeing us restless in the maddening heat outside Raffles, ushered us to wait inside the air-conditioned lobby. He even suggested to get help from the British receptionist to call a taxi for us. So, we did. Upon listening to the Westerner's voice, in no time the taxi came...! I was with hubby that time but now hubby's in Teheran. He 'wanted' me to go through the nightmare all alone with the kids...a big NO!! (unless I'm already used to this area).
Suddenly I remember coming across a front-page article in Xpress entitled WHY DO DRIVERS PROFILE? (referring to Dubai taxi drivers). It was a shocking news that made me have even more phobia getting a taxi in Dubai!!
Dubai's cabbies size up passengers according to race, nationality or how well they are dressed before deciding whether to pick them up or not. If you want to get a taxi quickly in Dubai, you'd better be a well-dressed Westerner. (OMG!)
One cabbie admitted : "When there's a call through our system, we are informed about the destination, name and location. Then we decide if it's a good or bad customer." (That bad!) The article even stated how cabbies racially profile Dubai's pasengers whether they are Africans, the sub-continents, Asians, Filipinos, Emiratis, Saudis, Arabs, Eastern Europeans and their most favoured Westerners.
More reports on this, click here.
p/s - Nanti la laki I beli Hummer nanti baru tau. Habis teksi Dubai tu kitorang sondol ngan Hummer. Padan muka...eksyen sangat...! Phehh...
6 comments:
Tunjuk sikit muka2 taxi drivers tu, handsome sgt ke Ziela. Haih, susah tul la org2 mcm ni. Cakap la you TESL, and ada TESL power lagi, mesti depa dtg cepat. Kang nyanyi lagu TESL power kang lagi haru kan.
"It's ok it's alright, common Ziela fight fight fight."
He he he.
muahahaha...lawak la...lawak la...!!! Wiz,nanti I try eh nyanyi sambil wink wink kat dia. I still remember the song. Kalau tak dia ambik, dia terus cabut lari...either one! ha ha ha
I know you've been through the hassle but I've offered to accompany you and suggested solution for number 2. No biggie lah. Ala, sebelum ada Hummer kan... hehehe... kang kot-kot dah ada Hummer, I'll lend you my stool Hobbit pula. Kikikiki.
On another note, memang cipet la drebar kat sini. Rasa nak pelangkung ajer bila dia sound masa laki I bagi salam. "why you say Assalammulaykom? You not Muslim."
Mistaken us for being pinoy and pinay is one thing. Pas tu boleh sukati badak keling depa nak buruk sangka kat orang.
I wonder how do they define good and bad customers?!!
Kelakar la Mem nih...muahahhaha! I ngan Along ketawa berguling-guling badak baca you punya maki tuh...ha ha ha...memang haprak depa tu kan...
Thanks a lot for your offer. I really appreciate it. Wait aaa...
Ziela , you bawak Hummer ke,or Hummer yang bawak you??? Sabar ajelah what to do..golden rain in far away land is not a match to the stone rain in homeland..paham ke ? Macam pinoy pulak nantik..
Ha ha ha...whichever way Naza as long as I can 'sondol' teksi depa tuh...hampehh..
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