Thursday, June 9
So today, Alison and I got into an argument with our cab driver, who wanted to charge us 2 RO (a little more than 5 dollars) for a 5 minute ride from the grocery store back to our apartment. He had initially charged 1.5, which is expensive in itself, but then jacked the charge up to 2 after saying that we made him drive in circles. We paid him just to spare the trouble of bickering, but it got me thinking, how so many cab drivers try to rip travelers off. Here in Oman, there are no meters that measure the amount of time elapsed or the distance driven; generally it's a set amount to get to a certain place, or to drive from one region to another. Actually, it's bargainable. This, we didn't discover until a few days ago, when another cab driver tried to rip us off. We protested, and he immediately lowered his asking price by 1 full rial, which made us realize how most cab drivers here quote inflated prices for taking us from one place to another. The thing is, they're all so friendly and nice that you don't realize you've been ripped off (especially when we're not aware of how much it ought to be to get from one place to another), until it's too late. Fortunately, there are a few gems of cabbies that don't rip you off and are genuinely honest. That's when you take their numbers. Although a lot of times, they will insist their numbers upon you, whether you want it or not, in the hopes that you might call them again for a ride. I think I've gotten more cabbies' numbers in the last two weeks than I've gotten potential dates' numbers... ever. Kind of sad. Although the drivers are pretty adorable themselves...
Side note: had ice cream today for the first time in Oman! It's the real deal, dude. There are actual pieces of figs, pistachios, chocolate - whatever flavor one decides to try - in the ice cream.
So today, Alison and I got into an argument with our cab driver, who wanted to charge us 2 RO (a little more than 5 dollars) for a 5 minute ride from the grocery store back to our apartment. He had initially charged 1.5, which is expensive in itself, but then jacked the charge up to 2 after saying that we made him drive in circles. We paid him just to spare the trouble of bickering, but it got me thinking, how so many cab drivers try to rip travelers off. Here in Oman, there are no meters that measure the amount of time elapsed or the distance driven; generally it's a set amount to get to a certain place, or to drive from one region to another. Actually, it's bargainable. This, we didn't discover until a few days ago, when another cab driver tried to rip us off. We protested, and he immediately lowered his asking price by 1 full rial, which made us realize how most cab drivers here quote inflated prices for taking us from one place to another. The thing is, they're all so friendly and nice that you don't realize you've been ripped off (especially when we're not aware of how much it ought to be to get from one place to another), until it's too late. Fortunately, there are a few gems of cabbies that don't rip you off and are genuinely honest. That's when you take their numbers. Although a lot of times, they will insist their numbers upon you, whether you want it or not, in the hopes that you might call them again for a ride. I think I've gotten more cabbies' numbers in the last two weeks than I've gotten potential dates' numbers... ever. Kind of sad. Although the drivers are pretty adorable themselves...
Side note: had ice cream today for the first time in Oman! It's the real deal, dude. There are actual pieces of figs, pistachios, chocolate - whatever flavor one decides to try - in the ice cream.
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