II. Cab Drivers

Incident 2
Saturday afternoon, 5:35pm:

Driver, "Oh hi there."
Me, "Hi...can you take me to Wan Hang Du Lu and Hua Yang Lu?"
Driver, "Sure...i think i've met you before."
Me, "Oh...really?"
Driver, "Yeah, Zhong Shan Park right? I recognize your voice...you took my cab before."
Me, *dont know how to react* "Oh...cool."
Driver, "Yep...aren't you Taiwanese?"
Me, "Uhh, no...Hong Kong."
Driver, "Ahhh, so your English must be good huh? I am always impressed at how Hong Kongers speak Cantonese with a few English here or there...or English with a few Cantonese mixed up."
Me, "Hah, well isn't that the same as Shanghainese mixed with Mandarin?"
Driver, "Hahaha damn right."


---5 Minutes Later---


Driver, "So how's your English?"
Me, "It's okay."
Driver, "Ah you know yesterday I heard this song...it's called You Flind Me I think. Every heard of it?"
Me, "Hmm, no."
Driver, "I'm not too sure if it's You Flind Me or You Flownd Me...is it F-I-N-D or F-O-U-N-D?"
Me, "I assume it's Found...You Found Me."
Driver, "Cool I'll look for it online tonight."
Me, "Mhmm hmm. Wow your English is pretty good too."
Driver, "Yeah I learned a little at school in Chong Ming Island. Try to remember what I hear from the radio. It's hard though. Hey what about that new hot hip hop american artist...Lady GaGa?"
Me, *chuckles*
Driver, "Apparently she's one of the hottest singers now, right?"
Me, "Yeah."
Driver, "But for Christ sake, what kind of name is Lady GaGa?"
Me, "Its...uhm, just an artist name?"
Driver, "What does it mean?"
Me, "Good question. So how long have you drove for?"
Driver, "A year. Grew up in Chongming Island and studied a little in Shanghai too. After (high school) graduation, I started driving."
Me, *shocked and surprised and realized the driver is either...in his late teens or early 20's*


---Arrives home and pays for cab ride---


Driver, "Thanks Miss, i'll look up the songs tonight."
Me, "Cool, have fun."
Driver, "Don't forget your belongings, bye!"


Conclusion?
Drivers love to talk...about anything. If it's a friendly conversation, they can talk...and talk...and talk. Provides entertainment to their 24hr shifts. Try driving fror 24 hours, while having naps in your car in between. Singing and talking perhaps keeps them sane.