Taxi Cab Confessions:

I was riding down the Jubail highway, with my headphones blasting "Imma Be" from the Black Eyed Peas, zoning out, when it occurred to me that I spend a lot of time in taxis. Coming from Southern California car culture, I thought I would die (well not really) if I couldn't drive. Now...I don't give it a 2nd thought. I even have the confidence to tell off the drivers when I don't appreciate what they're doing. I discovered this one night while sharing a taxi with a Saudi friend when the taxi driver stopped at 11 at night at a gas station on the side of the Jubail highway with a half a tank of gas. She went off. She immediately started with,

"Why are you stopping?"

"You have enough gas."

''Fill up on your own time."

"This is not safe with two females in the car. We don't have our Abayas."

"No. Leave now."

My first thought was; wow. I didn't know I could do that. Then my next thought was, "Yea! WTF is he doing stopping when he can get gas on his time. He got us out here at night at this somewhat secluded (although next to the highway) gas station." LOL. He got the message and got us out of there and got us home.

So....now, I don't take any mess off of these guys. Hell, my life is in their hands every time I get in the car with them. About 6 months ago, I had a driver who was so reckless in his tailgating that I finally had to call the company on his ass. I kept telling him to back up off these cars that I "wasn't trying to die up on this highway." But, he persisted. So, while I was still in the car with him, I called their offices and let them know to NEVER send this guy to my home again, that he is driving recklessly. As soon as I pressed the off button on my cell, the driver's cell was ringing. And, it's amazing how when a man told his ass to "act right" that he discovered he could drive with some damn sense. Gawd!!

Oh Yea...and then I had one that I swear had to be on something. He was by far the worst. His speed would fluctuate from 70km - 140km, he kept drifting into other lanes, and he acted as if he didn't want to stop when he got to the guard gate. The security guard even had to tell his ass "You stop when you come to this gate!" When I got to my house, I went off on him, threw the money in the seat and jumped out of the car.

But, on this day (the day I discovered I'm in taxis a lot) I was headed to Bahrain and I had the perfect driver (and I've had quite a few). He was friendly, but not too chatty (I can't understand half of what they're saying anyway. Most of these drivers are Indian), didn't drive too slow, but didn't drive too fast, and wasn't intimidated (drove with confidence) by all the crap happening on the Jubail highway. See...the deal is, driving on this highway is like going through a gauntlet. The way they drive here is like nothing I've ever seen. You really have to be on it, and have a dash of luck to survive this highway.

I could go on and on. One time we (a group of 4 chicks) had a driver who when we got to the Saudi Arabia/Bahrain border, he forgot the paperwork he needed to leave Saudi Arabia, so we had to wait while another driver came. Gawd!!!

Even though I'm over not being able to drive, I have to say, there is nothing like being able to drive yourself.