Advertisement
Published: June 23rd 2017
Edit Blog Post
Geo: 19.4106, -99.1306
not taking one of these green beetle taxis ever...Never ever do this at any circumstance! I am still hearing the warning in my ears from a Mexican guy sitting next to me on the Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt - Mexico City
So I did follow his advice initially and upon exiting the airport, simple walk pass those guys in the cute green beetles and flag down a yellow taxi pass the street outside the airport. Certainly nothing short of being potentially dangerous either....Anyway, he brought me to my hotel without incident.
This very afternoon I decided to flag down a taxi to go to other side of town...Very tough to actually get any taxi to stop. I had been waiting about 30 minutes...all this time there were 5 green beetle taxis awaiting potential customers in front of my hotel. Those guys wondered why I did not choose them instead...Well upon waiting another 30 minutes I got fed-up with it and finally said to myself "what should really happen, my luggage is at the hotel and my money is hidden in different locations around my trousers and shoes...
So it did happen...I took the green beetle taxi and took off... Truly a different experience almost right from the start. In the old beetles they take out the front seat next to the driver so you can get in comfortably. The beetles at that time did not have doors in the back...He kept going and started suggesting routes and simply asked me my preferred route...Being a frequent traveler, I do know this trick very well from other countries and acted accordingly...Usually they feel you out and try to see how well you know your surroundings and if you are a novice.
I looked at the map prior to take a taxi so I clearly told him that I want to go further down and take the 3rd. right...Immediately he got confused it did not know to make of it... Then he said the road up there is blocked and he must make a de-tour to the left...I told him if he goes left, I will immediately get out of the taxi and raised my voice strongly...So he went the route I preferred...at first...Upon taking the 3rd. right, he kept talking very friendly and went left...right...right...left...etc. Just to make me confuse.
After a while...he kept driving...Suddenly I look behind me and saw absolutely nobody in the streets anymore. Absolute emptiness...Knowing Latin America well, a couple of warning signals go up in my mind...Empty streets mean danger...Not always but increasingly more frequent...So did it happen...He immediately stopped and suddenly two big guys getting into the taxi, his buddies. We all sit in the back, I am in the middle, no doors in the back...
One of them had a very long screw driver and the other guy a long kitchen knife, from both sides they were holding it against my kidneys.
The guy in the front simply says I should empty my pockets and clearly warned me about not forgetting anything or he might...
So I did empty my pockets but indeed not empty all and he found another 100 USD in my shoes and got angry...very angry...I just kept absolutely quiet and looked down so not to look into their faces. Those cunts indeed had a feast on me and took all my belongings, small camera, 450 USD and...a condom in my pocket, he laughed and handed it back to me saying, you may still need that one later...
They let me get out of the taxi in the absolute worst neighborhood of Mexico City where no one should ever go into, no locals go their either... The funny thing about it, people passing me clearly know that I am a gringo, simply showed me the way out of the neighborhood into safe-grounds...Why? Well, they simply knew a gringo down here! He got nothing left to take from him...Suddenly another green beetle taxi passed my way and stopped in front of me...He said, get in, I want take anything, I know you got emptied out. I will bring you home safely...Gringo...
So it ended...A green beetle took me down into hell and another one brought me back to heaven...
Advertisement
Tot: 0.115s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 7; qc: 45; dbt: 0.0497s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb