These are a few of my favorite things:

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Taxis: Part Two

If I had to make a list of my favorite things in Argentina I would include things like the Market at San Telmo, Buying fruit or pastries on the street, futbol games and probably most strangely, Taxis. My first time in a taxi was in Argentina and I wonder if these are a good representation of taxis around the world. What I do know is that they are a great way to explore both physically and theoretically a country that I continue to struggle to wrap my mind around. First would be that Argentina is a country of contradictions, and interestingly this trend of contradictions continues into the culture of taxis. The drivers honk their way through intersections with out stopping, lanes are more like suggestions and less like rules, and god forbid a pedestrian be in the crosswalk if the light is about to turn green. And all of this chaos and hurry is so that people can get back to their very Latin American lives, taking an hour for a cup of coffee, three for an actual meal. The taxi drivers themselves are part of the joy. Some are cranky and swerve through traffic refusing to acknowledge m existence until it is time to pay up. One fell asleep at every stoplight. Others will talk your ears off about everything from Obama to their futbol team. More that one has given me the thumbs up and said “Obama” when they discover I am from the United States. A thumb down saying, “Bush” then promptly follows this exclamation. One even asked if I had a boyfriend because he has a son about my age. I can say with confidence that I have learned more about a country and a culture from taxi drivers than from and other one source. It is one thing to read and article about a country and other to learn about it from the people. I know however from the reading that a large group of professionals who lost their jobs during the economic crisis turned to driving Taxis. And maybe this is where the tradition of informed taxi drivers stems from. From the tax driver I have learn many things: people are fascinated by Obama’s election, especially when there is the idea that there is still considerable racism in the U.S. There is an interesting about of racism found in Argentina. “Insert-any-team-name” is the best futbol team in Argentina, and trust them, they are right, and most importantly that the idea of Argentines being aloof and unfriendly is not entirely true. While the waitress at Damiana’s looks annoyed every time we come in (even though we tip well) I have found more friendly taxi drivers than not.

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