Surprise, surprise! We hadn't even left the parking lot of the airport, when we spotted our first driver in a turban! One goal was complete...
Our group's first frightening cab experience was (no surprise here, either) in the village. We asked for a ride to Christopher and 7th, and the guy took off at lightning speed. Then, when he came to a red light, he'd slam the brakes, put the car in neutral and stretch his legs out. When the light turned green, the car goes back into drive and rockets down the street again. Finally, we reach a busy intersection, at which time, our driver gets out, walks around and opens the trunk, fumbles around in it, closes the trunk, walks back up to the side of the cab, stretches, leans against the open car door for a while, then gets back in and puts it in drive as the light turns green. We were scared to death my the driving, but when he headed back to the trunk, we managed to become even more frightened!
The entire time that we were there, only one cab driver out of all of them, had an English name. That was Raymond Excellent. A native of New York, he gave one group a comprehensive tour on the way to a club one night. I think he also won the award for "Most Outgoing Cab Driver!"
However, Mr.Excellent did not receive top honors in the category for best name. That award was given to the driver who took us from East Village to Times Square one night. His name was Mahboob Rahman. Try a few pronunciations of that, and see what you come up with!
Well, those are all the stories I can think of. If any of my fellow travellers remember any that they wish to submit, please do!
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