Another Misadventure

I mentioned before how I would tell the taxi drivers where to take me by handing them a business card. That worked well until yesterday morning. The driver consulted his map a couple of times, then pulled into a convenience center and made a phone call. Then he drove for a bit and stopped again. By this time, I was already late for work, so I called the manager over here to tell him what was going on. I even handed my cell phone to the driver so my manager could give him directions. He still drove me around in the middle of nowhere. We finally managed to get close to the area, but he still couldn't pinpoint the spot. Finally he stopped to talk to a woman walking by the side of the road and convinced her to guide us to the right spot.

When I told this story to some people last night (they had a small welcoming party and fed me sushi), one of them suggested the taxi driver took me for a ride. It's very possible, as he charged me at least twice what the trip normally costs. However, he did turn off the meter before we got to my destination; you would think he would charge me for every inch if he really wanted to gyp me. Perhaps he hit a maximum fare. Still, the more I think about it, the madder I get. I hope that doesn't happen again while I'm here. I don't need to speak the language to show him I'm angry.