As the saying goes, it’s also about the journey, not just
the destination. When traveling around
in China in a taxi without your Chinese girlfriend (actually, even when she’s
with you), the journey, indeed, can end up being the most interesting part of
your day, or your entire trip!
If you’re in Beijing, Shanghai, or any other highly
westernized city in China, modern taxis are everywhere. Just like most other densely populated urban
areas, of course, getting a cab can be quite a challenge, especially in certain
areas and during certain hours.
Perhaps the most important thing you have to remember when
traveling locally without your Chinese girlfriend is to have the name of your
destination/s written on a piece of paper in Chinese characters to avoid any
confusion when you let the driver know where you want to go. If the driver still seems unsure where the
place is even after you show him the written address, you’d be better off waiting
for another taxi whose driver is more knowledgeable about the place and the
route to get there.
Especially in China’s first-tier cities, it is now rare for
foreign passengers to get taken on long rides by cheating, but legit, taxi
drivers. If you’re already familiar with
how much the fare usually is to go to and from certain places, even if you’re
still not very familiar with the route, and the meter of the taxi you’re in exceeds
this amount, you can point it out to the driver to let him know you’re not as
clueless as he thought you were.
Usually, the driver would agree to just charge you the regular
price.
Many big city taxi drivers are very pleasant and can
communicate in English pretty well; but there are also many others who are less
“professional” and have a habit of eating foods with strong, and often
unpleasant, smells, and/or coughing up big globs of sticky spit.
Always get and keep the taxi receipts. In case you forget something in the cab,
having the receipt will make it easier for you to track down the cab company
and the specific taxi, and, hopefully, get your belongings back. If you have a complaint against a driver, the
receipt will also help in locating and identifying him, if you’re unable to
take down his taxi ID number and hotline which should be displayed on the passenger
seat dashboard.
If you’re in a small Chinese town or village, taxis are more
loosely used to describe any short-distance form of public transport. The taxi may be a motorbike or a
three-wheeled vehicle. Indeed, in
certain cities and towns where alleyways are often used as alternate routes,
taxi-motorbikes are common. A helmet may
or may not be provided. You should not
be surprised when your taxi takes on additional passengers, transfers you to
another vehicle in the middle of your trip, or takes off-road alternate routes.
Unless you’re in areas where modern taxis are numerous, most
unconventional cab rides are not metered.
In certain places, the fares are fixed regardless of the destination or
for certain minimum and maximum distances; in other places, you will have to
negotiate the price with the driver. If
it’s the latter, always ask for the price upfront, even before you get on/into
the taxi. If the cost of the trip seems
to high, ask for a lower price or simply take a different taxi.
It would be best if your Chinese girlfriend can accompany
you when you want to go around the city or town and have to ride taxis. But if you’ll be on your own, make sure you
have the name and address of the place where you’re staying at written in
Chinese characters on a piece of paper safely tucked inside your wallet at all
times. Of course, enjoy the ride!
Discover tons of great information about living in China,
Chinese dating and relationships, and Chinese women on the blogs, magazine and
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