Melbourne Cabby day One:
Assalamulaikum,
Yesterday i drove a taxi! It was exciting but i was quite nervous in the beginning. I did a stupid mistake in my very first fare, I drove THROUGH bourke street mall!!!! (luckily it was a saturday morning, it was quiet, and the passenger was not from Melbourne, so he didnt understand the gravity of the situation). Bourke street mall is strictly Tram & Pedestrian only, for those who don't know. I was so nervous i didn't know where i was going. I had to endure stares from road workers who mustve thought i was such an idiot.
But it was a breeze after that. I think (Day-time) Australians are such wonderful people. I heard so much horror stories from the night-shift drivers about drunks and prostitutes, I don't intend to maybe ever drive at night. My passengers were either friendy or warm and friendly. A had a couple of denmark tourists (God has a funny way of reminding me not to become a racist over this whole Cartoon issue), but we , of course, didn't talk about such issues. A middle-aged couple off to watch the Lion King play, A friendly, young talkative sydneysiders who are scared of Melbourne's infamous "Hook turns"; A Tram driver off to work. He was originally from Mexico. We talked about Montezuma and Cortez, and how he hated black people. Oh yeah, it was a sensitive issue, but i had to byte my tongue and pretend that i had no opinion on that. Most taxi drivers are either indian or Somali here, maybe he would say the same things about asians or other races if I was a somali driver. But he was a friendly and talkative passenger.
At the end of the day, I was not tired at all. I spent most of the day in an air-conditioned car listening to the radio and reading a book. I should've brought some of my assignments. I only had 8 passengers, although 3 of them was to the airport, so I made pretty good money, though probably only about 50% of what an experienced driver would make. Jacob (the depot owner) told me not to worry about income, and to learn the ropes. So far the people at the depot had been nice and supportive. I'll be joining the Jeffcot Mosque Gang too, hehehe. But Jeffcot is a strategic place to wait for calls. I had 2 jobs one after another before and after i did my Zuhr prayer at the mosque. Maybe God is looking after the Jeffcot Mosque Gang. :)
It was a good first day. And its because i had friendly passengers. And i like meeting people from different backgrounds and talking to them (and get paid in the end). I hope it stays that way. Amin.
before i go: Possums can be cute (source:University of SouthAustralia)
Yesterday i drove a taxi! It was exciting but i was quite nervous in the beginning. I did a stupid mistake in my very first fare, I drove THROUGH bourke street mall!!!! (luckily it was a saturday morning, it was quiet, and the passenger was not from Melbourne, so he didnt understand the gravity of the situation). Bourke street mall is strictly Tram & Pedestrian only, for those who don't know. I was so nervous i didn't know where i was going. I had to endure stares from road workers who mustve thought i was such an idiot.
But it was a breeze after that. I think (Day-time) Australians are such wonderful people. I heard so much horror stories from the night-shift drivers about drunks and prostitutes, I don't intend to maybe ever drive at night. My passengers were either friendy or warm and friendly. A had a couple of denmark tourists (God has a funny way of reminding me not to become a racist over this whole Cartoon issue), but we , of course, didn't talk about such issues. A middle-aged couple off to watch the Lion King play, A friendly, young talkative sydneysiders who are scared of Melbourne's infamous "Hook turns"; A Tram driver off to work. He was originally from Mexico. We talked about Montezuma and Cortez, and how he hated black people. Oh yeah, it was a sensitive issue, but i had to byte my tongue and pretend that i had no opinion on that. Most taxi drivers are either indian or Somali here, maybe he would say the same things about asians or other races if I was a somali driver. But he was a friendly and talkative passenger.
At the end of the day, I was not tired at all. I spent most of the day in an air-conditioned car listening to the radio and reading a book. I should've brought some of my assignments. I only had 8 passengers, although 3 of them was to the airport, so I made pretty good money, though probably only about 50% of what an experienced driver would make. Jacob (the depot owner) told me not to worry about income, and to learn the ropes. So far the people at the depot had been nice and supportive. I'll be joining the Jeffcot Mosque Gang too, hehehe. But Jeffcot is a strategic place to wait for calls. I had 2 jobs one after another before and after i did my Zuhr prayer at the mosque. Maybe God is looking after the Jeffcot Mosque Gang. :)
It was a good first day. And its because i had friendly passengers. And i like meeting people from different backgrounds and talking to them (and get paid in the end). I hope it stays that way. Amin.
before i go: Possums can be cute (source:University of SouthAustralia)
wah.. senangnya kerjanyaa.. its the kind of job that you are allowed to see the inside of people. belajar ttg warna warninya manusia. even the bad ones. just by talking to them.
hehehehe.. good luck yah rid
Posted by
mada |
8:13 AM
Holla Bro.. Juz wanna say that I SALUTE u fr been able to survive all this while alone, by urself. U've been through so much and it seems that it has made u stronger day by day. you go Bro!
But seriously, I neva think that one day, u'll be a Melb cabbie. Dun ask me axactly why. its juz like ur muke mcam takde toko as a cabbie.. Hihihi...
Well aniway, Best of Luck in whateva u do. May Allah keep on showering his blessing on u. Take gud care of urself (i think u haf ^-^) and stay ceria always. Bye!!
Posted by
zizie |
12:15 PM