First months transport around Al Ain

The white and gold taxis in Al Ain are great! Not only cheap and plentiful (unlike Doha), but it is always an adventure into the unknown. Most drivers are from Pakistan or Afghanistan, and the existence of English is quite often very minimal if there at all. Directions can easily be lost in translation as it is all pretty much landmark based (as in Doha), which means until you get a general idea about the place you can end up going for a little drive prior to reaching your destination.

Two major problems I have had are to do with the lack of taxis near the college which has resulted in having to wait around for a lift or going for a wander up the road until one appears (either taxi or lift). The other problem is to do with my pronunciation of things as simple as “zoo”. Regardless of my own deficiencies in language and directions I have managed to make my way around town without any major dramas and have enjoyed many interesting (and very hard to follow) conversations with various drivers.

A couple of the more interesting drivers I have had:

The ex Afghani policeman who the first time I was with him explained how he came to Al Ain because his home was too dangerous. His village had been bombed which he showed me through actions and sound effects. Following that were questions regarding how dangerous Australian animals were, which was followed by him acting out what would happen if he saw a “deadly snake” in Australia (or anything else dangerous for that matter) – this entailed him hiding behind the steering wheel, taking out his sub machine gun (make believe of course), and shooting the snake, crocodile, or bear(???) (with full sound effects). The second time I was in his taxi he conveyed to me he had been driving his taxi in Dubai all night and had come back to Al Ain about 5am... this was about 7:30am so my guess is he hadn’t been asleep for at least a day.

There was a Pakistani driver who had been driving in Al Ain for 10 years and was very proud of the fact that he had been able to learn a number of languages (I think these included Arabic, English, German, French and “American”) just through talking to his passengers. He was very happy with his best “Good hevening sur. How R yoor tunite” with which he greeted me - it was about lunchtime, and these words came out as freely as Manuel’s best line from Faulty Towers BUT his English was far better than I can speak or understand any of the other languages he has picked up so he gets my complete respect!

Another was a very smiley elderly driver who made me save his mobile number for when I needed a taxi. The downfall of this strategy was that my Arabic is as non-existent as his English so I couldn't tell him where I was so he could come and pick me up!

My hat goes off to the many other drivers who got me where I needed to go regardless of our complete lack of understanding of each other. Hand signals work well and a tip (no matter how small) is always greeted by thanks and a smile.

As well as taxis I have also been lucky enough to be offered lifts home by a number of my students which I have been very appreciative of. Not only for the lack of needing to wait around for a taxi, but also the insights they have given me into life in Al Ain.