After my flight to Boston seated next to the 365-pound behemoth, I took a cab to Cambridge, driven by a remarkably intense Nigerian guy. He asked me what route I wanted to take to get to Cambridge, at which point I admitted I wasn't from Boston and had no idea. Upon learning I was not a Boston native, my previously intense cab driver inexplicably became this hyper-cheerful tour guide. The exit he wanted to take was closed, so we had to detour to the first sight along the tour:
"You see that? You see that THERE? That is CHINATOWN!"
So he noticed I'm Asian, I thought. I suppose my black hair, brown eyes, and integral calculus tattoos all over my neck are sort of a dead giveaway.
"Yes, it sure looks like Chinatown," I mumbled, straining for something to say.
"No, no looks! It IS! That IS Chinatown!"
"Right - it's Chinatown."
"That is CHINATOWN!"
"Yes, yes, Chinatown," I repeated.
"You should go!"
So he noticed I'm Asian, I thought. I suppose my black hair, brown eyes, and integral calculus tattoos all over my neck are sort of a dead giveaway.
"Yes, it sure looks like Chinatown," I mumbled, straining for something to say.
"No, no looks! It IS! That IS Chinatown!"
"Right - it's Chinatown."
"That is CHINATOWN!"
"Yes, yes, Chinatown," I repeated.
"You should go!"
My driver was perfectly nice, I was just tired and not in a particularly talkative mood. As we approached other intersections, the tour continued.
"Do you know what that way is??!?!"
"No."
"If you go that way you get to DOWNTOWN!"
"Got it, downtown."
"Do you know what road this is?!?!"
"Umm, no, I don't."
"This is MASS AVE!!!" We passed a street sign. I looked at it. My driver was correct, this was in fact Massachusetts Avenue.
"Do you know what that statue is??!??!"
"No."
"No."
"If you go that way you get to DOWNTOWN!"
"Got it, downtown."
"Do you know what road this is?!?!"
"Umm, no, I don't."
"This is MASS AVE!!!" We passed a street sign. I looked at it. My driver was correct, this was in fact Massachusetts Avenue.
"Do you know what that statue is??!??!"
"No."
Do you know, do you know, do you know. He must have "quizzed" me on 6 other things. We pulled up to a building I recognized as MIT from visiting Derek in college. I waited a beat, and what do you know..."Do you know what that building is?!?!?"
I thought about not answering, but the guy was just trying to be friendly, no need to be standoffish.
"Sure, that's MIT, right?", I offered.
"HAHAHAHHA OHHHH HAHAHAHAHHAHAHA OHHHHHHH HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOH!!!!!!!!" His whole body trembled with raucous glee. "I KNOW you are going to know what THIS is!! I look at you and I think 'THIS he will know for SURE! It is EMM EYE TEE! I KNOW you will know!!!!'"
I couldn't help but laugh. I also began to reconsider my calculus tattoos. Maybe they tell the world a little bit too much.
7 comments:
I too had a crazy Nigerian cab driver on my ride over to Steph's. He kept insisting that Steph's street didn't really exist, and that I must have miscopied the directions she gave me.
Like the makeover, for the most part. Concur with The Office, 30 Rock, and Arrested Development pictures (and is that a shot from The Wire?) Not so much with the women, but that is only because I am not a guy.
It's Talib Kweli, my favorite rapper - I've yet to start watching The Wire, although everyone tells me I must.
Beauty is universal, Catherine.
HAHAHAHAHA so funny
yeap... nigerian and russian cab drivers dominate boston, it seems...
are you still in town? Tim Lau is in mit doing PhD and... OH vijay is also here doing MD!!! lol
- sungmin
Hey Sungmin! - Not in boston anymore, but I'll let you know if I'm around in the future
What the heck does this have to do with D2?
Yeah, the site looks awesome now.
I like this
regards
web designer
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