Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

I have deemed it time to write about the streets of Cartagena. Now, many of you already know about the dangers of transportation in third world countries. Colombia is no exception. And although the drivers are crazy and I have yet to find some sort of rules or method to the craziness, I have to admit that I have not seen any accidents; not even a fender bender or minor tink. But still, the drivers scare me. The part I love best is when we are waiting at a traffic light (yes, they are generally obeyed, except one time when I was in Cali, we were in a taxi that kept speeding through red lights at night and my friend just kept yelling "rojo! rojo! rojo!" everytime we went through) and the very moment the light turns green everyone starts honking, as if the person at front didn't realize it, even though it would be impossible to start up that fast. It makes me giggle.

There are four main forms of transportation in Cartagena. First you have the bus. Many of you may remember my love affair with buses in Argentina. I have developed another one here in Cartagena as well. I love the buses, and this makes everyone here laugh because they hate them. They are loud, crowded and either drive way too fast or way too slow. The thing is, they have a certain time limit in which to make their round and if they are late they have to pay a fine. So sometimes, in order to avoid the fine, they go super fast, weaving, and not picking up people who are trying to flag them down. If they are early, they go so slow, like, never leaving first gear. There is nothing more annoying than getting on a bus when you are late only to find it moving slower than you could walk. The buses have helpers who take your money for you while the driver drives. It cost 1.200 pesos, but they let you pay 1.000, or if you are really cheap and not going very far, you can negotiate. The helpers can be pretty rude people tell me, but I've never had a problem. In fact, they have been very helpful, telling me when to get off if I don't know where I am going and giving me a hand when I get off the bus. The buses are also all decorated to the driver's taste and usually blast music. If the bus is really full and you have to stand, people that are sitting usually offer to hold your bag for you. That's nice. The worst part about the buses is the heat. Especially if it is raining because then all the windows get closed and the sweat just drips down your back. Gross. There are a couple that are air conditioned, but they don't generally go to where I need to go. Plus, I am too cheap to pay 300 pesos more (that's like 15 cents... wow, I am cheap.)

There are taxis, of course, but I generally avoid those because they are too expensive for my taste, although sometimes it is necessary. At night, the buses change their route and no longer pass my hotel, so we have to take taxis, but if you split them between five people, it is the same as a bus ride. Similar to taxis are colectivos. These are taxis that are shared. You can pick them up anywhere on their route, although it is best at the beginning because they get filled and in the mornings you have to wait a long time to find one that has an empty spot. It costs the same as the bus, but is faster and a bit more comfortable. I take these in the morning on the way to the center because the buses don't pass in that direction.

Lastly, there are moto-taxis. These are the most interesting, and definitely the most dangerous. They are motorcycles that carry people to whatever destination they want. They are everywhere! But they weave in and out of traffic like crazy. If traffic is stopped they find their way to the very front, going in crevices I would never dare to enter and over grass and medians. There really are no rules. I have been on these moto-taxis twice, but only when I was traveling with other people. I don't know if I have enough faith to get on one by myself and let him speed off with me. I don't know, I am super intrigued by them, but have received many mixed messages about them from friends.

My absolute favorite part is that on the back of every public transportation vehicle, they have this sign: "¿Cómo conduzco?" and then a telephone number.

Translation: "How's my driving?"

HAHAHAHA!