My taxi ride

Today I took a taxi to meet Bob for lunch and to run some errands. I do this alot, take a taxi that is. Taxi's are very cheap and an easy way to get around the city. I can go from Bob's work to our flat for about 13 aed or about 3.50usd. Not having to park and navigate the crazy driving here it is well worth the money I spend. Plus, if I happen to get a taxi driver that speaks fairly good English I learn a lot about their lives and culture. Most taxi drivers here are from India, Bangladesh or Pakistan. I would say that the Pakistani drivers are by far the very worst. They speed and take chances that are ridiculous. A friend of mine here, was recently hit by a taxi. She is now in a body brace for the next three-six months with a couple of broken/slipped vertebra in her back. She is VERY lucky as most that are hit are killed; especially those hit by a taxi. We recently took a taxi from outside the city to our flat and it was the scariest trip I have ever had in my life. He drove like he was possessed! We didn't make it to our flat; we got out and walked a few miles. It was safer. But aside from the crazies, the conversations are so enlightening!
Mohammad was my recent driver. He was from Bangladesh. He told me that it rains too much there and is too green.(Im REALLY missing the green!) He has been in Abu for 4 years and used to work in the garment industry in Bangladesh before President Bush made it too difficult to make a living with all the regulations and tariffs of things being shipped to the States. (his words) I asked him about family and he said he has one wife (many have two!) and four children. He even got out his phone (while driving) and showed me pictures. He said they are all girls and he would have liked to have a boy to carry on the family name. His girls range in ages from 13 to 8 mos. He has never seen the 8 mos. old baby girl in real time, only pictures. He only goes home once every two years. He has not watched TV of which he misses Cricket matches, during the four years he has been here. He works VERY long days with only an occasional day off which he usually sleeps. Each employer has to supply their employee with a place to live but he said that his is very bad and his AC rarely works. I can only imagine how it is when the temp reaches 110+ during the summer. He doesn't like it here and is only here to make money. He would like to go home and be with his family but says that are too many people in Bangladesh and it is very hard to make a living there. So, consider that Taxi drivers probably make $400 per month and send almost all of that to their families. What they would make in their own country is far less~ if you can imagine in this age of richness and prosperity. The thing I like about these encounters is that this is the real deal. Most places I go are generally with other women like me who are here with a husband who is a professional or they are the professional working here and honestly I sometimes get bored with the topics that range with I traveled to here, went shopping there or what they don't like about certain aspects of living here. It just seems so shallow. I want to know about the expats that are from the poor countries because that is what living in the middle east is really all about for me. I was thinking that I wish I had had my camera with me to take a picture of the taxi driver. Good idea for next time! Tomorrow I'm going to the grand mosque and walking the mangroves ... I'll be driving :-)