To Taxi or Not to Taxi?

Yesterday, after a long day of travelling and volunteering at a conference, I had to make a tough decision:  to get to my dorm, should I take the slightly uncomfortable walk/tube/walk way, or should I just splurge and take a cab? I figured, three tube stops can’t be that far, the cab shouldn’t cost too much, I have these terrible blisters, and it’s just so hot …

Whatever.

Forty-five minutes later, after driving half-way around London, the meter was at 25£, and we were not on Marylebone Road, the location of my dorm, but on Marylebone STREET, in front of some apartment complex. Yeah. I know. I was aghast.

I could have sworn that we were driving in circles around our point of departure, but I thought maybe I was just confused because everyone was driving on the “wrong” side of the road.  When I mentioned that it was only 3 tube stops, the taxi driver kept mentioning that because of the Olympics, a bunch of roads were closed …

Hmm.

I really didn’t want to be one of those annoying, paranoid tourists, who accuses everyone of ripping them off just because they are not used to the prices or ways things are done.  I also live in a touristy area, and they get on everyone’s nerves.  But come on, nearly one full hour for 3 tube stops (it took another 15 minutes to get to the actual dorms)?! And it cost nearly 30£!!

So what should I make of this?  Are the Olympics really the cause of such “chaos”?  Could all the negative media attention be justified?  Or was I just the classically bewildered, tired tourist who helped a taxi driver make his quota on a slow evening?

On the eve of one the most exciting global events in the world, I decided it was in my best interest to believe the latter!

Natalie Philpot

Posted by olympian on July 27, 2012 | Filed under: Olympics.