Gringo Pricing – Part II

So I had a particularly memorable incident (in terms of my experiences so far in Bolivia) regarding getting ripped off today involving a taxi driver. Pat and I were on our way back from the airport and we decided to hire the taxi directly to Tarata instead of heading from the airport to the stop to catch a taxi-trufi (the regular mode of transport to and from the city for us) and then to Tarata. The standard fare is 25 bs to go from the airport to basically anywhere in the city and then a full taxi-trufi earns the driver 20 bs (5 people x 4 bs per person). I figured 45 bs was a fair price being that the distance from the airport to Tarata is less than the distance from the airport to the stop and then to Tarata as well as the fact that the 25 bs could cover going all the way to the other side of the town (the stop for the taxi-trufis to Tarata is quite close to the airport in terms of the overall layout of Cochabamba). So we loaded all of Pat’s luggage in there and I said 45 bs and off we went. * Lesson #1 Learned: make sure the driver agrees to this fee, even if you’ve said it in a loud voice at least 3 times and he looks at you in comprehension of this fact, you need to get a verbal agreement, especially if it’s a route that they probably don’t take very often.

So we had a relatively pleasant ride back except for the rocks and shrubbery that found it’s way onto the road due to a bloqueo that had happened earlier in the day (over high tolls but crappy road conditions for the drivers of public transportation). When we arrived at Pat’s house she pulled out her 100 bs bill to pay for the ride. * Lesson #2 Learned: Always pay for taxis with exact change or near exact change so in the event that they won’t give you your change, you don’t get ripped off that much. So he guy decided to say “gracias” and basically walk away with the money, and that was when I was like, “cambio?!” (change). That began my argument with him that was actually quite short due to several reasons. I said that I had said earlier that the fare would be 45 bs (although he did not acknowledge this fact I am pretty sure he heard me earlier) and I said that about 3 times…and then he obviously didn’t have a price in mind (he just thought he was getting away with the 100 bs) so I was like, okay, let’s compromise, the middle of 70 bs (which was still totally getting ripped off). Since he already had Pat’s 100 bs bill in his hand I couldn’t really do anything (short of punching him in the face and snatching it from his hand or swearing at him (good thing I don’t know any useful swear words in Spanish) which both were routes that I thankfully did not take in the heat of the moment) and he ended up giving us back 20 bs. 80 bs?! Ripped off by what I consider 35 bs.

*Lesson #3 Learned: You cannot argue convincingly with someone unless you speak their language fluently or are at least equipped with the appropriate vocabulary. In retrospect, I probably sounded quite lame because I couldn’t even coherently explain to him the fact about the 20 bs cost for a full taxi from the city to Tarata with 5 passengers or that it was closer for him this total trip than what else would have been required, nor that he had agreed to my price of 45 bs earlier. Unfortunately it came to me after the fact how to say “you are cheating us” and “this is wrong.” I would also like to equip my Spanish vocabulary with arguments of emotion such as the golden rule and I will work out how to say, “how would you like it if you went to the United States and someone ripped you off?” as well.

After all was said and done, I was pretty steaming mad (sorry Pat, I know it wasn’t even your money) and that is even the reason that I am up right now typing this even though I got up at 6 am today and it’s already 11 pm because I was thinking about the situation. It brings me back to what I wrote about earlier. 35 bs. 35 bs is less than $5. I can’t say if the 35 bs would make very much difference to him since he clearly wasn’t working to get his next meal (after all he was employed and his taxi was actually pretty nice) and I know that 35 bs doesn’t make much difference in the scheme of things for Pat (sorry again, I know, also for me if I had been the one that had paid). So I’m back where I started with my moral/utilitarian dilemma. Immediately after this incident I was totally of the mindset that getting ripped off is wrong no matter whom you are, but then the gringo pricing dilemma creeps into my mind again. In this particular case, I think that I should have clarified more strongly what the price was and he should have been fair in his price (I know that he clearly knew that he was ripping us off). So maybe in the end I can compromise, and say we are both slightly at fault and move on. It makes it easier for me sometimes when I can find fault with myself for consequences that I face (I didn’t agree the price as strongly as I should have prior to getting in the taxi and I clearly was not equipped with the proper Spanish to deal with the situation) because nobody likes not being in control of a situation. I guess the only part of me that is troubled is that I would not rip someone off just because I thought they didn’t know any better or I was in the position to do so. But then again, if I were a taxi driver in Bolivia and I was perhaps just scraping by and of the mindset that you get the highest price possible as part of your business (what’s that called in econ? price parity? disparity? point pricing? when you charge different prices based on what you think the consumer will pay?), who knows what I would have done. That’s just the part of respecting different cultures and backgrounds of people that in the end you might catch a glimpse of what another person is thinking through their actions, but you will never know what you would have done in that situation.

Lesson #4 Learned: This is a biggie. It’s the one about self-discovery. Beyond what we’re here in the PC for in terms of the official “goals 1, 2 & 3,” one of my hopes was personal growth and learning even just a little bit more about myself. I’m a non-confrontational person. I hate arguments, and the closest I get to them is being passive-aggressive and seething internally about something or whining to some unlucky party about what I am upset about…and then I forget it and move on. I get over things pretty quickly and am pretty adaptable if you haven’t noticed (also a fault because it sometimes leads me to give up on things too easily if I wasn’t too invested in it in the first place). I was quite surprised at myself for how I tried to stand up and argue for what I thought was right because I don’t hear myself speak in that voice very often (if at all). I know there’s a time and place for this type of thing, I probably will never be the type that complains about food in a restaurant when there’s a problem and prefer to speak my mind about service via the tip that is left. But I also had a realization that what happened today is what I’m here for. Recognizing weaknesses in character and working on them and putting yourself in uncomfortable situations and overcoming them. Sarah recently told me about an series of incidents in her work, and when I read about them in an email I found that I admired her for being good at drawing her lines of what she wants to fight for and then going for it rather than rolling over and playing dead (my typical tactic). So in the end, I’m attempting to be more “fuerte” in my beliefs…although that poses another issue because currently I’m also struggling with finding my passion in life and solidifying what my values are. Ai ya! Haha, it’s like in The Joy Luck Club which I just reread and how the one chapter is about the daughter that is “without wood” so she bends too easily to listen to everyone. I guess I need to work on growing stronger and straighter (including posture!) so I don’t end up “a weed, growing wild in any direction, running along the ground until someone pulls you out and throws you away.”