My Taxi Chronicles: MTN Taxi Rank Edition.
When I learned that I was relocating to Johannesburg from Pretoria, I was warned to be very careful when I am at the Johannesburg CBD, most especially, MTN Taxi Rank. I have heard so many scary stories before and now, having to actually go there by myself, was terrifying. Five months in and I have a lot to share.
At first, it was quite easy to locate the place because then I knew that the 12 rows had numbers on. I had asked what number row was Randburg and which one was Buhlepark. They are 4 and 10, respectively. I don’t know who decided to colour off the numbers and why, but for the past week, it has been a nightmare locating the taxis to Randburg. I constantly have to ask and that’s a real disadvantage for me because people might think I am new to the place and they might do me harm.
It is always best to ask the queue marshals at the rank if you are uncertain about the destination you are trying to reach. Otherwise, a person will approach you and willingly offer to help, the good thing about it is that they will never lead you astray but you would have to pay them. I personally don’t have a problem with paying them because most of them do not even have a roof over their heads. I do, however, have a problem with feeding their addiction. Sometimes, they will ask you to buy bread for them, to assure you that they will not use it on drugs. But even if that’s the case, they end up selling the bread. So what do we do in such cases? It breaks my heart because I too have relatives that have given their lives to the streets, so every time I see these kinds of scenarios, I am conflicted.
I have learned that to survive the taxi rank, you need to learn how to speak IsiZulu. You can’t ask the taxi drivers, “Where can I find taxis to Sandton?” in English. They’ll reply by telling you to stop being forward. I have realised that English is not even an issue, it is not that they do not know how to speak it, they just like the ‘respect’ and ‘command’ that comes with IsiZulu. For example, in my culture, we have to maintain eye contact when talking to an elder person, as a sign of respect, but if you try that with a hardcore Zulu person, not just a taxi driver, they could be offended. I was sitting on the front seat of the taxi the other day when a male passenger tried to get in. I got out trying to make way for him. The driver threw a fit. He called me out for being ‘disrespectful’, how could I allow a man to sit in the middle? Culturally it made sense but I was wrong. But, we are all trying to reach our destinations, was it really worth it making a big deal of? Well, I am not sure but that right there was a cultural lesson that I will definitely carry with me whenever I deal with the Zulu tribe, in case they carry the same sentiments.
Another thing, there are a number of thrift stalls around MTN Taxi Rank, I always heard that you can get nice second-hand clothing for as little as R10. The trick here is to go with someone who is used to the place. I always pass by a street with a lot of stalls, unfortunately, I never got a chance to get off the taxi and have a look. I always pass there very late so I usually don’t have time to explore the CBD.
One afternoon, I had knocked off early and decided to stroll the CBD and that was the last time I ever took such a risk. I didn’t know I knew how to run like that until I almost got mugged. I think I got in the wrong street so when I heard someone I had passed saying something to the one I was yet to pass, I lost it and ran. I have heard that’s how many robberies pan out, they would block your way so now you can’t exactly go back because they barricade around you. I mean I know I could be wrong, maybe they weren’t even talking about me but I was not about to take that risk. So I ran.
They were really not lying when they said, “If you can survive MTN, then you can survive anything.”
While others are getting their wigs or phones snatched through the taxi window, you always have to be alert so that you don’t fall victim.
Related articles:
https://staging.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/226548/my-taxi-chronicles-when-i-am-not-in-a-taxi-2/
https://staging.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/225212/my-taxi-chronicles-arrive-alive/
