Hailing a Taxi in Mongolia
10 July 2009 in GPS, Mongolia, Travel, Videos
Watch in HD for best viewing! Leave a comment please.
Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar, does not have a formal taxi industry. Though there are cars with meters, any driver is a potential cabbie. To summon a ride, a person needs only hold his arm out, flail it slightly, and soon enough a willing driver will pull up.
The going rate is 400T/KM (about $0.45/mile). The driver in the video crossed a river, flooded his car, then climbed a steep dirt road to get us to our destination. Our ride cost $2, a discount from the $2.25 he tried to swindle from us!
This is great. Looks like you’re having a wonderful time. Tell me, what concert are you going to in Mongolia?
Sweet video!
If any car driver is a potential cabbie…that means, hitchhiking is not possible in mongolia?
As unorganized as that seems, I love it. Almost like being a celebrity…almost. What concert were you going to?
Altan Urag, a Mongolian folk rock band. I think they’ve played in the US, and I know they tour internationally, at least in Asia. They played a few songs with some Mongolian superstars. These guys definitely impressed me with their throat singing and energized music. I posted a video of one song, randomly chosen, on my Youtube page, but my favorite song was played later.
I agree! Even in the countryside, giving a lift to someone in need is expected here (and free). Nomads can’t refuse people needing food, shelter, or transportation. It’s simply bad etiquette!
Altan Urag, a Mongolian folk rock band, very famous here. I put my bootlegged video of them here. i wanted to record one song and picked randomly, but the one I taped wasn’t anywhere near my favorite.