The Combi

As a proud citizen of North Carolina, I can honestly say that I have never taken a taxi or a combi. In North Carolina, there really is no need for taxis because almost everyone owns a car and destinations are generally too far apart for combis or taxis to really be useful. Although, there are some taxis in Greensboro and the surrounding area, the amount is trivial in comparison to the number of taxis and combis in Arequipa. Somedays when I look up to cross the street as I walk to the Plaza de Armas, I see nothing but yellow. There are literally thousands of taxis in Arequipa. Interwined between the taxis are the combis. I take a combi to the Casa de Avila everyday, which is where the GVI volunteers meet before going to the schools as well as the location of my spanish lessons. Today is my last day of six hour Spanish lessons!

The combi has been quite the experience for me. The driving in Peru is radically different from anything I've ever seen in the United States. If I had to make a comparison, I would say that it´s similar to driving in Florida. Most of the drivers in Peru don't actually have licenses because it's not required. Therefore, it's easy to see why the driving is terrible. There have been several times when I thought that we were going to hit someone while driving, or that we were going to get hit by on coming traffic. I always have to hold onto something whenever I´m in the combi, even if I´m sitting down and facing forward. The afternoon is generally the worst time to take a combi. The number of passengers in the average combi goes up exponentially around five o'clock. Many times, I've had to stand awkwardly in a combi, with my butt in someone else's face or my arms rapped around a pole during my trip home to El Remanzo de Yanahuara (the name of my neighborhood). Believe me when I say, the cobrador really knows how to squeeze people into a bus that's only made for about ten.

I've had some trouble with combis too, but in general they´re alot safer than taxis. The first time I tried to come back from the Casa de Avila, the combi passed my stop. When I asked the cobrador (the money collector) if we had passed my neighborhood he just looked at me and smiled. Anyways, I got back to my neighborhood, but I had to take two combis, and pay twice.

I just realized I've been putting accent marks instead of apostrophes in all of my posts. Wow, I hate these keyboards.