This is another favorite english-language China blog. Basically a series of rants for expats living in China that gets pretty hysterical at times.
Example:
“Beijing cab drivers always seem to have a million excuses for why they don’t wanna take you somewhere.
I have some variant of the following conversation just about every second day in Beijing:
Me: Good day sir, please take me to [Insert place name here].
Driver: No.
Me: Why not?
Driver: [Insert one of the following excuses here:]
????(I’m going home.)
????(I need to get gas.)
?????(I’m going to eat.)
????????(I’m going the other direction.)
????(I don’t know the way.)
???(Its too close.)
???(Its too far.)
???????(You should catch the subway.)Seems like no cab driver in Beijing is happy unless you want a ride to either (a) his house, or (b) Tianjin.
Not sure what you are talking about. Actually the Beijing taxi drivers are much better service oriented. Of course if you are not able to speack Chinese, there might be soem problem to communciate with them lots of time. Just like CHinese travelling in NewYork, same thing.
There is a taxi guide instruction from this site http://www.coobang.com just print it out and hand it over to the taxi driver with one Chinese greetings “Ni Hao” ( How are you). You will be serviced fine.
That quote is from a now-defunct, but formerly funny blog, Talk Talk China. I use laminated instruction cards too, so great suggestion. And no, reluctant cabbies are not restricted to Beijing. Try convincing a Manhattan cabbie to take you to La Guardia at 5 pm on a Friday afternoon.