Although I feel like a real rube, I guess I should share the story of the unpleasantness I experienced today so that others might take a different tack.
I've been living on the north coast for about five months, and I've availed myself of guaguas and carros publicos countless times.
This morning I was waiting for a ride along the highway between Cabarete and Sosua when a guagua stopped for me. The problem was that the driver didn't want to take me to Sosua; he and his friends had other ideas. Robbery, that is.
This white vehicle was, or had been, a guagua at one time, so the only reason I should have been suspicious was that there were only four people on board including the driver. I thought I'd hit the jackpot. I wasn't going to have to sit next to a guy with a live chicken on his lap.
Anyway, in the end I found myself standing along a back road about 10 miles east of Cabarete. Minus my money, but no worse for the wear. In my better days, they would have had a fight on their hands. It's amazing I've lived as long as I have.
I'm not ashamed to say I was a bit worried, especially when they started looking for a side road. I figured either they were taking me away from the highway so it would take me longer to report the incident, or they were going to do something they didn't want anyone else to see.
Even when they opened the door and told me to get out, and one of them said, "Vaya con dios," I wasn't sure I wasn't going to take one in the back of the head. I didn't wave a fond farewell as they drove away, but I did notice there was no license plate.
I guess the money was well-spent for a valuable lesson learned. Make sure you know a public transportation vehicle is legitimate before you get in. But as I said, there was no reason to think anything was amiss with this guagua?it looked like so many others.
But here's the feel-good part of my story. They gave me 100 pesos. I'm guessing that was so I could catch a guagua. Who knew? Thieves with hearts of gold.
I've been living on the north coast for about five months, and I've availed myself of guaguas and carros publicos countless times.
This morning I was waiting for a ride along the highway between Cabarete and Sosua when a guagua stopped for me. The problem was that the driver didn't want to take me to Sosua; he and his friends had other ideas. Robbery, that is.
This white vehicle was, or had been, a guagua at one time, so the only reason I should have been suspicious was that there were only four people on board including the driver. I thought I'd hit the jackpot. I wasn't going to have to sit next to a guy with a live chicken on his lap.
Anyway, in the end I found myself standing along a back road about 10 miles east of Cabarete. Minus my money, but no worse for the wear. In my better days, they would have had a fight on their hands. It's amazing I've lived as long as I have.
I'm not ashamed to say I was a bit worried, especially when they started looking for a side road. I figured either they were taking me away from the highway so it would take me longer to report the incident, or they were going to do something they didn't want anyone else to see.
Even when they opened the door and told me to get out, and one of them said, "Vaya con dios," I wasn't sure I wasn't going to take one in the back of the head. I didn't wave a fond farewell as they drove away, but I did notice there was no license plate.
I guess the money was well-spent for a valuable lesson learned. Make sure you know a public transportation vehicle is legitimate before you get in. But as I said, there was no reason to think anything was amiss with this guagua?it looked like so many others.
But here's the feel-good part of my story. They gave me 100 pesos. I'm guessing that was so I could catch a guagua. Who knew? Thieves with hearts of gold.
