Re: FOOLHARDY
First of all the reason propinas are a way of life is because evryone goes along with it. If the guy was just hasseling me I would have thrown him 50 pesos and walked away laughing at him. The point is he upset my girlfriend, made her cry and acused her of being a hooker.
I refuse to accept that making an innocent girl cry is a way of life for anyone. If that is his mission in life, or his "job", then he is a piece of crap.
I am 100% sure that he had no intentions or desire to go to the station. They had no vehicle, no cuffs no radio, nada. I was already halfway to my hotel when she went back to give him money. I would have been glad to have the Hotel management call the police station for them, after recording their identification. My buddy was in town and would have been looking for me the next morning. Trust me, once I gave them a hard time, they were looking to find an easier mark, maybe you.
The money has nothing to do with it. I am constantly charged the "gringo rate" by taxis. I laugh at them, tell them it is a funny joke, give them the money, then next time they come rushing up for my business, laugh twice as hard and keep on walking.
On New Years, a taxi driver drove my buddy's novia and her friend from avenida espana to the Hotel Plaza , and then all 4 of us to the Juragua. I asked how much and he said 50 pesos. All the other taxis were charging me 80 pesos just to go from the Plaza to the Juragua. I told the guy, I liked the fact that he was honest and gave him 100 pesos. I used him several times the rest of my trip, including a trip to Santiago which made his day.
If you reward honesty with propinas, you get more honesty, if you reward low life pices of crap with propinas. . . . . . . .
you do the math.