Igualmente

So I was talking to some girl in the EAP program about the whole shenanigans with the taxi driver, in which it cost 2500 pesos, and he didn´t give me change for a 5000 peso note. And she told me that she realized after a while that the reason she didn´t get change back either is that they don`t really believe in giving that much change.

Mystery solved.

And then a couple of days ago, guess who ends up being my taxi driver? The old man I was arguing with a couple of weeks ago! "Well this is awkward," I thought. And it definitely kind of was. Because he without a doubt remembered me. And I remembered him. Silence. "Treinta cinco cero nueve Holanda," I tell him in my best version of Gringa Spanish. He nods. But I could tell he was thinking,"Yeah, I know. And you could have told me that correctly last time!" Silence. Driving. More silence. Dogs barking in the streets. Driving. More silence. Finally, we get to my apartment, and I hand him exact change. I was so proud that I had it. And I say, "Gracias, señor. Que tenga una buen noche." And he says "Igualmente." We both smiled. And it was just this moment of tacit truce and mutual respect. Ok, maybe not mutual respect, but definitely truce. From that moment, that it would be tranquilo having him as my taxi driver again.