The Endless Taxi
I staggered out the Monkey Ba
At three... or was it four?
I'd lost my watch and wallet there,
I'd not been there before,
But after drinks or three, I think
I wasn't seeing straight,
I only knew I'd smoked my last
So knew it must be late.
I searched my pockets, plumbed the depths
And found a crumpled note,
A twenty kwai had ‘scaped my eye,
Thank god for kindly fate!
I had a choice of yi bao yan,
A pack of Xinanjiang,
Or I could grab a ‘jiao che' home
At a cost of shi yuan!
I chose the smokes, and spent the ten,
That left me ten to go,
I knew the cost to Xia Lv Pu
Should only be ten kwai,
I hailed a Yellow Jiao Che and
Fell in the open door,
The cabbie grunted ‘na li - ah',
I mumbled: ‘Xia Lv Pu! '
My eyes were somewhat fuzzy
Rolling round my empty head,
I focused on the meter box,
Its numbers glowing red,
‘Shi er', it said, or twelve yuan,
That's when I sobered up;
Of course! Midnight! - the fares increase,
I didn't have enough!
We got to Xia Lv Pu too soon,
I shook my weary head,
And muttered ‘Ming Hang Lu, old chum,
Qu Ming Hang Lu, ' instead;
The cabbie looked me up and down,
Then shrugged and turned about,
And back we went to Ming Hang Lu,
The meter jumped about.
At fifteen kwai we hit the Lu,
I muttered, ‘Qu da Xue, '
‘Cos that was where the campus was,
And where I'd find old Lou;
He'd surely loan me twenty kwai
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poem by David Lewis Paget
Added by Poetry Lover
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