Lima's public transportation "system" is all about entrepreneurship- the government really has very little involvement. There are "micros" (old school buses, but owned by private citizens) and "combis" (also privately owned) which are utility vans converted into a sort of bus. Take a look at this photo from inside a combi:
The seats are packed really tightly together, and I have a terrible time squeezing in. I've apologized to several people who have wanted to sit next to me, but can't fit because my knees are in the way. I generally say, to a get a laugh, "Lo siento, soy muy grande."
Combi drivers are known for laying on the horn and making crazy maneuvers to pick up passengers. The driver picks the music, and this is essential- regeton is really popular, as is regular hip-hop, salsa and cumbia. The assistant yells where the combi is going, solicits passengers and collects fares. Here is a pic I took yesterday of a combi assistant while stuck in traffic on the way to Huaycan:
Don't want to give the wrong impression here: I do take a lot of taxis. The combis are super interesting, but make a zillion stops and take forever. The taxis here are cheap and fast. Lately, I have been becoming friends with my cab drivers. The other night, one was telling me about how his little sister had come down with "tuberculosis of the brain" and I asked, "Could it be meningitis?" He told me that was it. The poor guy was so worried about her- she was in the hospital, he didn't know how his family was going to pay the bills, etc. Another cab driver told me that I might be his "media naranja" (soul mate) and I told him that he was sadly mistaken.
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