Yes, I help the environment...

By taking public transportation.

And by that, I mean Silu Taxi.

Rankin Inlet has ... to the best of my knowledge... two taxi companies.

And they must make a killing. One keeps adding "new" cars to the fleet... affixing magnetic "Silu Taxi" signs to the hoods...

It's a different person every time I call. Sometimes they know where I live, sometimes they have no clue. Sometimes they pick me up. Sometimes they don't.

Today, they didn't. So I was a tough little Northerner and walked home sans snow pants in -25 (-35 with windchill). It was okay for the first 10 minutes. Then I became a chilly little toaster.

Sorry mom. I'll wear them next time. Promise.

But back to my point. The taxi service in Rankin Inlet is unlike anything else I've ever seen... save Iqaluit. But even Iqualit's taxi service is a little more refined.

First of all, even though we have cell phone service in town these days, all communication is done via radio-thingie. I don't know how I'm able to CALL a walkie-talkie, but it happens.

Then (if they show up) sometimes they come into my building and wander around calling 'taxi!' until I run out, half a bagel in hand... boot laces flying, clumping down the stairs.

If you are the first one in the cab (more on this later) its a bit of an insult to pull the "you are my chauffeur" routine, like we do back home. You sit up front.

Unless of course, the driver doesn't have one of his buddies along for the ride/company.

Then it could either be a direct ride (VERY RARE) or you could then be taken for the grand tour of the hamlet. If you are in the smaller vehicles, this isn't a big deal, but one of the taxi co's have this GIANT 10 (?) passenger van. And they cram it full of people, picking up and dropping off at random intervals.

And the fare is a flat 5 dollars. Which works out to your benefit (probably) if you are like me, going from one end of town to the other (really only a 7 min drive - direct)... but not so much if you are trying to cram a bunch of your folkies in post-friday night soiree.

Not that we really do that here anyways haha, so it doesn't matter.

And that my friends is the art of taxi-driving/riding in the north.

La Fin.