Tuesday, October 29, 2013
We miss Preston
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Monday, October 21, 2013
Halloween in St. Augustine: Ghosts, Costumes and a Safe Ride Home
Halloween has always been a busy night for St. Augustine—and really, what better city is there for it?
We're the nation's oldest city. By simple cab-driver logic, we've had more time to accumulate ghosts.
St. Augustine embraces its spooky reputation with ghost tours, haunted history, costumes, pub crawls and Halloween events throughout the historic district and surrounding area.
For visitors, that's part of the fun. You can spend the evening walking centuries-old streets, hear stories about the people who once lived here, visit some supposedly haunted locations and then head downtown for food, drinks and entertainment.
For taxi drivers, Halloween brings another tradition: designated driving.
If your Halloween plans include drinking, make your transportation plans before you go out. Leave the driving to someone else and concentrate on having a good time.
Costumes are encouraged. Creativity is appreciated.
Trying to drive home after too many Halloween spirits—the liquid kind—isn't.
Abraxi Taxi has spent many Halloween nights carrying ghosts, goblins, pirates, witches and occasionally people whose costumes we never quite figured out around St. Augustine.
Have fun. Be strange. Enjoy the Ancient City after dark.
Just get home safely.
Abraxi Taxiom: Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance.
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
St. Augustine Celebrates Its 450th Birthday
We survived St. Augustine's 450th birthday party—and what a party it was.
In 2015, America's Ancient City celebrated 450 years since its founding in 1565. The celebration brought residents and visitors together for several days of music, ceremonies, history and special events throughout the city.
For those of us driving taxis, major celebrations like this look a little different from behind the wheel.
More visitors mean packed hotels, crowded restaurants, busy streets and plenty of people looking for transportation. It was another reminder that St. Augustine may be an old city, but it certainly knows how to throw a party.
The 450th celebration was also part of a remarkable period for St. Augustine. Major concerts and events were bringing national attention to the city, including the Mumford & Sons Gentlemen of the Road Stopover during the broader 450th Commemoration period.
After the birthday celebration, our attention turned toward another St. Augustine tradition: Nights of Lights.
When major events come to the Ancient City, our advice remains much the same today as it was then: plan ahead. Reserve your accommodations early, make restaurant plans, expect traffic and think about transportation before everyone else has the same idea.
St. Augustine has been welcoming visitors for centuries.
Abraxi Taxi hasn't been around quite that long—but we've certainly driven through some memorable celebrations.
Abraxi Taxiom: In a 450-year-old city, even the traffic has history.
Thursday, August 29, 2013
The Taxi Delivery That Hit the Jackpot
Driving a taxi isn't always about taking passengers from one place to another. Over the years, Abraxi Taxi has received some unusual requests, including customers asking us to pick up something they needed and bring it to them.
One longtime customer, Mr. Calloway, occasionally called us for deliveries.
One day his request was a little different.
He wanted a Powerball lottery ticket.
We picked it up and delivered it, just as we would any other small errand. Nothing particularly exciting about that—or so we thought.
Weeks went by.
Then Abraxi Taxi received a nice check in the mail accompanied by a very short note:
“I won.”
Apparently, Mr. Calloway's taxi-delivered lottery ticket had been a winner.
Good luck, Mr. Calloway. We were delighted for you, although there was one downside for Abraxi Taxi:
We lost a regular customer.
That's the taxi business. You spend enough years driving around St. Augustine and eventually you become a small part of people's lives—and occasionally their winning lottery story.
Abraxi Taxiom: Sometimes the best fare is the one that gets lucky.