Hello, everyone. This is Professor Jeong from Focus Korean. Today’s topic is "Taking a Taxi.

" Do you take taxis often? I’ll speak slowly. So listen carefully.

I usually drive my own car, but sometimes I take a taxi. When I do, I usually book a taxi using the Kakao Taxi app. In the past, people used to wave down taxis on the street, but now, most people use Kakao Taxi.

It’s especially hard to catch a taxi early in the morning or late at night when there aren’t many cars on the road. At times like that, it’s really convenient to book a taxi through the app. To request a Kakao Taxi, you first need to set your current location.

You can either enter the address manually or select it on the map. Then, you just enter your destination. After that, you’ll see the different types of taxis available and an estimated fare.

The higher the price, the faster you can get a taxi, and the nicer the car will be. But I usually just use the standard option. Even with a regular request, a taxi usually arrives pretty quickly.

Once you book a taxi, the app shows how many minutes until your ride arrives. Then, I just wait and go outside when it’s time to get in the taxi. When the taxi arrives, I first check the license plate.

I check the car’s license plate to make sure it’s the taxi I booked before getting in. I usually sit in the back seat. I hardly ever sit in the front seat of a taxi unless I’m with a group.

Once I get in, I lean back and look out the window. I’d like to listen to music, but since the driver might start a conversation, I usually don’t wear earphones. Sometimes, I check the estimated arrival time or follow the route on the app.

But if I look at my phone for too long, I start to feel carsick, so I usually just look outside. Occasionally, I get a chatty taxi driver, and we end up having a conversation. But most of the time, we don’t talk much.

Since I already entered my destination in the app, there’s no need to give directions. Taxi rides have become much more convenient, but sometimes they feel a bit impersonal. When I reach my destination, I thank the driver and get out.

Since my credit card is already registered in the Kakao Taxi app, I don’t need to pay separately. It’s really convenient because I don’t have to take out my card or cash every time. The actual fare is usually very close to the estimated price shown when I booked the ride.

Even if there’s a difference, it’s usually just a few hundred won. Once the payment is complete, I get a confirmation message in the app. After I get out, I get a notification to rate the ride in the Kakao Taxi app.

You can rate the service and the driver based on your experience. If everything was fine, I always give five stars. Recently, every taxi I’ve taken has been clean, and the drivers have been friendly.

So I’ve never really had a reason to give a bad review. But even if I’m not satisfied with the service, I usually don’t leave a negative rating. Once in a while, I get a driver who drives recklessly or complains a lot, which puts me in a bad mood.

At times like that, I feel like leaving a bad review. But when I do, I end up feeling bad about it later. So instead, I usually just skip the rating altogether.

Do you take taxis often? How do taxis work in your country? Let me know in the comments!

Now, everyone, listen to the story once again. I’ll read it a bit faster.