Miracle Cure

Today was my first experience with the cornerstone of Chilean public transportation: la micro. These dingy yellow busses are nothing if not unique. Micro after micro rumbles by during rush hour, their stops displayed on painted signs in their front windows.

Chile has one of the most open, privatized economies in the world (more so than even the United States). As such, the micro drivers are not paid a regular wage; instead, they earn a percentage of the fare of every passenger they carry. What results is an efficient, ruthlessly Darwinian system that always seems to me like barely-controlled chaos. Drivers weave in and out of traffic, racing each other to be the first one to make it to the next stop. Similarly, the micro’s riders have become equally efficient. They try to present exact change, sprint to hail their bus, and leap from moving vehicles so the bus doesn’t have to waste time making a full stop. As I was stepping off, a man got on, carrying bags of pain medication with him. "Ladies and gentlemen," he began, "I have today the most powerful pain reliever available, approved by the Ministry of Health..." I couldn't hear any more as the bus rumbled away.