LONDON TAXI DRIVER BACK FROM CHINA, AND A 10,000 MILE FARE

[bbchris]

London (dpa) - Two Chinese passengers have arrived in London's Trafalgar Square after 13 weeks in the back of a black taxi driven by a cabbie who taught them London English on the way, the Times reported Friday.

Tony Arnold from Barnet in the north of the British capital

undertook the journey for Chinese television as part of a campaign by the Chinese government to encourage the speaking of English.

The two ``fares'' were Scarlet, whose Chinese name is Yuchan Wang, and Chun Chun, whose Chinese name is Liang Yuchun, and the cabbie kept the meter running the whole way, clocking up 10,016 miles (16,026 kilometres).

Arnold, a father of two, and his passengers travelled eight hours a day across 11 countries - China, Russia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France and England.

The 24,882.50 pound (38,571.75 dollar) fare will be picked up by Pearson Broadband TV, which is screening the show.

``The journey was amazing. Everywhere we went people were open-mouthed, thinking 'what's a London black cab doing in Mongolia','' Arnold said.

Scarlet, 26, said that her English was now much better. ``Tony taught me 'you look a million dollars, doll', and 'the car is as clean as a whistle','' she said.

Chun Chun, 27, added: ``There were some strange things Tony said, such as 'my mother-in-law looks like that sheep'.''

Scarlet and Chun Chun will return home by more conventional means after a few days of sightseeing in London, and Arnold is back to London's jammed and potholed streets next week.

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[droolymutt]

huh? were they drunk?....