What do you consider to be good bus manners?
June 11th 2009 22:27
Lots of Germans seem to think that their country is the Land of Politeness. Alas, this is certainly not true, as there is plenty of rudeness to be found here. Take buses, for example.
But before I go any further, here's a little common sense quiz.
If you have a standard double bus seat at your disposal (as pictured above), where is it logical to sit?
B) Next to the aisle, thereby obstructing the passage to the empty window seat and making people feel guilty for wanting to sit next to you.
In an amazing display if stubbornness and lack of manners, a great number of Germans -- whom I like to call the Dreaded Seat Hoggers -- choose option B. This behaviour can be seen in men, women, young and old alike. By occupying the aisle seat, they make a clear "Sit next to me only if you really must" statement, which, sadly, seems to be effective, considering how many times I've seen empty window seats on crowded buses.
Of course, there are some brave individuals out there who dare to disturb the Seat Hogger's peace by asking to sit next to them. But how do you think the typical German Seat Hogger reacts in such a situation? By moving over perhaps? NEIN! They typically just nod grudgingly to indicate that the adjacent seat is indeed free to take, and continue to sit in an obstructive position while the brave individual steps over their legs.
In the worst case scenario, the Seat Hogger puts their jacket/handbag/shopping on the free window seat next to them, thereby strongly discouraging any potential invasion of their hogged space.
Apart from the Seat Hogger, another notorious creature often found on German buses is the Aisle Hogger. These selfish human beings seem to think that it's perfectly acceptable to continue standing close to the bus doors even if a large number of people is trying to squeeze onto the same bus. They simply won't move further down the aisle to make room for the new passengers. Ever.
Why are so many people so rude? I mean, I learnt my moving-down-the-aisle manners way back on the school bus. It really ain't so hard.
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