Wow, I'm getting quite a nice little collection of these 'Japanese pet peeves', aren't I. Hahaha. I suppose when I was in the honeymoon period of living here, I didn't have so many, but now more things are getting on my nerves.
Japanese trains are very good and in general I like commuting by train. Spending so much time doing so, however, means that I naturally have some small pet peeves regarding them.
The 'get on the bloody train!!' phenomenon
When waiting for a train, Japanese commuter stand in line on the platform, and board in a fairly orderly fashion. As you're getting on, the 'doors are closing' sound is blaring warningly, and there's always someone just in front of you who feels they have all the time in the world, and casually step on, deciding to stop right in the doorway so nobody can get on behind them. I know the train is crowded, but while there is a line behind you and only a few seconds for us all to get on, please push right into the crowd so that we don't risk getting shut in the doors.*
*(Incidentally, I have only gotten stuck in a train door once, and that had more to do with how much alcohol I'd consumed, rather than slow fellow passengers.)
The 'just one more' phenomenon
Once everyone has got on, and everyone has manoeuvred themselves into a position on the train where they're not inappropriately touching anyone else, and you've gotten the coveted spot immediately next to the door, the 'doors are closing' sound will sound... and sound... and sound... and at the last second someone else will leap on, forcing everyone into one another. If the 'doors are closing' sound lasts particularly long, this may be three or four people. This happens every time without fail.
The 'changing platforms phalanx'
When you change trains, there's sometimes an escalator that only goes one way. In my current commute, people going down onto the platform must take the stairs, while people going up can take the stairs or escalator.
What happens is that you have about 1000 people, who came off the previous train, all trying to get down this narrow staircase at the same time, forming an impenetrable phalanx of human bodies, creating a logjam. Meanwhile you can *hear* the 8:11 train pulling up, you can see it only metres away, but there's no way you're gonna get to it in time.
Hahaha... it sounds annoying, but truthfully, by the time you've gotten down and walked the length of the platform, the 8:13 train is pulling in. That's a good thing about Japanese trains. I just can't believe there are so many passengers though, that they can run trains *every two minutes*, yet each one of these trains is wall-to-wall people.
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Trust me though... it doesn't matter where you are, or where you hail from - commuting is the one thing we can all complain about. No matter how good. The good thing is that there's a train every two minutes, and by and large it arrives on time. Hehehe... it's nice sometimes to find the things you find annoying (and realise they're not that bad after all).
ReplyDeleteTry taking pot luck with a bus service when can't tell if you're going to get the expected bus, the previous bus, the next bus, or even no bus at all. I love the fact (and here I expect a communal gasp of disbelief) that I can still jump in my car and drive to work. There I said it.
Yeah, you're quite right. When I was commuting by car, my pet peeve was the poorly designed car parking at my work; at my last job it was having to drive to the nearest bus stop because it was an hour's walk from my house. You could say my gripes are quite adaptable, ha ha ha. I do like the trains here though. ^_^
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