"Lines" don't seem to have a whole lot of meaning here much of time, in terms of "waiting in them". Most things are orderly, but Confucian tradition dictates that older folks can exercise their higher status.
The only place there is an orderly line I have seen is waiting for the subway, where people line up behind the little green footprints helpfully placed on the platform floor so you know where to stand. Perhaps the possibility of being sucked under a train sharpens the sense of order.
On buses, forget about it. People, including quite kindly looking older people, will suddenly become extremely, shall we say, assertive in making their way in front of you, in shoving you aside, and generally putting you in your place. And keep in mind that i tend to be quite a bit larger than many people. Nevertheless, today I was squeezed off a rush hour bus so expertly by people cramming themselves into an insanely overcrowded bus that I found myself quite rapidly disgorged from the bus and deposited on the sidewalk far from my destination before I knew what was happening. I walked.
The only place there is an orderly line I have seen is waiting for the subway, where people line up behind the little green footprints helpfully placed on the platform floor so you know where to stand. Perhaps the possibility of being sucked under a train sharpens the sense of order.
On buses, forget about it. People, including quite kindly looking older people, will suddenly become extremely, shall we say, assertive in making their way in front of you, in shoving you aside, and generally putting you in your place. And keep in mind that i tend to be quite a bit larger than many people. Nevertheless, today I was squeezed off a rush hour bus so expertly by people cramming themselves into an insanely overcrowded bus that I found myself quite rapidly disgorged from the bus and deposited on the sidewalk far from my destination before I knew what was happening. I walked.
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