Fun at the Metro

Watching the masses get on and off the metro at Sadat station every morning amuses me to no end. On one side of the doors, you have scores of people waiting clamoring to get on before the door closes. On the other side, you have scores who just want to get off, and rightfully so. But what happens when the two masses collide? I blame the door, but Simon tends to favour the “lack of courtesy” shown by the locals.  

This morning was particularly humorous. Two kids were waiting eagerly at the edge of the platform. As is customary, the train pulled up with a gathering of people at each door. Once the train stops, a few seconds passes before an alert sound is played, followed by the doors sliding open. I’m pretty sure these few seconds only make the problem worse—intensifying the eagerness of the people wanting to get on, and increasing the frustration of the people wanting to get off.

When the door opened this time, the two kids lowered their shoulders to try to barge their way on, while the people getting off kept moving forward. Needless to say, the kids didn’t stand a chance. I can only imagine that for them it was like running into a brick wall. In the words of Tom Gara, “Oh man, those kids just got owned.” One of the disembarking passengers took particular exception to the kids’ actions and started a bit of a scene. One of the kids, after getting on the train, turned around and went right to said guy only to be lambasted. The irate guy required restraint by his friends, while the boy turned around and got on the train.

Although they only went one stop, I could hear them chuckling the whole way.