Escalators
Ever been in a store behind someone who is hesitating to get on the escalator? If so, it was yours truly doing the delaying - sorry about that. Actually, I'm pretty good about the going up but going down is a bit scary for me and admittedly it does take me a minute to actually put my foot down on a step.
I'm not a complete weirdo and can even offer up a reasonable explanation for the fear - even though I should be over the experience by now. Jeff and I were attending an after hours fashion show at a department store (this is years ago) and on that occasion I was wearing heels (that's how long ago it was). At the end of the evening and on our way down the escalator it went rogue and began to speed up which is pretty darn scary. People literally had to jump to get off at the bottom and luckily Jeff and other men were at the bottom pulling us ladies off before our heels had a chance to get stuck between steps. That incident has left me leery of escalators ever since.
If presented with the option of an elevator or an escalator the elevator wins hand down every time. Of course, I don't want to get stuck in an elevator because if I do then it means I would be reduced to taking the stairs - and that would require me to be super fit - and we all know I'm not.
While pondering the subject of escalators I had to do a little research. The longest escalator in the world is in Moscow with 740 steps. The longest escalator in the US is at the metro stop in Wheaton, Maryland - it takes 3 minutes to get to the top/bottom.
The longest outdoor covered escalator in the world is in Hong Kong with a length of 2600 feet. It only goes one way at a time, the direction reverses depending on rush hour traffic direction. Shortest escalator in the world is in Japan with a vertical rise of only 32.8 inches.
If you're traveling to a foreign country and want to make sure you follow local escalator etiquette, I've got you covered. In the UK, US and China you stand on the right. In most of Japan including Tokyo, you stand on the left - but in Osaka you stand on the right (got all that?). If you're in Australia or New Zealand you stand on the left.
So perhaps you should put riding on the longest or shortest escalators on your bucket list. If it's okay with you, I'll leave it off mine or at the very least let you go first.
Happy Friday all.
P
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