h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

As a german I'm able to add an interesting fact to this discussion concerning zebra crossings. A zebra crossing in germany is equivalent to the rest of the road, but without any speed limit. If a german driver sees a zebra crossing he will immediateley increase the speed of his car to something beetween 120 and 160 km/h, then honk like mad and cross the zebra crossing making wild gestures while shouting at the pedestrians.

I'm not quite sure, either, why they waste so much white paint for the zebra crosses. I never cross streets there because it would only mean a big detour with no apparent advantage...

In my experence, Germans on foot wait at crossings for ages, even if there is no vehicle in sight.

They also look shocked at you when you walk across the road...

Could you please say something on your personal space? Then one could leave messages for you ...

You have it easy if the Germans only look shocked when you cross the road on a red man (and there isn't another car within a kilometer!)...Do you not also get the tut-tutting and the dirty looks? Drives me mad - there's gotta be SOME level of civil freedom and I trust myself capable of crossing a clear road, thank you very much.

Oh, I get the tutting all the time. Of course my friend had to go and one-up me by actually getting shouted at by one p**sed off mother for "corrupting her child".

I've had that too. Not sure when I've been more embarassed in my life. I don't cross now on a red man when there's a child around - I'd hate to be seen encouraging them to use their own judgement when there isn't a car within 3 miles.

Well if you're somehow Irish, as your name indicates, then you have a totally different attitude to road crossing, consisting in doing some really fast footwork in flowing traffic. Germany is NOT the place to do it, because German drivers invariable leave their humour, if any, at the garage door.
Btw, I was informed only last week that crossing the road in defiance of the Red Man can cost the driving licence. Gave me a bit of a jolt, that did, as i'd habitually been doing some really fast footwork for years and years...

Heehee...yes, I am Irish and I guess it's somewhere in our psyche that disobeying authority by crossing (safely) on a red man is positive self-expression. I hadn't heard about the posibility of losing your license for jay-walking, but I do know that in Germany if you're caught cycling your bicycle while intoxicated then you get points put on your driving license.

there you see, it may seem like uncritical obedience to the law if a German stands waiting at the red light, but in fact it may be shortsightedness, first i have to make sure no car is comming, then i have to make sure no police man is anywhere near, then there IS a car coming...

ooops, police car...

That's true - when I'm standing at the Hauptbahnhof waiting to cross the road I have to check for cars, trams, policemen, policecars, children I may give a bad example to, tut-tutters - oh, it's all so stressful. The last time I was in Ireland I was standing beside 2 policemen at a busy crossing. There was a red man, but everyone was crossing the road "illegally"....except me - I was paralysed by the sight of the policemen!! That was until they finished their chat and then one of THEM walked across the road on the red man....left me behind like a lone wally preserving the integrity of the red-man/green-man system.

Aw, i would have liked to see that, Irish colleen behavin' German. You might have been taken up for loitering, except that would be a first in Eire as well, what?

Agree totally with the civil freedom comment.

Once I was on a deserted street in Berlin at night, and crossed an empty road against the red man. A small group of people were waiting at one side, I breezed straight passed them - they not only tut-tutted and looked shocked, but actually shouted at me "Der Licht ist Rot! Der Licht ist Rot!!", wildly pointing at it, as if I hadn't seen it. I gave a gallic shrug and walked on, leaving them to it... I do wish I had had some ready witty riposte (not that my German is very good) to the effect that they were the idiots for obeying a 2-watt bulb rather than their own senses, but I didn't.. any suggestions for a good reply?

I think when you get safely to the other side of the road you should jump around wildly hugging yourself going "I'm alive!! I'm alive!! Praise the lord!!!" as if everyone has just experienced a miracle. They'll think you're mad and will stoically, germanically, ignore you then.

This is such a cool conversation! Wish I could join in