Here to there
June 5, 2009
A Capri two-car garage. By Mac McKerral
Italians move in all directions, always slowly when you need to get past them and always quickly when they need to pass you. Order takes a backseat to random.
In stairwells leading from train platforms, people descending do not stay right or left. Instead, the come down stairs five abreast — like football linemen leading a sweep — and play “chicken” with those going up, who have to catch a train.
At the pier, huge ferries pour people out on the dock at the same time others try to bull their way through to cue for the boat they need to board.
No one says, “excuse me,” except us “rude” Americans. And the WKU Italy crew, lugging way too much luggage, only gets occasional offers for help hoisting a bag on a train or onto a boat.
I recall that shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, airports throughout the United States began dealing with huge crowds of people moving through very tight and very slow security lines.
At the time I lived in Tampa, I used its airport quite bit. Quickly after Sept. 11, the Tampa International Airport administration hired consultants from Disneyworld in Orlando to help them achieve the crowd-moving task more smoothly and more quickly. The plan consultants developed worked perfectly. And each year, TIA gets ranked as among the top 10 traveler-friendly airports.
National elections approach in Italy. If I decided to run, my campaign promises would involve turning Disneyworld consultants loose on Italy’s public transportation system.
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