點滴4 Sharing 4: 守時與德國 Punctuality & Germany

德國人經常被喻為守時的民族，所以約了德國朋友，我都會守時應約。那德國的U-bahn守時嗎？

German was known as the nation of punctuality.  When I have an appointment with German friends,  I will be on time. How about the U-bahn in Germany?

在慕尼黑的日子，出門前都會先查看鐵路時間表，因為德國鐵路班次不像香港般頻密，有的路綫十分鐘一班，有的可以二十至半小時一班，錯過了有機會在車站呆等數十分鐘，所以預先計劃很重要！

In Munich,  it is important to check the train schedule before leaving home because the railway in Germany is not as frequent as that in Hongkong.  Some route provided service every ten minutes while some of them could be every twenty to half an hour for one.  If you missed the last train,  you could wait at the platform for ten to twenty minutes.  Thats why planning is important.

有次我和Moritz在車站等著，時間到了還沒有車到達，月台上其他乘客也在等著，所以我們應該沒有錯過預定U-bahn,結果列車遲了二十分鐘。

One time,  Moritz and I waited at the platform on time as other passengers did. We were sure we did not miss the U-bahn.  And the train came 20 minutes late.

還有次Moritz在寒冬下等U-bahn 上班，結果居然遲了一小時才到達！！那種心情真無奈，離開又怕下一秒列車到達，留守又不知道要等多久。德國列車可以很準時，但不準時的話的確很遲。

Another time Moritz waited for the train in winter to work and the train arrived an hour late!!! It was so helpless at that point.  If you left,  the train may arrive the next second.  If you stay,  you don't know how much longer you should wait.  The train in Germany is always on schedule,  but if there is delay,  it could be miserable.

如果事件發生在香港，不消15分鐘乘客已經開始鼓譟，網民拍照貼facebook, 向港鐵投訴，傳媒又會大造文章，絕不會像德國人那麼和平。

If the above happened in Hongkong,  with less than 15 minutes,  passenger started to grumble , took pictures and uploaded on social platform,  complained the poor service,  media reported in the news.  The result would never like the German.