There are so many different interests and hobbies in the world, I'm often surprised by new ones that I come across. Believe it or not, there is a large section of the population that who are obsessed about trains. After visiting Paris again, I'm not surprised, as it reignited my curiosity into subway systems.
I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, where the only subway I'd ever get close to was a 6-inch turkey sandwich on Tuesday Subway day. Only later in life did I even realize people used transportation other than planes and automobiles, that in major cities riding the subway was people's primary mode of commuting to work as well as just getting around. I never really got into New York's subways, maybe the smell, the state of the trains, the quality of the people riding them (there are quite a few crazies down there), but ever since my first solo international trip to Japan, I was impressed by the subway system; that was actually half the joy of the vacation, getting the JR pass and riding whatever train I wanted, to wherever I wanted. For some reason subway maps excite me, and the more complicated and with more colors and arrows, the better. It could be the same excitement I have for solving Jeopardy clues or putting together puzzles, subways present a mass amount of information that requires some studying to decipher how to get from one place to another (before Google Maps), and it fuses well with an interest in geography. Japanese trains all have a little jingle that gives you a bit of a soothing feeling before closing the doors, and (imagine this) they run on time, and people actually clean the trains periodically so as to make it a hygenically acceptable journey, something I'm not so sure of when I take the 7 train from JFK to Manhattan.
I also like individual subway stops, where there could be a lot going on, from cool art exhibits to underground malls with tons of food stalls (Japan famously has a Michelin restaurant at a subway stop). Not surprising, as people in Asian countries pretty much have a second home at certain stops. There are also big connecting stops that link a bunch of lines together, like an octopus branching out to all different areas of the city. (In LA there's just one stop like that, it's called "DTLA" stop. Now that MJ and I visit some densely populated countries, I'm pretty invested in enjoying the subway system. Paris was....satisfying in that regard, although the weather in late May definitely incentivized us to be outside rather than going underground, and the whole pickpocketing thing is really a turn-off. (My dad actually lost 100 euro on a subway train; Europe is teeming with pickpockets, apparently, but these pickpockets were polite enough to leave his wallet with all the credit cards and non-cash related items intact. Call it a hefty subway tax. Definitely made me put one hand directly on my wallet at all times during this trip. I did get so caught up in the subway craze that I got overconfident and got lost in the Paris system, winding at a stop expecting to change lines, only to find out one of the lines did not run on Sundays. OH NO! The great equalizer of train transportation that makes me decidedly NOT a train nerd, closing o certain lines on weekends. I once was redirected on the BART (the Bay Area's train system) to take a bus through Oakland 5 miles to a stop that could transfer back to the BART. It was NOT a pleasant experience. And yea, also throw peace and quiet (and control over what smells you encounter) out the window when riding the subway. There's something calming about driving oneself on a highway, with one's fate in your own hands.....except until you hit traffic. Urg. Can't win.
No comments:
Post a Comment