On Spacing and I’m Finally Starting to Get it14 ноября 2011

I’ve mentioned in previous posts that people from Москва, from a western perspective, think nothing of cutting in front of you, while standing in a line waiting to pay for groceries, to have something weighed in the produce aisle or while driving. With respective to driving, I’ve made the point that if you leave what I would consider a comfortable distance between my car and the one in front of me, Russians think nothing of cutting you off and wiggling between your front bumper the car’s rear bumper in front of you. As I’ve said, the only rule while driving seems to be: if there’s a space, fill it with you or your car. Coming from the US, my impression is that people or downright rude and discourteous. This happened to me again today in a line I was standing in to get some produce weighed at a supermarket we frequent. And then in dawned on me. Russians and people from the US view the comfortable space between them very differently.


I never feel comfortable in a line unless there is at least a meter of space between me and someone in front of me whether it’s standing in a line at the checkout, on the Metpro or walking along a crowded sidewalk. In the car, the rule I’m used to is: keep a car’s length for every 10 mph between your car and the one in front of you.


I’ve finally figured out, today, that Russian’s are tolerant of spacing much closer together. I don’t know where this comes from but it’s probably a cultural phenomenon. Maybe it’s because Москва is such a big, expansive city and there are millions of residents. It reminds me of Mexico City which I visited several years ago. Mexico and Москва have a large central district but the city limits extend many kilometers beyond. By some estimates there are a least 10,000,000 inhabitants in Москва although this seems low to me.


There are so many people crammed into the space that is Москва that I guess you learn to be much more tolerant of the person or car near you. Many parts of the US are known for their “wide open spaces” and so Americans seem to be much less tolerant of people encroaching on an invisible boundary: about 1 meter between you and the next guy. So, when I stand in line to have the produce weighed I’m far enough from the person in front of me (western standard) that from the Russian perspective, I’m not in line at all and it’s perfectly acceptable to cut in front of me since I appear to be standing around twiddling my thumbs. There is a similar effect while driving.

And so, what I’ve interpreted up until now as being rude behavior, may be more a function of how much space you are willing to tolerate between you and the person in front of you. And while I still get pissed off when someone jumps in front of me (walking afoot or driving) at least I think I’m starting to understand why this happens. What I’m perceiving as rude behavior may just be the Russian status quo, or at least that’s what I’m thinking right now.


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