English politeness and a movie

I walk around the blind corner of a building as someone else does. We almost collide. We both say, sorry and hopefully, I walk to the left and they walk to my right. If not, we may say sorry again to each other as we have misjudged the passing side of travel of the other person.

Even if someone walks into to us, we warn them by saying sorry, not look out. It is all very British, I think. Do American people do that too?

English politeness on the roads is legendary. While one person may have right of way, two car drivers will sit and gesticulate,  you go first, no you go first., no you, please. Meanwhile the traffic behind them banks up. I have seen it and experienced and it was maddening. Even supposedly professional drivers, such as Blackpool tram driver,s do the same. What is the point of road rules? But then British drivers have some to whom they are not polite, buses and cyclists. I was appalled at how R's youngest sister bragged about how she would cut off buses to get to where she going.

I began this post quite some time ago and yet just yesterday it became a bit more salient. R had been given two Gold Class cinema tickets and kindly shouted me to see Lion. It was a terrific movie, even though I had already seen a tv story about the tale of an Indian orphan boy taken on by an Australian family in Hobart, who went on to find his mother back in India. English actor Dev Patel shone in the movie. I forecast him to be one of those actors who just sells movies. If he is in a movie, people will want to see it.

The recently renovated Gold Class cinemas in South Yarra's Jam Factory are superb. They are spacious, with a table between two seats for your food and drinks, pre ordered with staff who greet you and seat you in the lounge before you enter the cinema. The seats are large lounge chairs and recline with the footrest coming out with the press of an electric button. A cavernous space under one armrest stores any bits and pieces you make have with you. When you are brought your food and drinks mid movie, the staff are unobtrusive and kneel or crouch down as they put whatever on your table, so not spoiling anyone's viewing. Not a job for older people. The cost? $84 for two, which was covered by the vouchers. The outrageous $6+ booking fee was not. We have been out at night so rarely of late, thus we justified spending $67 on food and drink.

Dev Patel is rather easy on the eyes, hence a gratuitous photo inserted here.

This is really not how this post was meant to go, talking about a movie, but while R used the toilet as we were leaving I went out into Chapel Street to wait for him and regretting I had not brought tissues and was making do with the high quality paper serviette from the cinema. He came out, I moved and assuming he was next to me but no, it was a young lass walking along the footpath and I had nearly crossed straight in front of her. I said sorry, she said sorry, we moved a bit and again we were on a collision path, sorry I said, sorry she said, and yet even once again we still had not unentangled ourselves, with another set of sorrys. It was totally my fault. Funnily as we walked up Chapel Street to get the tram home, I collided elbows with someone and there were no sorrys as we were moving at fair pace in opposite directions and it was just an accident without any confusion. 

Meanwhile in our ever so polite city, two people have been stabbed in the last 24 hours.