The Right and The Worng side of the street

I am sure you know about that thing with the Brits when they drive on the "wrong" side of the road?!

Well... it might be for a good Reason.

Do you remember when in the past they did not have cars?

And, do you remember that they used horses?

Imagine this:

London bridge. 1780 AD. One man - a gentleman, dressed with his best suite, best boots, and best hat riding on a horse arriving from one side of the London bridge while another gentleman, equally dressed comes from the other side. Riding towards each other they had to pick a side so not to clash. The most logical choice each could have made was to choose the left side. An intelligent person would ask 'why' right about now. The answer lies with the Brits' way of respect and honour each other (in the past at least). By choosing the left side the men could offer their right hand for a shake and hello gesture.

So you see, it was really a logical way of setting the rules of transportation.

Outside of Great Britain the choice went the other way around:

They preferred the right side. It could be because the streets were a lot wider and people used carriages and were not able to get close enough for a shake of a hand. They just nodded their head as a way of saying Hello. Or it could be because someone asked Napoleon once what to tell the people when they ask: which side of the street they should ride on? Napoleon asked in return: Which side do the British people rides on? When he heard the answer he smiled and decided - We shall ride on the right!

And that is how empires are builts.


From Icy UK
Na'ama