This BBC story really surprised my, because of the way it shows how different perspectives change the way that the world looks to different people.

The article contains the statement that "the British have little sense of pavement etiquette". As a Brit living abroad, I must disagree.

I live in Germany, where most people are not brought-up with a sense of other people and their need for somewhere to walk too. Ask any Briton or American who lives in Germany about the pavement etiquette and you are likely to hear a torrent of horror stories about not being able to get off of trains because locals are trying to get on before disembarking passengers have got off; about locals who simply stop after getting off a busy escalator and block the people behind who continue to be delivered by the escalator; people who just stop in the middle of busy pedestrian traffic, or even while crossing a street; the groups who feel the need to walk six-abreast down the pavement; and of course, the Englishman's favourite, the fact that the locals can't queue (if queuing is really needed, there will probably be a machine which will issue you a ticket with a number: your place in the queue). Of course, there are exceptions: some Germans are incredibly polite in the way they walk, but in general it can be really shocking and stressful to newcomers.

Over the last year or so, I have spent a lot of time working in South-East Asia. Their pavement etiquette also sometime shocks. Certainly they have no idea how to queue, but also they allow you a much smaller volume of personal space (I spent my first week in Jakarta constantly expecting someone to barge into me on the pavement, but they never do, although they do get really close as they dodge around you at a brisk pace).

There are certainly plenty of things that I don't like about the UK (which is why I don't live there any more) but I certainly do like the pavement etiquette, and I miss it when I leave Britain again.