The airport chair is not at fault...

A Vietnamese passenger carelessly lay down with his feet up, ignoring other passengers who had no seats at Changi Airport (Singapore) - Photo: NHAT NGUYEN

According to reader Nhat Nguyen, the story of many people turning airport waiting rooms into their living rooms is not something that has happened recently, but has existed for a long time.

This ugly behavior, unfortunately, is not difficult to see every time you have the opportunity to go to public places.

To add more perspective, here is what this reader shared.

Turn public places into private places

One time, my whole family went shopping at a shopping mall in District 7 (HCMC). There were many long benches with cushions, beautifully upholstered, very soft, suitable for resting. However, there were quite a few people lying down, occupying a whole bench.

Some people even put their shoes and food on the chairs and just chat on their phones, with no intention of cleaning them up and letting the elderly or children sit down to rest their tired feet.

Another time, I walked into a coffee shop that had a nice long wooden table for customers to sit at. During peak hours, the shop was crowded, there were many customers, and the seats were limited, so everyone was willing to share the space with each other.

Yet there was a group of three girls who took up all six chairs to display their handbags and… makeup, and even took up most of the table (which could have been shared with other guests) to display their mirrors and combs, and then just kept applying makeup to each other, as if no one was there.

Other customers complained, the staff came up to remind them, but after a while, things went back to normal. Many people just let it be.

At the airport, it's not uncommon to see someone occupying an entire bench, putting shoes, bags, and anything that can fit on the bench.

Even while lying down, people happily stretch their legs over to the next row of seats or spread their legs up on the chair, press their phones with their hands, and laugh loudly, making a loud noise in a corner of the airport.

Outside the airport, where passengers are seen off, some families have turned it into a dining room, spreading out tarps, raincoats, and setting out food and drinks as if they were going... camping.

Want to "disappear" at a foreign airport

Not only in the country, but also when abroad, some Vietnamese people show their lack of awareness.

Seeing people like that, I myself want to "disappear", but I don't understand why they are still carefree.

That is, once at Suvarnabhumi Airport (Bangkok, Thailand), many seats were marked with signs and notes in English and Thai with the content: Priority seats, reserved for monks, pregnant women, women with small children, the elderly, people using crutches, wheelchairs ... But many people still led each other to sit.

Other guests saw this and gently reminded them that this seat was a priority seat and that they could go sit somewhere else, but the group ignored it and continued to sit in the priority seats, even though they were not on any of the priority lists.

Not long ago, while waiting to board my plane at Terminal T4, Changi Airport (Singapore), I once again witnessed a strange lack of awareness.

In addition to the rows of chairs, there are also many sofa-like chairs for customers to sit and wait. Yet, there are people who calmly lie down as if they were at home. When someone comes to remind them, they give them an unfriendly look, put on a pair of sunglasses, and continue lying there.

Is this how you behave in public?

"Eat and watch the pot, sit and watch the direction"

Vietnamese people have a very good proverb: "Eat and watch the pot, sit and watch the direction" to teach how to adapt to each situation, but unfortunately it is rarely applied in life.

Some people say that the seats are arranged next to each other, or designed like sofas, so they are too comfortable, allowing many people to "occupy" them, turning them into private spaces. But I think that saying that is no different than blaming the "chairs".

The chair in the airport or cafe or shopping mall is completely innocent!

If anyone has ever had to transit overnight and wait several hours to continue at the airport, they can understand how meaningful the long, rowed chairs or sofas are, helping passengers to lie down, rest, and take a nap overnight.

Of course, that was when the airport was extremely empty. During the day, when there were so many people around me who didn’t have a place to sit, no sensible person would do that!

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cai-ghe-o-san-bay-khong-co-loi-2024093012045536.htm