The rush hour commute through the hoards of workers in London can be a struggle for the best of people. But no one will quite understand the battle that each small girl commuter must face on a daily basis, because, let’s face it, The London Underground just wasn’t made for small people.
The Stairs
When the escalators at a station are broken, you have no choice but to take the stairs. But your little legs aren’t long enough to take two steps at a time like all the long-legged businessmen flashing by. You attempt the manoeuvre with an ‘anything you can do, I can do better’ attitude, but stumble — thank God for the handrail that saved your life.
The crowds
There is a crowd at the station, but, because you are lacking in height, you have no idea why — you can’t see above the towering skyline of commuters. Instead, you use your height as an advantage, and burrow your way to the front without anyone even noticing.
The poles are so high
You finally make it onto the rammed tube, but there are no vertical poles in sight to hold onto. You look up at the pole above your head, sigh, and accept that there is no way you will be able to reach — without hanging off it. Frantically, you scan the space around you for a gap inbetween bodies to pierce your arm through. Just in the nick of time, you grab onto the sticky, sweaty pole for dear life as the train jaults forward and sets off.
The face-in-armpit scenario
Yes, you may be filled with relief that you got hold of a pole and didn’t have to practice your ‘train-surfing’ skills, but you are now squished between two wreaking arm-pits. There is no chance of reaching any fresh air — even on tip-toes. To take your mind off the stench, you start timing how long you can hold your breathe for, but it doesn’t work. How are people so smelly at 8am anyway?
The seats aren’t made for short people
A flip-down priority seat becomes free, so after checking that there is no one of higher priority than yourself around, you sit. The only issue is that your feet can only just touch the floor, which means you can’t even sit comfortably. Should’ve just stayed standing up.
Getting off the tube is a task in itself
As you near your stop, you put away your reading material and begin to gather your bags, so that your fellow commuters can see you’ll be getting off. The train stops and you politely push your way through the train, feeling like Ace Ventura – Pet Detective as he forces his way out the fake rhino’s bottom. Commuting is tough — especially when you’re only little.
