The elevator apocalypse

Yesterday there was almost an elevators apocalypse in Berlin. I wanted to take the U6 from Oranienburgertor and the elevator was broken. 

I opened Google maps and found an alternative. Walk 5 minutes, take the S25 from Oranienburgerstr. I walked, arrived, broken elevator. 

By this time I lost hope and decided to go home. I walked to Hackechermarkt, took the elevator, then S to Fredrichestr. I had to switch again to take the U6, broken elevator.

S again towards Alexanderplatz, had to switch multiple times until I got home.

This day reminds me of similar days in Cairo. When the traffic is so bad that no cab driver agree to pick me up (in Egypt the cab driver has to accept your destination before you get in the car, and in case you are thinking, public transportation isn’t wheelchair accessible). Some days ended up well, like the day a driver picked me up and when we arrived he didn’t take the money. He said he was on his way home and he wasn’t out for work! Other days I had to wait for hours or having to call someone to pick me up. 

Then Uber came. I no longer have to have someone go with me to stop a cab, and I no longer have to be at the mercy of drivers mood and where they want to go. Uber put an order to the chaos I used to live in.

Yesterday was like my Egyptian days, maybe this time before autonomous cars come and I no longer have to take elevators. 

These days are reminders to why I am grateful and excited for technology. Many years ago someone couldn’t go up to their home until elevators were invented. Today I couldn’t take the elevator to the train, in a near future this will no longer be a problem. Thanks to technology, and software eating the world.