The growing family of the traffic light guy
(Or how finding beauty in small things can make you happy)
If you can find beauty in small things that others ignore, you will likely be happy. I can, for instance, enjoy the little green man in German traffic lights. Germans speak affectionately of their little traffic light guy as Ampelmann. I just read about the history of this cute walker, which originated in East Berlin in the 1960s, and survived the wall's fall in 1989.
But why should it be a man? The Spanish city of Valencia introduced female figures on traffic lights on International Women's Day in 2016. I understand from this blog that the change was mainly supported, although the representation of women with dresses caused some controversy. It seems that Ampelmann's hat caused less of a stir in Berlin in the 1960s.
Fast forward to the summer of 2022. I collected a few more pedestrian traffic lights in Madrid, Spain where I stayed some days after finishing my pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. I like them all, including the running green guy I shared in a recent tweet as a video. I suppose this growing family of Spanish traffic-light men and women will keep pedestrians better focused on the traffic lights, so it may lead to fewer accidents (excluding the tourists who stop in the middle of the street to take photos of the red men and women in traffic lights).
I write these newsletters, share my photos, do interviews, make podcasts about the environment, and share my travels because I believe that together we can do better on this beautiful but fragile planet.
If you are a paying subscriber: thank you for your support!
Please consider supporting this initiative by taking a paid subscription if you are not.
If you would like to buy me a coffee:
Notes:
Photo of Ampelmann:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Ampelmann_GmbH&action=edit&redlink=1
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
I’m always amazed about what you can find in the internet, like the history of the design of the traffic light man
What a fun departure from your typical fare! Made me laugh! Not a world traveler like yourself, I will not have the opportunity to see the whimsical side of life in other parts of our world. Many thanks!
😂😹🤣