There
are two established methods in Europe - using a thumb and using a destination
placard. The thumb stops everyone driving on the road in your direction. It is
not a problem if one is using an interurban road. But it is better to use a
sign with the direction of one's travel if one is standing on the drive to the
motorway or by the bypass which leads to numerous different directions…
Thumb
hitchhiking was established in the sixties. The first to use this sign were
presumably the Romans: a thumb pointing downwards meant they wanted the
gladiator to die, a thumb pointing upwards meant they wanted him to live. The
meaning of the simbol later expanded: it means approval, best wishes or appeal
to something positive, "do me a favour and give me a lift".
To be
continued
Text
& photo: Janin Klemenčič
