Valentines Day on the Train and social network dating

You just know I’m gonna inflict you with Valentines Day Social Network stuff today don’t you?

Young Germans looking for love on the rails
Internet dating, speed dating and singles parties are starting to look old hat. In Germany, the public transportation services are becoming matchmakers and the demand has been overwhelming.

Berlin commuters looking to contact a beautiful stranger they saw on a train or a bus can now use a free online service called Augenblicke (Moments) to track them down in what organisers call an international first.

The site, www.bvg.de/augenblicke, clocked more than one million “page views” between its launch last Valentine’s Day, February 14, and the end of December, with demand growing daily, Berlin Transit Operators (BVG) said.

The rules are simple. Passengers left lovestruck after a stolen glance on the subway can use a pseudonym and post a message, which BVG then lists according to metro, tram or bus line where the encounter took place.

If visitors to the site recognise themselves in the description, they can respond by opening a private online mailbox with the other passenger in which they can exchange messages, away from the public bulletin board.

The public postings range from hilarious to heartbreaking.

“hilarious to heartbreaking”?

James Blunt Parody “She smiled at me on the Subway, Turns out she was a Man” *laughs*

“You looked like a dreadlock fairy — I can’t describe it any other way,” a passenger calling himself Kurzhaarstino wrote.

“A light blue headband/headscarf, dressed in black from head to toe and a briefcase (!?!?!?). What an entrance… I was the one with a khaki-coloured jacket, strange glasses and closely cropped hair half a carriage away. I have to know what was in that briefcase! That is at least one of my three wishes…;-)”

Cupid’s arrow pierced “Greeneye” on a commuter train.

“You were carrying a bouquet of flowers,” the smitten rider wrote.

“We both got on at Friedrichstrasse in the direction of Bernau and while I was sitting there I suddenly felt your gaze which held me as I looked at you. I couldn’t look away nor could I keep my eyes on you and I had to smile. Those were magic moments, unbelievable.”

A passenger signing “Seeking Cute Ticket Salesman” had high hopes after a ride on the number 7 underground.

“A shy smile at the ticket widow. An eye-opening encounter at the end of the line. It often only takes a single, magic moment to seal a connection for a lifetime,” she wrote.

While I’m packing my suitcase to whisk off to Germany to do a bit of train-stalking, here’s the summation:

BVG spokesman Klaus Wazlak said that because all communication on the site is anonymous, the company knows little about the demographics of who is using the site or their rate of success.

But he said the writing style pointed to a younger crowd and the number of mailboxes used for private communication indicated that dozens of would-be lovers were actually connecting. (Hat Tip: The lovely Annalie from AMP)

I’m not sure I don’t prefer @twittilate who Twitters (140 chars) erotic stories while traveling on the train to and from work. Next time you are on The London Underground and see a woman in thigh high leather boots, a bustier and a push up bra, running her hands up and down some guy’s suit trousers, tell her @SilkCharm says hi! 😀

(Rituals in Social Networks: Dating)