DEAR MISS MANNERS: While vacationing, my husband and I took an organized, nine-hour tour with a reputable tour company. The 16-seat bus on which we traveled was completely full with other tourists.
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After our first hourlong stop, we all boarded the bus again, and my husband and I sat in different seats than we had originally. Many of the other passengers had left a personal item like an umbrella on their original seat, so we did not sit in any of those “taken” spots. A few other passengers chastised us for shuffling the original seating and “taking” their seats.
Did we do something wrong? These seats are all equally priced and not assigned. Should we have stayed in our original seats over the course of the daylong tour? Should passengers leave personal items in their spots to stake their claim to them all day?
GENTLE READER: There is a curious human condition that causes people to get surprisingly proprietary about spaces they have occupied for a relatively short amount of time. This is such a case, and Miss Manners recommends abiding by its social contract -- absurd as it may seem.