Germany.

Modern German society shows no deference to women, not even to old ladies, who are invariably surprised though seemingly pleased when a man holds the door open for them at a department store or supermarket. Naturally most educated people can be as polite as, say the British.

Whether a more general lack of manners on the streets is due to rudeness or shyness is hard to say; it certainly has nothing to do with gender equality: Germany remains a profoundly chauvinistic society, a cultural legacy.

Even though Germans grudgingly voted in a female chancellor in 2005, the personnel policies of the country’s major corporations see to it that women are kept in their place, which is definitely not the boardroom. Many claim that women are not qualified enough, others call for positive action to raise presence. Whatever the reason, the facts speak for themselves, movement is excruciatingly slow.