Eight in the morning is when the country's clinics, banks and free zone offices open in earnest, and when the largest single share of private employers expects people at their desks. Appointment lines answer from now, and the queue at anything requiring a counter is at its shortest in the first fifteen minutes.
At the airport it is the middle of a morning arrivals bank: aircraft that left Europe and Africa overnight are landing in sequence, which is why the taxi ranks and the arrivals roads are busier at eight than at almost any other daylight hour.
Counting towards eight is generally counting towards an obligation with a fixed start — a consultation, a meeting, or a place in a queue that grows every minute after it opens. The countdown targets the next 8 am and resets once it passes.
Common questions
Is 8 am a common start time here?
Yes. A large share of private employers start at eight and another large share at nine, which is why the morning peak lasts about two hours.
Cookie policy