Sense of direction.

[Gentmartin]

My wife seems to have problem finding the way to her purse...........

[Bangkokhatter]

The Op flies in the face of my experience. Thais on my planet don't know up from down. The North East South West concept is rocket science, as is their sense of distance. They don't generally know 100M from 1,000M, and long distances are generally known in "drive time", including frequent food stops, rather than xxxx Kilometres.

We once drove to a party that (according to the very good directions given to my missus ) was "nearly Soi 8 on Soi Something or Other. We got to "nearly" Soi 8 but no sign of the village we wanted.

Missus calls up the friend for directions....."nearly Soi 8 etc." was the answer. So I do a U-turn. Traffic was heavy and this took forever. Still no sign of the place after a 1 klm drive, so I do another U-turn but still can't find it. Missus calls up the friend, "no pompem, I dry scooter come fine you".

Twenty minutes later the friend calls up, "cannot fine you, where you now?" By this time I'm having kittens as the missus proceeds to give the friend very poor directions as to where we were. Thirty minutes later the friend calls up again, "I look but not fine you, I home now".

I grab the phone off the missus and ask to speak to her husband (who I'd never met) and asked him how to find his house. The answer was:

"Mate, drive 4 klm down Soi Whatever from Sukhumvit and you'll see Soi 8 on your left, drive another 5klm and you'll see a 7/11 on your right, and beside that is a bar with millions of blue LED lights, it's the only bar in the area so you can't miss it. The village entrance is about 150 metres past that bar. But if you come to a Temple with a PTT gas station opposite it on your left then you've gone 1 klm past us and will need to do a U-Turn."

We were there in 10 minutes, much to my wife's amazement.

For some reason, Thais can't give directions that make sense and even if they don't know when asked, they'll make out that they do. I won't tell you about the 7 hours lost in Bangkok!!!

Think the OP must be very lucky as the above is exactly my experience and not just with the missus. Same problem with colleagues, had a nightmare today trying to find a Makro store, knew i should have took my car

[carter1882]

The answer us quite simple. Learn to read Thai. There are signs everywhere, would you believe, that tell you more or less precisely where to go. Of course most foreigners dont, that is their problem. But, please, dont tell me that someone who knows gor gai theung hor nok huuk has some magical ability. And in answer to why they might be able to do this in Singapore...Chinese?

[sipi]

It seems none of the Thai in my family/village have any idea when it comes to maps and directions - other than to say, meet me at the temple [which temple? you know, the temple.] Or I am near a 7/11

Oh yes. Apart from being gifted with the unusual sense of direction, she is hopeless at giving them. I just follow on foot or get her to point in the car. It must be the left/ right thing.

So many times I have heard "meet me at the corner"...

[sipi]

She has a skill me thinks.

My wife is similar in Thailand, but lost in Australia. She says everywhere looks the same.

Ive noticed Thai girls can be quite psychic. They seem to sense 'things' quite well, but I cant give one particular example.

My wife strangely gets an itchy lower back when rains on its way. Sounds weird but Ive taken enough notice and its accurate. Itchy in the morning,blue sky, she says its gonna rain, and it does everytime

Itchy back is real. I get it to, and I'm not Thai. But about the sense of direction, my wife is fairly average, and we infrequently get lost in BKK - usually because of talking, like recently taking someone to the airport. But I now know my way around Bang Na. What i don't understand is that my wife and others don't like asking shops or strangers for directions. Don't know why ?

Your wife won't ask a shop keeper for assistance either? I thought that was another of my brides gifts. We should have these open air discussions more often.

[sipi]

I have read a study that concluded that men navigate by directions (Go south 3 kms.....turn left at the 3rd road, 100 metres past the intersection etc) while women navigate by landmarks, (go towards the temple, it's on the road with the big green house, it's across from the market etc).

OP's wife in city situations is probably noticing things like tall buildings, the shoe department etc.

Don't know about that. In Australia it was always go down past the Rose and Crown, turn left, walk two blocks until you get to the Pig and Whistle and then....you get the picture.

In Australia I always had a really good sense of direction. I sailed a lot and always had a good sense of where I was heading without charts, etc. I don't know if it is because I am now in the northern hemisphere or just getting old but I seem to have lost my bump of direction.

I really like the sailing analogy. A sense of direction without charts. That is what I was trying to say in the OP. It is a lot better than my evolutionary bird theory.

Thanks.

[Hatyaier]

She has a skill me thinks.

My wife is similar in Thailand, but lost in Australia. She says everywhere looks the same.

Ive noticed Thai girls can be quite psychic. They seem to sense 'things' quite well, but I cant give one particular example.

My wife strangely gets an itchy lower back when rains on its way. Sounds weird but Ive taken enough notice and its accurate. Itchy in the morning,blue sky, she says its gonna rain, and it does everytime

Itchy back is real. I get it to, and I'm not Thai. But about the sense of direction, my wife is fairly average, and we infrequently get lost in BKK - usually because of talking, like recently taking someone to the airport. But I now know my way around Bang Na. What i don't understand is that my wife and others don't like asking shops or strangers for directions. Don't know why ?

It's because she knows Thai people will never admit they don't know something and will point you in any random direction.

[wprime]

Do birds complain that we can't fly? Nope, so we shouldn't complain that Thais have no sense of direction but rather be thankful that we do.

That being said it can be frustrating at times, I sent my Thai partner to put more money in the parking meter about 5 minutes before it was due (it was parked about 200m away), 20 minutes later she came back to tell me she couldn't find the car, got back, $90 fine. :S

[dzodun]

It has been my experience that most Thai people have never been taught how to

read a map, so they seem oblivious to giving directions based on North/South etc.

Most of the time they will tell me it is "over that way" while pointing a certain

direction. I think they do not like to ask directions because they lose face by

showing their ignorance. In the U.S men tend to do the same thing, whereas women

seem quick to want to do so.

[Kondiao]

I think Sipi is on to something with the allusion to migratory birds. i know you were being facetious, but there is a theory that these birds do have something inside their brains - likely deposits of iron - that serve as permanent magnets and are aligned at birth with the earth's magnetic lines of force. So when it is time to migrate they have something like a map imbedded in the head, which along with other landmarks, like the positon of islands for rest stops and the prevailing weather patterns, help them to plan out an itinerary and follow it, flexibly.

Hey, there has got to be some physical basis for this sense of direction which come of us have - and which I lack.

The other thing is "paying attention." Some of us can remember direction if we consciously take note of directions and landmarks and ask questions and cause the memory of the directions to and from a place to be imprinted on the short-term memory, to be later moved into long-term, maybe.

I agree that some people don't have to bother about formal directions because they sub-consciously take note of subtle landmarks and refer to them when navigating - yet they cannot explain the directions to someone who relates only to N-S-W-E. I remember riding my motor scooter with my G/F on the back, going from Chiang Mai to Mae Jo to her friend's house. She knew the way there from riding on the Songteow, but not by N-S-W-E- directions or the main highways. So when I got off-track we were both lost and no amount of yelling and demanding that she give me a logical explanation was going to make her think my way. Yeah, we got there eventually, but there would have been less hurt feelings if I had been more patient with her.

[malt25]

She has a skill me thinks.

My wife is similar in Thailand, but lost in Australia. She says everywhere looks the same.

Ive noticed Thai girls can be quite psychic. They seem to sense 'things' quite well, but I cant give one particular example.

My wife strangely gets an itchy lower back when rains on its way. Sounds weird but Ive taken enough notice and its accurate. Itchy in the morning,blue sky, she says its gonna rain, and it does everytime

Itchy back is real. I get it to, and I'm not Thai. But about the sense of direction, my wife is fairly average, and we infrequently get lost in BKK - usually because of talking, like recently taking someone to the airport. But I now know my way around Bang Na. What i don't understand is that my wife and others don't like asking shops or strangers for directions. Don't know why ?

What i don't understand is that my wife and others don't like asking shops or strangers for directions. Don't know why ?

Oh, I can so relate to this. My girl is reasonably well educated, worldly, intelligent. But is sooooo not willing to ask other Thais for directions. I to don't understand this.

Just sayin.... Mal.

[kannot]

My wife is the opposite....she gets lost walking to kitchen.

Lucky you....mine cant cook!!!

[kannot]

She has a skill me thinks.

My wife is similar in Thailand, but lost in Australia. She says everywhere looks the same.

Ive noticed Thai girls can be quite psychic. They seem to sense 'things' quite well, but I cant give one particular example.

My wife strangely gets an itchy lower back when rains on its way. Sounds weird but Ive taken enough notice and its accurate. Itchy in the morning,blue sky, she says its gonna rain, and it does everytime

Itchy back is real. I get it to, and I'm not Thai. But about the sense of direction, my wife is fairly average, and we infrequently get lost in BKK - usually because of talking, like recently taking someone to the airport. But I now know my way around Bang Na. What i don't understand is that my wife and others don't like asking shops or strangers for directions. Don't know why ?

What i don't understand is that my wife and others don't like asking shops or strangers for directions. Don't know why ?

Oh, I can so relate to this. My girl is reasonably well educated, worldly, intelligent. But is sooooo not willing to ask other Thais for directions. I to don't understand this.

Just sayin.... Mal.

My Wife has no problem asking for directions....as for the replies....well??????