In rush hour on Alice Street in Brisbane this week, a man stopped his car at a busy intersection, hopped out and approached the car directly behind him, which was mine, of course.
“Which way to the airport?” he asked, seemingly confident that I was about to enter into a helpful discourse on the confusing onramps that confront rivers on the edge of the Riverside Expressway.
Australian drivers are reasonably well trained, and so while in Asia or Africa the hooting would probably have started straight away, my fellow-road users waited patiently as the traffic backed up.
This was not an ideal situation for a chat about getting around Brisbane. I suggested he get off the road, regroup and work out his route in safer circumstances.
It’s easy to dismiss this person as an outright idiot, but we’ve all been lost in strange cities, and have needed a friendly stranger (pre-satnav) to help us on our way.
I would have been happy to help him in less pressured conditions, all the surrounding traffic made it difficult to do so.
It was such a simple situation and made me think: is it true men are generally less likely to ask for directions than women?
Google the topic and you soon get on to the thread of how males are good at reading maps (and therefore not inclined to admit they don’t have one) while females are better at remembering landmarks and being practical about getting to their destination (so more likely to ask for a stranger’s help).
Another thought about this incident is how differently I would have reacted if I was in my old hometown of Johannesburg. My assumption would have been that the driver was setting me up for a hijacking, and I would have raced off as fast as possible.
So, to that lost man on Alice Street, I hope you made your flight, sorry I couldn’t help you more, and thanks for asking for directions!