Episode40 ; Women Can’t Read Maps

Allan and Barbara Pease live in Australia. I presume that many people know a book which they wrote, even though their name doesn’t ring the bell. “ Why Men don’t Listen and Women Can’t Read Maps “ became a bestseller around the world. I’ve never read that book, but I can easily find people who can’t read maps.

A friend of mine does not have an internal compass. So, she would lose her place in department stores, even supermarkets. Although finally she found the exit and got out of the labyrinth, she didn’t know where she was. Despite her terrible body compass, she always arrived at her apartment. I don’t have any idea how she found her way home.

I’ve liked a map since my childhood. So, I always walk with a map during my trips. I know Google map is very helpful, but I prefer a paper map. It’s not because the paper map needs neither wifi nor battery, but because I just like looking through it. Therefore, the first thing I do during a trip is to demand a city map at the reception desk. I check my location and plan my walking route.

While I observe the map, I explore streets on it and imagine how they are. As I actually walk on streets, sometimes I find something new. In Sydney I found many streets had ups and downs. I didn’t know that on the two-dimensional world. On the way to the Opera House, a smell of sea lead me there. The map had just a paper scent. Still, paper maps tell me a lot of things. They help me to instinctively know the location and the distance. So, I am a women who can read a map. This is why a lot of people ask me the route wherever I am in the world.

※毎月1日、15日に掲載予定です。
※この記事は、The Traveler’s Time vol.3に収録。

第40話　地図が読めない女

アラン・ピースとバーバラ・ピース夫妻は、オーストラリア在住である。おそらく多くの人たちが、二人が書いた本は知っていても、著者の名前は知らないのではないか。『話を聴かない男、地図が読めない女』は世界中でベストセラーになった。かくいう私も読んだことはないのだが、地図が読めない人は、簡単に見つかる。

私のある友人は、体内コンパスを備えていない。そのため、デパートはおろかスーパーでさえ迷子になっていた。ようやく迷路の出口を見つけても、そこがどこだかわからない。これほど厄介な体内コンパスを持ちながら、いつもアパートまでだどり着くのだ。どうやって帰り道を見つけているのか、私には皆目見当がつかない。