The problem with being super-tall in Thailand

It's not easy being a giant like me. Your entire life people ask you to play basketball even though you don't particularly care for the sport and the bullies are constantly asking you "how the weather is up there" and laughing. It does have its advantages though, I can always reach the stuff on the high shelf and peeking over fences is really easy.

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no, neither one of those guys are me

Being so tall in South East Asia has even greater disadvantages. Since almost all of the locals are much shorter than me the buildings are designed differently so you always gotta be looking out to hit your head, especially when entering bathrooms and showers in cheaper places because the doorframes are almost always manufactured to a certain height and this height wasn't meant to be for me.

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These situations can all be relearned in order to not hit your head but there is one thing that remains crazy difficult - Getting shoes. I had some sandals recently crap out on me and needed another pair, I really didn't even care what brand or what they looked like because this wasn't a fashion thing.

not one, not even one!

I thought for certain they would have at least a couple of pairs my size... Nope, not one pair, not even one pair. Since they were flip-flops I was even willing to go down a size, maybe 2 even. But NOPE.

I didn't do a complete inventory, but the average size they had was around a US size 8 or 41cm. I prefer a 13 (47cm) but can use a 12 comfortably if it is sandals. At one point I asked if they had "any shoes for adults because I have accidentally wandered into the kid's section" (just kidding, I'm not a rude person, but i was thinking it - i did believe I was in the children's section though.)

The crazy thing about this whole story is that I am not really a giant. I am slightly above average height back in my home country (I'm 6 feet or 180cm or so) but over here, I am a giant. The few times I did play basketball in Thailand I DOMINATED in the paint. I got every rebound. I wasn't much for offense because the kids were like 25 years younger than me but i was friggin Shaq on defense. It is just important to never let your shoes wear out, because there is a good chance that they wont have your size later.