An American gives directions in Cornwall

Posted on March 8, 2015 by Ellen Hawley

Something notable happened the other day: A guy in a landscaping van stopped while I was walking the dog and asked for directions, and even though he heard my accent (yeah, well, how could he not hear it?), he drove in the direction I suggested.

I should mark the date on my calendar so I can celebrate it next year.

32 thoughts on “An American gives directions in Cornwall”

susieshy45 on March 8, 2015 at 12:38 pm said:

I don’t understand Ellen- why would he not drive in the direction you suggested ? You are human after all and he asked help of a fellow human being.

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- Ellen Hawley on March 8, 2015 at 3:48 pm said:
  
  Usually drivers hear my American accent, think, She’s not from around here, and go looking for someone else to ask.
  
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- Angie K on March 12, 2015 at 3:01 pm said:
  
  I was going to ask exactly the same thing!
  
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LifestyleswithLia on March 8, 2015 at 1:02 pm said:

Congrats! Great post! I can relate very well to your experience… I was stopped on the street once in Florence, Italy and gave an Italian directions…I felt like a rockstar…
Enjoy the rest of weekend!

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- Ellen Hawley on March 8, 2015 at 3:46 pm said:
  
  That made me laugh. Always a good thing. Okay, nearly always. Thanks.
  
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vanbytheriver on March 8, 2015 at 4:56 pm said:

It works for gender bias as well. Folks looking for directions at the hotel desk would always go to the male employees first, who would then turn to me for clarification. It always made me smile. ☺ Van

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- Ellen Hawley on March 8, 2015 at 6:56 pm said:
  
  Sigh. Glad you can laugh about it. It’d drive you nuts otherwise.
  
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Gunta on March 8, 2015 at 5:23 pm said:

Then again there’s my recent experience of telling a guy to head East on the interstate to get to Arizona (from California) in order to get cheaper gas. Turns out I was wrong… still trying to figure that one out.

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- Ellen Hawley on March 8, 2015 at 6:55 pm said:
  
  I guess that’s the nice thing about being in California. You can say east and at least be sure you’re not sending them into the ocean.
  
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John on March 8, 2015 at 5:32 pm said:

You do not have the accent, the fella in the van does! :)

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- Ellen Hawley on March 8, 2015 at 6:53 pm said:
  
  Funny thing, but that’s not what he said.
  
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Sally MacKenzie on March 8, 2015 at 6:53 pm said:

This made me laugh. We seem to get asked directions all the time when we’re in England–must be the old farts in hats thing. Last time we’d landed that morning and set off to explore Hampstead Heath. (We find it works best if we just hit the ground running when we fly at night and then collapse into bed early the next evening.) We’d no sooner entered the heath than some woman, possibly German, asked us for directions. Couldn’t help her. But later, when a young London couple asked us, we were ready as we’d just studied the map.

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- Ellen Hawley on March 8, 2015 at 6:59 pm said:
  
  I hope she believed you.
  
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motherhendiaries on March 8, 2015 at 6:55 pm said:

Gahaha! My guess is the driver was NOT from Cornwall… :-)

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- Ellen Hawley on March 8, 2015 at 6:58 pm said:
  
  Not sure where he was from, but the service he worked for (or owned–what do I know?) would’ve had to be local. But given that most of the roads around here don’t have names or numbers–at least not so’s you’d know–all you have to do is drive five miles outside your regular patch and you’re clueless.
  
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  - motherhendiaries on March 8, 2015 at 6:59 pm said:
    
    True story. It’s a little like Ireland out there. Same story, really. I guess this means you have “ARRIVED” in Cornwall at long last, huh? :-D
    
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    - Ellen Hawley on March 8, 2015 at 7:04 pm said:
      
      My sense is that you never quite stop arriving. But I do feel like I live here.
      
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Belladonna Took on March 9, 2015 at 12:24 am said:

I bet you’re starting to sound like one of Them.

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- Ellen Hawley on March 9, 2015 at 8:58 am said:
  
  Not possible. I seem to be teflon-coated against picking up accents in English.
  
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  - Belladonna Took on March 9, 2015 at 7:43 pm said:
    
    Well, I would swear my accent hasn’t changed, but every time I go to South Africa people laugh at me for sounding all Ahmurrricaan.
    
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    - Ellen Hawley on March 10, 2015 at 9:05 am said:
      
      Yeah, these things do sneak up on us. I’m going to have to practice my accent, aren’t I?
      
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  - Angie K on March 12, 2015 at 3:03 pm said:
    
    Good! So I am not the only one…
    
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    - Ellen Hawley on March 12, 2015 at 3:31 pm said:
      
      Not at all.
      
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frankiekay on March 9, 2015 at 9:30 am said:

On the other side of the…coin! Here in Africa beware of asking how far a place is – you will invariably be told it’s close-by! Loosely translated that could be 12km or 120km! And also beware, if you are lost, of taking the guy up in your car for him to show you the way (yes, people do offer!) because he will take you via his own home and mostly once there just direct you the rest of the way!

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- Ellen Hawley on March 9, 2015 at 10:15 am said:
  
  …proving the old saying that you can’t get there from here, you have to go someplace and else start from there. The someplace else being his house.
  
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ShrutiInsights on March 9, 2015 at 12:24 pm said:

Congratulations for that!
:)

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Max T. Furr on March 9, 2015 at 3:51 pm said:

I once had an instance where I stopped and asked directions. They were completely wrong. Another time in NYC and driving an 18 wheeler, I asked directions and the guy hopped on my running board and offered to steer me to the right place. As the neighborhoods became increasingly shabby, I realized that he was steering me into a hijacking. I told him to get off and had to threaten him to make him do so.

I will still ask for directions, but of an employee in a store.

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- Ellen Hawley on March 9, 2015 at 4:22 pm said:
  
  I grew up in New York, and for some reason we always told each other that New Yorkers would never admit it if they didn’t know where something was–they’d just give you directions anyway. I haven’t a clue if that’s true, because I can’t remember anyone there ever giving me bad directions. In fact, I can’t remember ever having asked.
  
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Erica Herd on March 9, 2015 at 7:58 pm said:

I nominated you for a Liebster Award: http://suburbanhobo.com/2015/03/09/liebster-award/

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- Ellen Hawley on March 10, 2015 at 9:04 am said:
  
  I’m flattered, but Notes is an award-free zone. Something about them just doesn’t sit well with me, although I don’t feel that way when other people receive and display them. I really do have to make that more visible on the blog. Somehow.
  
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  - Erica Herd on March 10, 2015 at 3:20 pm said:
    
    I understand, Ellen.
    
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    - Ellen Hawley on March 11, 2015 at 9:14 am said:
      
      Thanks. I’ve now added a page that (if anyone finds it) will explain.
      
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