It's not a Chinese thing, nor a dog-shit thing. It's a man/woman thing.

Some years ago UC? psychologists set up an experiment where men and women walked into a room twice, were asked to detail differences between each occasion. The coatrack in the right entranceway was modified each time, things shifted. Furniture was rearranged. Colours were changed. In every instance, women far outperformed men in identifying changes in cloistered space.

A corollary experiment repeated the same thing in broad expanses, outdoors. Men always exceeded women. Direction, tracking, broad vision, focus on goal, focus on hint of predator.

Something to do with evolution, hunters and gatherers, developmental roles of genders, wariness of threat, which is why men are so often reluctant to accompany mates on shopping expeditions to malls. There's a threat around every corner, and I know damn well where that place is and don't have to ask directions, and if you think landmarks are are a better solution than instinct, ask someone yourself. I won't!

That dog-shit may be apparent to you strides away, but I'll bet you still ask your wife "Honey, where's my coat?"

But why can I never find my way out of a mall, never find the door I entered?