Any 6 feet (180 cm) people finding themselves too tall in Thailand?

[CANSIAM]

I do believe Thai's 'zero in' on the KILO difference rather than height difference when looking at foreigners lol...... 

[BritManToo]

1 hour ago, RamenRaven said:

I'm a 6' 0" tall guy. That's just a bit over 180 cm.

This is considered very average for men in most of Europe and North America, so most people in Western countries don't even say I'm tall.

Not in the UK, at 6' I would estimate 5-10% of men being my height or taller.

I spent my life looking down on most other guys.

 

Market stalls are a problem, but I've never been in any building/home/dwelling (Thailand/China/Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos/Philippines) where the door and ceiling heights are anything lower than the western norm. As for females, the Philippines easily make the smallest women.

Edited March 5, 2021 by BritManToo

[RamenRaven]

1 minute ago, CANSIAM said:

I do believe Thai's 'zero in' on the KILO difference rather than height difference when looking at foreigners lol...... 

 

And portion sizes!

 

A Texan dude once told me, "Everything is smaller in Thailand."

 

But everything is bigger in Texas, wouldn't every other place look smaller?

 

[RamenRaven]

4 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Market stalls are a problem, but I've never been in any building/home/dwelling (Thailand/China/Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos/Philippines) where the door and ceiling heights are anything lower than the western norm. As for females, the Philippines easily make the smallest women.

 

I think you should take a closer look. Many small shops in those countries have very low door heights, below 2 m. In Western countries, doors always need to be 2 m high at the very least.

 

In rural areas or rural-like suburbs, there are bound to be homes where 6' 1" guys would have to look carefully and see if they need to duck their heads.

 

As for short women, Indonesia and Myanmar have even smaller women.

 

Bolivia has the smallest average height that I've seen anywhere.

 

[scorecard]

24 minutes ago, RamenRaven said:

Thanks, love your story Scorecard! Really enjoyable to read. You had mentioned that your Asian students were Thai, Burmese, Vietnamese.

 

But try taking a metro ride in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Taipei, or another one of those highly developed Asian cities. Many of the men, especially the younger ones, have European-level heights. I've walked around with some European (German, Swedish, Swiss) friends in those cities, and many of the local Asian youths were just as tall as the European boys.

 

Bangkok might be on its way there.

 

Agreed, many Chinese youngsters, mainland China and also Singapore nowadays much taller and stronger.

 

Many years ago I doctor I met in Singapore claimed that quickly after Singapore health authorities strongly pushed for kids to drink a lot of milk every day and eat other dairy products daily (all subsidized) was the reason for height increase in Singapore.

Edited March 5, 2021 by scorecard

[Kiujunn]

2 hours ago, RamenRaven said:

. I feel like I'm in a dollhouse,

You are in a dollhouse.

 

You should go to the Philippines,  people are much shorter there. 

145cm is nothing unusual there.

Thais have gotten tall, fat and well-off over the least 20 years. 

Girls taller than 170cm are not unusual anymore in Bangkok (still unusual in Surin, though). Only ladyboys used to be that tall. 

Edited March 5, 2021 by Kiujunn

[RamenRaven]

3 minutes ago, Kiujunn said:

You are in a dollhouse.

 

Pun intended?

 

You know, dolls

[Muzzique]

2 hours ago, RamenRaven said:

I'm a 6' 0" tall guy. That's just a bit over 180 cm.

This is considered very average for men in most of Europe and North America, so most people in Western countries don't even say I'm tall.

 

I'm 5'10 and I spend much time in Thailand and Ukraine. Flying between the two is like going from Lilliput to the Land of The Giants.

 

Having a couple of Thai girls on my arm makes me feel like a Grizzly Bear but walking out with Ukrainian girls makes me feel like I'm a pet Chihuahua.

[RamenRaven]

1 minute ago, Muzzique said:

 

I'm 5'10 and I spend much time in Thailand and Ukraine. Flying between the two is like going from Lilliput to the Land of The Giants.

 

Having a couple of Thai girls on my arm makes me feel like a Grizzly Bear but walking out with Ukrainian girls makes me feel like I'm a pet Chihuahua.

 

Still, Ukrainians aren't nearly as tall as many other Europeans.

 

Try neighboring Latvia and Lithuania. They're about as tall as the Dutch. You'll be impressed!

 

[Kiujunn]

2 hours ago, RamenRaven said:

everything look like they're custom built for those little 140-150 cm

They are custom built for them. 

 

But don't worry, nowadays you find the same dollhouse-sized furniture in the West.

You can ask your grandfather how high were chairs,  tables,  door handles,  light switches,  sockets, car seats 100 years ago.  The West has switched to Asian standards a long time ago. There is no going back,  because nowadays all physical products (except some cars, some machine tools and airplanes) are manufactured in China and sold to Asians as well as to Westerners. 

 

Very good for the business of orthopedic surgeons operating lumbar spines.

[ColeBOzbourne]

2 hours ago, RamenRaven said:

What are some other countries where 180 cm guys have to constantly duck their heads?

Peru. I'm the same height as you and was once married to a Wild Amazon Woman from Peru. Outside of major areas, in markets and on sidewalks, I often have to duck and weave even more there than in Thailand.

[Scouse123]

I am 1' 90 tall, 106 kg.( which i am active in reducing and have lost 11kg already) I live in the sticks, and do not seem to have the problems you mention.

There are a number of Thai guys larger than me in height and weight around here. Yes, mostly fatter, but I know a few taller. 

In the UK, I am not even looked at in the height and weight tables as anything more than average.

[Kengro]

I am 2 meters, so Thailands markets are hell on earth. Made for dwarfs 

[polpott]

2 hours ago, RamenRaven said:

Not like in much of Thailand, where you literally stick out.

For me, that's purely down to the number of hot girls I see when walking around. Can be embarrassing.

[FritsSikkink]

4 hours ago, RamenRaven said:

 

Note that I said: "Outside the major shopping centers and fancy condos"

"Excluding middle-class parts of Bangkok"

 

When you travel outside those areas, most of the infrastructure is built for people in the 140-170 cm height range.

 

Been in many parts of Thailand and don't see that problem that much only the outside shops with their rain cover is a pain.

[Katipo]

I am 180cm exactly and never really had any problems.

[RamenRaven]

55 minutes ago, Kengro said:

I am 2 meters, so Thailands markets are hell on earth. Made for dwarfs 

 

I've always wondered why they can't make everything just a little higher, because making things over 180 cm high is not just common sense, but a legal requirement, in most other parts of the world. It's just several more inches of poles and sticks and strings and wood, so it's not a budget issue.

 

Some Thai university students are that height. Not everyone is a tiny 140 cm som tam selling old lady.

 

I asked a few working-class Thais about it, and they said it's because most people just aren't that tall over here.

Edited March 5, 2021 by RamenRaven

[pgrahmm]

6'4" here....Other than wrenching myself in and out of a tuk tuk a couple of times = no..... 

Buying shoes is a challenge.... I stay completely away from railings that are thigh height - my center of gravity is all wrong there....

Most seating is standard sized....Western style bathrooms are almost standard by now.....

Other than that - not much.....

[RamenRaven]

57 minutes ago, Kengro said:

I am 2 meters, so Thailands markets are hell on earth. Made for dwarfs 

 

Not just outdoor markets, but also those market people's houses and permanent indoor shops.

 

That's most of the country. The middle-class urban areas of Thailand make up only a small part of the country.

 

The way the infrastructure is built in most of the country is as if they assume that the tallest human being on earth tops out at 175 cm, and they don't even seem to be aware that some people may be over that height. Many of Thailand's neighboring countries don't build like this, even if the street vendors are short middle-aged women.

 

You can try adapting to it, but it just gets annoying when you are a guy of average height in many countries, but still needs to duck his head everywhere. Every time you go out, it's like spelunking in a low cave full of overhanging stalactites.

 

[RamenRaven]

If you need a visual reminder, here it is.

 

Nakhon Phanom. Most people in the photo would be 140-160 cm for sure. Tallest, 170 cm. 180 cm, you'll be crashing into the umbrellas and doors if you don't make a conscious effort to duck.

 

Homes, shops, bathrooms, and even some offices are built this way too, not just markets.

 

 

 

Contrast with a market street in Taipei, Taiwan.

 

Notice the presence of taller people who can comfortably walk around. That's what I mean here. You can see a few guys who look like they're 180 cm. The people manning the stalls are short little ladies, but they still make everything higher.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 5, 2021 by RamenRaven

[RichardColeman]

5 hours ago, RamenRaven said:

That being said, my width is perfectly normal and average in Thailand since I'm skinny, but not my length.

My 'length' is pretty much in proportion to my height to be honest, and the wife seems happy enough. ????

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

5 hours ago, nikmar said:

im 190cm - the only trouble i have is buying jeans. 

 

I'm 200+ cm... the only problem with things I have here is... EVERYTHING!!!

 

PS - I'n not ragging on the Thais about it... I knew what I was facing when I moved here...

 

Just have learned through the years that I need to buy pretty much all my personal items from specialized tall places in the U.S....  Heck, in the U.S., most of the time, I can't buy in regular stores there either.

 

PPS - I spend a lot of time ducking whenever I have to walk down BKK sidewalks that have low-hanging umbrellas from vendors on both sides of the walkway.

 

Haven't gotten decapitated yet...

 

 

Edited March 5, 2021 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[RamenRaven]

If you're 160 cm or 200 cm, you won't notice much.

 

But if you are in between at 180 cm, you will notice there is a pretty big difference between infrastructure height with Thailand versus many neighboring Asian countries.

 

Here's a market in China, a country with plenty of short people similar in shape and size to Thais that you see in markets. You can see that the tall people won't be bumping their heads into the rain covers and things on top. In Thailand, rain covers are often set about 10-20 cm lower. The men in the white shirts below would be brushing their hair against all the rain covers in Thai markets and would need to constantly duck in and out.

 

 

 

Now, check out a street market in Lampang, Thailand. Average height is clearly shorter, and everything is set lower, designed for shorter people in mind.

 

Edited March 5, 2021 by RamenRaven

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, Kengro said:

I am 2 meters, so Thailands markets are hell on earth. Made for dwarfs 

 

A kindred spirit.... ????

 

[RamenRaven]

A few more visual reminders

 

Somewhere in Isan. "Watch your head" would be constantly running through my mind.

 

 

 

This lady can fit right in, but good luck trying not to duck if you are a Westerner of average height

 

 

 

Now Hong Kong is ridiculously crowded, but still, the doors and signs are a lot higher.

 

 

 

[hkt83100]

The worst are the bathroom doors. Why are they normally about 20 cm lower than the other doors in a standard Thai house? Even worse is the problem finding shoes in a decent size. I am just 183 cm, but some things are bothering me sometimes.

[RamenRaven]

Train ticket counter in Thailand

 

 

 

Train ticket counter in China. The short old Chinese ladies can fit right in with the old Thai ladies, but everything is still built higher up. You can see how the signs, counter tops, barriers are all placed higher.

 

 

 

You get the idea.

 

Everything looks shrunk in Thailand after you fly in from other Asian countries.

 

A good way to show friends back home how "not all Asians are the same." 

 

 

Edited March 5, 2021 by RamenRaven

[Freigeist365]

I was asking myself that same question, but regarding iQ...

[DaLa]

I'm a tad under 6 foot and find most of the time it to be an advantage here. I'm fairly slim too but the main problem with my size is when I wear the wife's panties. Awfully tight after a few hours.

[decca60]

I'm 1.96 and 100 kg living in Thaïland Although I face the same problems than other people of my size, I don't complain because I think that at 68 y.o, nothing will change and I have to cope with that. Watch you head.....