TC

A must read for all China travelers. Too funny.....too true.

http://www.banterist.com/archivefiles/000348.html

filmwill

That was pretty damned funny.

For anyone with experience using those 'hell holes', the experience the author describes is even more hellish while attempting to maneuver on a moving train.

indianapearl

Someone on this forum recommended taking disposable latex gloves into the washroom as a precaution. My experiences in Korea indicate there's nothing to hang onto while squatting, so practice deep knee bends prior to departure to build up those thigh muscles.

colduphere

I wish I read that before I went. I sat right down.

thursdaysd

colduphere - LOL!

I actually prefer squats when the plumbing and sanitation are questionable, or people's aim may be off (on filmwill's trains I opt for the squat if given a choice). It takes a fair amount of infrastructure for a "western" toilet to work well. I notice that the author omitted to mention the option of using water instead of TP, or of flushing using a bucket and pail...

Definitely a case where practice helps - when in training I've managed a squat while wearing a daypack and with a camera round my neck. He didn't mention that there's often nowhere you want to put your daypack, camera case, whatever down, or hang it up - and if you travel solo you can't give them to someone to hold.

Images2

"Close the door to the stall, knowing full well the handle has more germs on it than the entire population of Botswana"

Doors, they have doors? Not the couple I walked into with a line of women all squatting over the "toilets". I quickly left those facilities...

thursdaysd

Images2 - oh yes, I'd forgotten the bus station on the way to Dunhuang - a tiled trough running round the outside of the room, but with continuously running water. (You just have to avert your eyes, like you do when the bus stops in the middle of nowhere!) Later on on that trip the "facilities" smelt so bad we went outside and round the back of the building instead.

You could always pretend you were an ancient Roman - the toilets at Pompeii certainly weren't designed for privacy. Or maybe one of LBJ's aides!

crellston

Excellent!

Takes me back to the time when we were living in Sierra Leone. We went to a party on the beach in the capital Freetown and as the night wore on , my wife felt the need to use the "facilities". Accompanied by some friends, she visited the Ladies and entered via the bamboo door into the open air toilets only to find... nothing but sand!! No toilets, no stalls, no walls only dozens of women squatting on the sand. She was so glad she kept her sandals on!

The worst thing was that this toilet was right next door to the bar where we had been eating and drinking!