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At the Risk of Being Crude: There Must Be Fifty Ways to Flush a Toilet: Trip Report from Rome, Florence and Pompeii.
Before anyone gets worried that this is the trial and tribulations of someone traveling through Italy who is �bladder challenged,� it�s really about the epiphany I had on our recent trip to Italy about their bathrooms � lots more on that later.
Having made our first trip to Italy in 2006 and fallen in love like the rest of you on this board, around my house, I�ve become the �counter.� There might be 272 days and 18 hours of Bush in the White House but there are 387 days and 5 hours until I get back to Italy. I started counting for this trip last December when we decided to abandon our usual National Park spring break adventure and go to Europe just as the café tables and chairs were once again taken out of winter storage and set outside for people watching and a quick espresso. I added weather in Rome, Florence and Naples to my iPhone and in meetings would find myself surreptitiously checking it. I bought cool scarves I imagined myself wearing as I shopped for Zucchini Blossoms in Campo Di Fiori. I did my research using Fodor�s Rome 25 Best, Frommer�s Guide to Italy, Eyewitness Rome and Florence, watched a terrific but slightly overwrought documentary on Pompeii (Pompeii: The Last Day � you can buy it at www.discovery.com) and used the In Rome Now website: http://www.inromenow.com/ which has a lot of great information about the shops and events in Rome. Most importantly, I revved up my exercise regime and took 2 and 3 mile hikes every morning knowing I would have to walk off the Bolognese and Chianti Classico from the night before. Thank God for that. Oh, and I started packing three weeks before our trip much to the amusement of my �throw it in the suitcase, sit on it and zip it� husband and son. And my husband, bless his heart, since our last trip, did 90 minutes of Pimsleur�s Italian EVERY DAY for the last year and a half while he rode his recumbent bike. Sometimes it sounded like he was being tortured by the Mussolini regime, as I would hear a strained and panting �Dove il bagno� emanating from the other room. But it paid off. Now to our trip � 9 days in Rome at The Inn at the Spanish Steps, two days in Florence at Hotel Santa Maria Novella and a day trip to Pompeii. The last time we were in Rome for only 4 days and just scratched the surface, no Scavi tour pun intended� Our dream is to eventually spend a month in a city and not feel quite so much like a tourist though happily a tourist I am for now. My husband, daughter, son and I left LAX in late March on Air France. I had enough miles to bump us up to business class and although, as an Army brat and frequent traveler, I'm used to long lines and rubbing thighs with chatty dude next to me with peanut breath, there�s nothing like an international lounge, champagne, crackers from Fauchon and a mini-massage to kick off your trip. On board, we nestled into our L�Espace Premiere Barcaloungers, went into a Xanax haze and 11 hours, two movies and three meals later, we were in Paris on our way to Rome! CDG AIR FRANCE INTERNATIONAL LOUNGE bathroom: Electric eye automatic flush and mouthwash at the sink� NEXT: JUST WHERE IS THE SEAT, PETE? � Restaurant bathroom #1 And our first glorious day in Rome�. |
Ha, peanut breath!! More please, this should be a fun report, love your humor!
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Yes, more please.
I did count 12 different plumbing solutions on one trip---it always intrigues me. |
Can't wait for more. When we took our daughter on her first trip to Europe --probably about 10 or so--the journal she kept included drawings of the flushing mechanisms of every different toilet she encountered.
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<<There Must Be Fifty Ways to Flush Toilet>>
Travel Rule 3: At a restaurant, the first person scouts the flusher location and reports back to the rest of the table. Waiting of more . . . |
This is great! Can't wait to hear more-
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ttt
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Loving your report already! We were also in Rome in March (my trip report is just finishing up here). I seriously considered calling my report the "bathrooms of the world" tour, so I think I get your meaning. ;-)
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Great report; I'm looking forward to more.
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Ah, to have a toilet that even thinks of flushing. On a trip by bus across Greece several years ago there were several rest stops with just holes in the floor. Looked like they had been there since Plato and Aristotle. The Roman Empire had a "heads up" on the glory that was Greece.
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This is great! Can't wait for the next segment!
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Thanks for the feedback! FLJudi – we had that experience at a Paris flea market but surprisingly of the toilet variations in Rome, that was one we missed…
We landed in Rome late afternoon after flying over the amazing Italian Alps. As a really nice courtesy, the Inn at the Spanish Steps picks you up, gratis, from the airport. Though dopey and a little weary, our excitement built as we headed into Rome. It hits you that you’re in a foreign city, first from the road signs and then slowly, pieces of old aqueducts began emerging in the landscape and before you know it, BAM!l like you’re Paris Hilton on the way to a club pursued by paparazzi, your car is swarmed by every scooter imaginable – men in business suits, women in high heels, students, all occupying every nook and cranny around your car and going in directions that defy traffic patterns and laws for that matter. Our hotel was located on Via Condotti just yards from the Spanish Steps – it’s not too big and all in all, we loved staying there. The staff couldn’t have been more terrific. Apparently there is some unwritten Spanish Step rule that everyone who worked there must have a name that begins with the letter “F”. There was Francesca, Franco, Flavio and Fabio. They endured my frequent e-mails: Do you have irons? No, fire hazard rules – I did bring one and never used it even once… Can you help us with bookings, restaurant and otherwise? Yes, and all of their recommendations were wonderful and we never felt like they sent us to a tourist trap. And more than that, they went out of their way for us. Since we were there for 10 days, they felt comfortable enough to tell my husband that when he thought he was saying “Can you show me that on the map?” in Italian, he was actually saying “Can you show me that on the plant?” When we went to a friend’s house for dinner and asked them for the closest wine shop, they gave us champagne to take to them. The thing about inns and as a lot of you might know by staying in apartments, there is really no uniformity in the rooms. I would stay there again in a heartbeat but I would scout out the rooms and find the ones that more suited our needs – we changed from two rooms to one midway through because my daughter left and the second room was more spacious. We unpacked, freshened up, I put on my first scarf, tied Parisian style and we were ready to roll. Our first meal in Rome was a recommendation from a friend who lives there. Santo Padre (Via Collina 18 tel.: 06-475-5405.) A little off the beaten path, but well worth it. We were the only non-Italians in there - it was casual but really warm and friendly and one of the owners must own race horses; there were jockey colors and racetrack pictures everywhere. Just before we arrived, our table was set with fresh proscuitto, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, some sort of sliced spicy turkey, and grilled zucchini. And as soon as we sat down, they brought out hot meatballs with Parmesan, ricotta cheese, mozzarella di Bufala and salami. All before we ordered! We each had a great pasta and some tasty house wine and soon, I needed to excuse myself to the “Piccola signora’s” room. For as many artifacts that are dug up in Rome every minute, it seems like most of the bathrooms are in the basement. God knows what ancient storefront or bedroom was sacrificed for our convenience. And here was the beginning of my observations of the varieties of Italian toilets and surroundings. At the hotel, it was the two-panel on the back on the wall flush – not sure was the difference was – maybe water pressure. Here at Santo Padre, it was a wall flush but just where, oh where was the toilet seat? Hmmmm. Modesty dictates that I spare you the details as we all choose to deal with the no-toilet seat bathrooms in our own fashion, but this was now the second and wildly different commode that I had encountered. And my toilet travels had just begun. This is when I started to take notes. Finally we let the jet lag hit us as we headed back to our hotel at 11 PM to tuck ourselves in for the sleep of the dead. 4 AM – wide awake. So as not to wake my husband, I sat on our Inn bathrobes wedged between the sink and bidet, reading. It was hard to believe I was so tired just a few hours ago. Oh well – I read until 6 AM, showered, got dressed and went downstairs in search of the breakfast buffet ready to start my day. Let my family sleep away the first morning; I was up and alert. I asked a nice gentleman behind the desk where the food was in my best bad Italian and he told me breakfast wasn’t being served until 6 AM. Thinking it was a language thing, I asked again in English. Again – 6 AM. And then I said, “but it IS 6 AM. He politely said, “Madam, it is 3AM.” Argh! Somehow when I set our alarm, I changed the time by three hours and had only been asleep for an hour. Feeling like Scarlett Johansson in “Lost in Translation,” I wearily trudged back upstairs and read some more. Got redressed at 6, and wandered outside. It was a brisk dawn in Rome and I walked to the top of the Spanish Steps with not one single other soul in sight (a rarity at the Steps) and watched as the sun came up over the city. All was right with the world. And then I went back to bed and slept until 11… NEXT: PULL ON THE STRING, BING – Restaurant bathroom #2 And Pizza breakfast, our late night tour of the Sistine Chapel and our first limoncello of many… |
italy06,
Thanks so much for putting up your report - it was only when put mine up last year that I realized how much work goes into it! Love you title - it seems that every country in Europe has a different way to flush a toilet...I too was a bit shocked with the lack of toilet seats, but really, it just sort of adds to the fun of the trip doesn't it? Awaiting more soon! |
Wonderful report so far! Comical but full with insightful details. Do continue.
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Love your trip report, on those sleepless nights I usually do my reading in the bathtub. Makes it a little tougher for me when the room only has a shower ;;) Deborah
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i have read on the bathroom floor myself when jetlagged! It amazes me that my son, daughter, and husband have no problem sleeping -- anywhere or any time!
I love your report so far! How old are your kids? (sorry if I missed that!) |
Your off to a great start! Can't wait to read the rest!
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Wow, am I ever enjoying your report Italy06 ! Very interesting, amusing and charmingly written. And I like your title 'theme' too ! :) Well done. Looking forward to more.
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I am enjoying your report!
No toilet seats? Is that common? |
In toilets accessible to the public in smaller venues in Italy, there is often no toilet seat. An friend in Italy told me that it is often considered more sanitary since with no seat the toilet is easier to keep clean and also because no one would be expected to actually sit anyway.
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<i>and also because no one would be expected to actually sit anyway</i>
No better than the hole in the ground. |
:D
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<<No better than the hole in the ground.>>
I'm sure italy06 will be getting to that . . . |
I'll never forget the gorgeous marble, tile, and gold fixtured bathroom we had in a Rome hotel about 25 years ago. Gorgeous and not very funtional!
The toilet seat was square--don't know about you, but that part of my body doesn't go well with a square opening. And the flusher was activated by a push button behind the water tank--took a while to find it. The ornate, gold sink water spout was so close to the back edge of the sink that you couldn't get much more than your fingertips under the water. The gold showerhead put out a fine mist that looked great, but took forever to wet you down, with no way we (or anyone from the hotel) could find to adjust the spray. But it was actually quite a pleasant place to stay. |
I have been enjoying this thread. We have lived in Italy for a year and half and can't believe some of the toilets. At brunch the other day, an american friend of ours was discussing how the drop zone is different in the toilets. We all new exactly what they meant. Experienced italian travelers probably do too. I always pack toilet paper and hand cleaner.
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Timing is everything! We leave tomorrow morning for Rome and Pompeii! Will have to experience our own 'flushing' adventures and then compare notes. Looking forward to reading the rest of your trip report on our return.
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Really enjoying your trip report, italy06 - I knew I was going to like it the minute I saw the title. It brings back all the fascination (and sometimes disgust) I myself experienced with the wonders of Italian plumbing. Looking forward to the rest of the tale...
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Wow! Nice to know I’m not alone in my amazement of the puzzle to be solved on every trip to the bathroom. And after a bottle of vino bianco, my brain is not necessarily firing on all pistons…. Next report on its' way!
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I don't want to detract from the flushing theme, as I too have swung from puzzled to astounded to disgusted with facilities in Italy. There used to be one at Piazza Michelangelo in Florence that was so gross that no sentient being would step inside. I really hope that one has been corrected by adding a flush. But also watch out for the standup toilets with a flushing mechanism that goes all over your feet if you don't jump out of the way fast enough! As a Nonna with arthritis, I am not looking forward to them next month.
however, I also want to ask why it is that Italians devise so-called showers with no way to contain the spray and floors that slope AWAY from the shower towards the bathroom door, as we encountered in Positano. Our 20-year old daughter caused a flood that ran out and spread out right in front of the door to the room. Or the shower that sprayed all over a solid marble bathroom that became an ice- skating rink when wet and had not a single thing to hang on to, in Vernazza. In Florence, they "solved" the shower pan problem by putting in a wooden rack over the drain that slipped back and forth like a balance board. Could not figure out what it was supposed to accomplish. Having been to Italy about 15 times, I could go on and on ......... |
Charness – we had the same problem with our hotel bathroom. It had a bathtub and a glass shower door that only extended out about two feet. Unless you plastered yourself against the wall with the shower head, the slippery marble floor would be filled with water as it was most times. We just requested a lot of extra towels to stop us from falling head first into the bidet…
But still, when I stepped out the door of the hotel, I wasn't in the San Fernando Valley... Worth the inconvenience as I'm sure you agree! |
Our first full day in Rome now awaited us! Since I knew we would all be a little lagged, today would be where Rome would take us. First stop, a nice walk to Campo Di Fiori. Although the hotel happily gave us a new map every time we left, I will say the laminated map in the back of Fodor’s 25 Best was great. A little bigger and easier to see, especially at night and it never fell apart. We meandered our way down Via Condotti towards Piazza Navona drooling at all of the designer purses in EVERY window on the street. Girls, what is it with purses? It’s not like clothes that you have to change every day because they’re dirty. Or that someone will notice that you’ve worn the same handbag 5 days in a row… or that the exchange rate made the idea really stupid but my first reaction is always “I need that purse now!” It’s a hassle to take your crap and move it from purse to purse but still, so many pretty colors, so much supple leather that felt like butter and even the linings look like a designer dress! My daughter (she’s 23, Dina4) and I, though heavily pressured a couple of times, managed to refrain from actually buying one. Beside, I bought a new one just before we left.
We made it to Piazza Navona and its’ beautiful Bernini Fountain of the Four Rivers and knew, without a doubt that we were in finally in Rome. The obelisk in the Piazza and the sculptures around it are in the process of being restored but stunning just the same. As the streets narrow, you always feel like you will never find what you are looking for and then around the bend, we heard music and knew we were closing in on Campo Di Fiori. It’s a wonderful market that made me want to be renting an apartment so I could buy all of the great fruit, flowers and produce we saw there. Now starving, we headed to Forno (http://www.fornocampodefiori.com/main.php) for some morning pizza. My daughter and I had the Pizza Bianco, hot out of the oven, drizzled with olive oil and herbs and folded over in some paper and my husband and son had the cheese pizza. We stood outside as it rained lightly, oil dripping down our hands, drinking Coca Light and thought it doesn’t get much better than this. Who needs a fancy brunch with too many calories – this is way cooler. We did buy some herbs and spices in plastic bags that made it safely home – they mix them up into a Arrabiata blend, a Bruschetta blend and many more. And yes, just as I imagined myself, I wore a scarf and looked at the Zucchini Blossoms feeling lucky to be in such a great city. The thing about Rome I love the most is that just as you are admiring the purses at Prada, you are literally tripping over some 2,000 year old dig that you didn’t know about. As much as we read before we went to Rome, you just can’t take it all in. So quite literally as we made our way down Via Del Plebiscito, my son asked “What are all those cats doing down there among those old columns?” And here we were at Largo di Torre Argentina. I had read about it but it was my 15-year-old son who found the sign that blew his mind – I saw him walk up to it, read it and back away. He said, “Last week, as we were all dying to get to spring break, we were talking about the assassination of Julius Caesar in history. And now I’m standing here looking at the place he was killed.” Nice, as a parent, to have a moment or two like that every now and then… We were headed to Palazzo-Galleria Doria Pamphilj but detoured at the Museo del Palazzo Venezia (http://www.galleriaborghese.it/nuove/evenezia.htm) and saw a great exhibit of the work of Sebastiano Del Piombo, a contemporary of Michelangelo. His painting of the Martyrdom of St. Agatha made our kids wonder why we’re so cautious about the internet…. Let’s just say nipples and pliers and leave it at that. Museo Bathroom: Unisex , no seat but lovely marble floors… Too tired for one more museum, we headed back to the hotel for a little nap and some rooftop snacks before our tour of the Sistine Chapel. I know a lot has been discussed about Helen Donegan’s Sistine Chapel Tours and we thought long and hard about it because of the price, but in the end, we knew this would be our one big splurge. I will tell you it was worth every over-inflated Euro. We met Marie and her daughter who work for Helen at their offices near the Vatican and were soon joined by just a few other people. Our guide Jay, who by day is a translator in the Bio-ethics department of the University led us to the Vatican’s large fortress door and at 7 PM on the dot, it opened and the guards let us in. For the next magical two and a half hours, Jay, who is a walking, talking encyclopedia of ancient Rome, took us through the Vatican Museums, the Raphael rooms, the Etruscan treasures, the map rooms and finally through the tiny door that opens up into the Sistine Chapel. And for the next 30 minutes or more, 9 of us had the privilege of seeing Michelangelo’s masterpiece. No one said a word, we just looked up in wonder. No crowds, no tired crying kids, just the lucky nine of us. After the tour, we invited Jay to join us for dinner – he recommended his favorite hang near the Vatican and we were treated to our first crispy carciofo (artichokes). Delicious! The owner was great and complimented my husband’s Italian and 2 bottles of wine and much food later, we headed home, stomachs full of great food and heads full of great art. The restaurant was: Le Sorelle – Via Belsiana 30, 06 679 4969 Restaurant bathroom: A seat! Pull string to flush. NEXT: CHECK OUT THE TOWEL, CAL – stupidly expensive restaurant bathroom #3 And Museo e Galleria Borghese |
Wonderful report. Don't work or clean house or laundry, TYPE!
I was just the right height to flush our toiled with my head. If it matters, I'm 5'3". We stayed at the Albergo del Senato and had the two button wall mounted flush mechanism! |
Hi italy,
what a great theme for a trip report. i grew up with a grandma with kidney problems [which meant she drank about 8 pints of tea made with sennapods!!!! per day] so our family knew every public convenience south of the Wash. and there was NEVER any chance of her sitting on any toilet seats, whatever their condition. I don't actually remember the facilties in rome being particlarly bad. my "worst loo of all time" award goes to one a spent a lot of time in being ill in an open-air restaurant near Bordeaux - i was so ill i didn't care. my best loo award goes collectively to the toilets of northern spain, discovered on the same trip. suddenly at the spanish border, plumbing improved out of all recognition. Perhaps the spanish got a grant to put in decent toilets? who knows - i just remember my relief. :S- keep it coming, regards, ann |
I am absolutely loving your report! Can't wait for the next installment. We'll be in Rome in June and I've already made the mental note to give everyone packages of Kleenex and little bottles of Purell. I'm glad to hear Helen's tour is worth every Euro, we've also signed up. Did you bring binoculars with you to see the ceilings better?
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At last! Someone else fascinated with the wonderful variations in how to flush a toilet. My ex discouraged me from taking pictures of each mechanism. Boo to him. I've experienced the hole in the floor toilet in the train station in one of the Cinque Terre towns, but my favorite one was in a restaraunt where you stepped on what looked like a small red rubber ball on the floor in order to flush.
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Thanks, everyone! I envy you, pkdof - you'll have a blast. Two other things about the Sistine Chapel, one about Helen Donegan's company and one about the bathrooms. I'm sure a lot of you know this, but years ago, the Vatican Museums were for the privileged few and even the Royals weren't above scrawling graffiti on the precious works of art in the rooms. You can still see some of it if you look closely. Also, someone on this board once said they were allowed to lie down in the Chapel to look up at it. Our guide, Jay told us that in general, the guards frown on this as it is disrespectful. And no, I didn't think to bring binoculars. But it didn’t at all take away from the impact and for me, even as a non- Catholic, it sorta would have felt out of place.
Another thing happened with Helen Donegan’s company and no, I don’t know her nor could I pick her out in a crowd. Since we were there after hours, the gift shop was closed and we had several requests from home to bring something back from the Vatican. Marie arranged for us to meet up the next morning with another guide, Roberto or as I call him, the Alec Baldwin of Italy, at their offices. Not only did the charming and funny Roberto treat us to an early morning espresso at the café next door, he took us past the burgeoning line at the Vatican, waved hello to the guards and took us straight into the gift shop. They knew we weren’t butting in on the tour but you still can’t get in the shop without standing in line. We found a couple of things and then unprompted, Roberto took us to another shop in which he thought we might find other things. This one was around the corner in front of St. Peter’s. Since it wasn’t open yet, we were treated to another espresso at another café and then shopped and found a couple of lovely things to take home to our relatives. Roberto waited patiently for us and we thanked him profusely and try to pay him at least for the coffees but he wouldn’t hear of it. He said, “You’re in Italy, when an Italian takes you out for an espresso, it’s his treat - it’s what we do.” In others words, he graciously went out of his way for us all in the spirit of the moment so I have nothing but praise for their company. And pkdof, before you imagine the Italian bathrooms to be an OCD nightmare, far from it. There were a few, just like here, but mainly they were all just so different. Have fun! |
I'm enjoying this so much-please keep writing!
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Wonderful report, thanks for taking the time. Love your style.
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Great report. I will be going to Rome, Florence and Venice, leaving May 9th. I can't wait for your Florence report to pick up your recommendations.
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I actually have taken photos of most of the toilets from our last two trips to Europe. Hands down, the most luxurious toilet I found was in a restaurant restroom in Lezignan, France...when you flush, it automatically whisks off the clear plastic seat cover, and replaces it with a fresh one. I should have taken a short movie of it...
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