Dave_in_Paris

I'm not sure of the proportion of Paris apartments that don't have a shower or a tub but it surely is dwindling. There are very modest dwellings on the top floors of older buildings, former maids rooms, that not uncommonly still have only sinks, with the toilet common, and in the hall on the landing. Retrofitting of Belle Epoch buildings with "comfort" produces some fascinating results, such as shower in the kitchen and even the dreaded (to the French) toilet in the same room as the tub.

ckenb

It would be interesting to know what that proportion is, but as you say it has been reduced considerably, I'm sure, by the modernizations and renovations of the last 25 years. The situation is the same with hotels -- many that I knew and stayed in in the 70s, which were budget/student hotels at the time, have been completely rebuilt inside and now offer 2- and 3-star amenities.

I wonder about laundry facilities in old Paris buildings and how common they are.

A friend of mine who lived in the 17th back in the 70s had the shower in the kitchen. In my apartment just off the rue Montorgueil, the bathroom was off the kitchen, with louvred doors separting the two "rooms". It had a small tub -- I put up a shower curtain -- a sink, and a bidet. No toilet. That was out on the landing and shared with people in other apartments. Those were the realities of Paris life 25 years ago. For god's sake the place didn't even have heat, except for the roll-around electric radiator I bought.

ckenb

I guess the point of all this is that a shower curtain might be seen as a frill, when you don't have some of what we consider the necessities of life! But a nice, useful frill, once you're used to having one.

billy_goat

For goodness sake. How many people nowadays use shower curtains, nasty clammy things?
Shower screens are much more aesthetic and hygienic.
I expect that the French might report on the smell of unwashed bottoms in the New York Subway.

Intrepid1

To me there is nothing worse than one of those "shower screens" that absolutely cries out for someone to spray it with Tilex soapscum remover!

ckenb

What I hate about shower curtains is that they seem to get sucked into the shower stall or bathtub and stick to your skin. A glass door or other glass enclosure is better. Both curtains and doors get dirty, of course, but the doors are much easier to clean.

The French may end up skipping the shower curtain stage of civilization completely and move directly to glass shower enclosures. I know I went to the Leroy-Merlin store (similar to a Home Depot in the US) and ordered a glass door for my shower stall here in Saint-Aignan last year, to replace a curtain. Much better.

MorganB

Americans are the ones that flood french bathrooms with water. The French people dont flood their own bathrooms. The French seem to understand that if you point the water away from the tub it will most likely go in that direction.

If there is just a tub with no shower curtain the French sit in the tub and either bath or use the shower head attached to the long metal hose to rinse off. They dont stand and spray water every where.. go figure...

As I am an american in Paris, and I prefer to stand and shower, I purchased a shower curtain. Very simple indeed.

ckenb

Yes, it is simple. If it is a bathtub with a shower attachment and no curtain, it is not a shower. It is a bathtub. Take a bath. Then rince yourself off carefully without necessarily standing up. It works.

Seamus

Patrick, your observation on Parisian personal hygiene habits reminds me of a bit of hydro-history. Prior to construction of the canals in the 19th century, water service in Paris was erratic, often characterized by "feast or famine" cycles of flooding and drought. Plausible legend has it that the reason the French excel at perfume making is that they needed something to mask the biologic smells that inevitably resulted when water was scarce.

MonicaRichards

Shower curtains are actually very easy to clean. Toss it in the washer with a bunch of bleach on the delicate setting.

MissPrism

The trouble with shower screens is that they're transparent. Mine has a mirror nearby. You see all your spare tyres and bulgy bits, a shock to the system first thing in the morning.

ckenb

If you keep your eyes open you'll get soap in them.

Dave_in_Paris

Patrick,

A shower a day may be fine for "les gros richards," but what's the average guy or gal in an eight-square-meter cold-water sixth floor walkup supposed to do, especially now that most of the municipal baths have been closed? (And why didn't on-the-Metro B.O. come up when we were discussing why so many folks want lodging within walking distance of the major sights? That's a GOOD reason for not taking the Metro.)

Joe_in_Silver_Spring

Relatives rented an apartment on the rue Cler in 1990 that had been retrofitted with a bathroom next to the living room. The bathtub was too long to fit, so about half its length protruded into the living room and was fitted with a box-like cover.

Underhill

the shower in our friends' guest house has an honest-to-gosh shower curtain in it, which came from Habitat.