This is just a short bonus blog this week. I've spent a good amount of time in Europe over decades, and one of the things that always intrigues me is the toilets. I'm not joking. Everywhere you go, the toilets are different. They are a form of art in Europe, and I'm always fascinated.
I've seen so many kinds of toilets, that I can't cover it all here. I've pushed buttons, stepped on floor buttons, pulled chains, held valves open, flushed, and even dealt with bidets. Some have water in the bowl, some don't. Some have seats, some don't. It's always an adventure. In public toilets be prepared to pay a half Euro or a Euro to go. It's the way it is. I love the toilets in apartments and hotels; they normally have a toilet and a bidet, with a sprayer for the toilet. It's wild to us Americans.
One of the things that I rarely saw was an automatic flush toilet. They aren't popular in Portugal at any rate. Some of the toilets I saw were as old as plumbing itself, but few automatic modern models. I actually only saw automatic flush at the airport. While it is true that I didn't visit every toilet in Porto, I saw a good sampling and no automatic flushes. I even saw some that asked you not to flush the toilet paper and had a receptacle next to the toilet for the paper.
So, remember when in Europe, pay attention. We hear all the time about the extremely modern toilets in Japan. We haven't flushed a public toilet in ten years here in America. Europe is an experience. Germany is home to the largest toilet in the world. Europeans have kept all of their history alive and we should experience and enjoy it; toilets are no exception. While you're making plans for museums and wonderful views, don't forget to notice the evolution of plumbing in Europe that's right in front of you all day. I promise, it will enrich your trip and it's something to fully enjoy!
https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/health/toilet-tricks
https://www.ourescapeclause.com/toilets-in-europe/
https://medium.com/@nathanschen/thoughts-on-european-bathrooms-f775f66788ff
https://ortonbaths.com/the-significance-of-wc-in-european-toilet-terminology/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyepcOa0-j8
https://algarvedailynews.com/readers-views/5004-world-s-cleanest-bathrooms-are-in-portugal
No comments:
Post a Comment
I love to hear thoughts about the places in this blog. Feel free to converse on what you read. Check out my other locations and enjoy the ride.