Toilets.
I mean Public Toilets of course, not those in my house, or the houses of friends and relatives.
I have to be pretty desperate to use a public toilet, believe me. And since many of them were either closed down, or are no longer attended by someone who cleans them regularly, I would quite honestly sooner go up a tree.
It is not just the fault of the provider or the establishment where they are situated, of course. The users must also carry a lot of the blame for the state of so many of them these days.
Even those that might appear to be ‘reasonable’ on first sight can still turn out to have floors that are damp and sticky with urine, and evidence that the interiors have not been cleaned for a very long time.
There are some notable exceptions. Using toilets in first class hotels is usually a pleasant experience, and airports and hospitals tend to have regular cleaning routines that make the toilets acceptable, if not gleaming.
But as a rule, I avoid them all.
Where were these pictures taken?? 😱
LikeLiked by 1 person
The first two are from (unnamed) towns in England. The last one is a public toilet in Japan.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLike
Oh, ok. Im surprised about japan. I’ve heard Tokyo is very clean.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hate public toilets too. So gross I couldn’t even look at the pictures. But sometimes we have no choice.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s harder for ladies. I understand that, Shakorah.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Locally, I’ve got to know reliable places where one can go (community centres, the local market, some big shops and supermarkets) and they tend to be OK, but yes, I’ve had some pretty scary experiences, and it isn’t as easy for us as all that (mind you, with the lockdown there haven’t been that many places to choose from).
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you have managed to find some decent places, Olga. There are so few public toilets here now, and the ones that are still open are worse than ever.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLike
This reminds me how i once survived to hold my pee just to avoid public rest rooms.ughhh 😏
LikeLiked by 1 person
They have sadly deteriorated here to the level that most cannot be used.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great post 🙂 I hear ya and I think a lot of people can agree that public restrooms always pale in comparison to the house ones. Anyway, keep up the great work as always 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, John. The situation in Britain regarding public toilets is very bad at present.
Best wishes, Pet.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I surely wish I had read this appallingly illustrated post before I read the wonderful one about human kindness. Perhaps I should try to catch up in chronological order in the future!
LikeLiked by 3 people
Sorry about the photos, Elizabeth. But I think they were necessary to make my point.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That they did.
LikeLiked by 1 person
One of the more distressing aspects of modern life, modern public toilet facilities. Warmest regards, Theo
LikeLiked by 1 person
In my youth, they were immaculate. How times change.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLike
In my youth, there were two kinds, modern flush, and a hole in the ground over which a bench and privacy box were set. Warmest regards, Theo
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’ve been forced to use some pretty dreadful ones abroad but somehow the ones here seem so much worse!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I think they are worse here because we have the infrastructure to do it better but don’t, and the users should know better too.
Thanks, Mary.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I can only agree with you Pete.
I always judge a restaurant by its toilets, not that we eat out much, but if the toilets are in bad order then the food most is almost always of a similar standard.
Portable chemical toilets are my pet hate.
It’s quite common to find toilets attended here and you have to pay to go in, 20p, and they are always in good order.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t mind paying if an attendant is there to keep it clean. Chemical toilets are grim, I agree. Not on a par with a nice composting one, as at Chez Winko! 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
i can’t even look.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know that feeling, Wilma. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLike
(1) The restrooms in some of the resorts on the Las Vegas Strip are so immaculate and beautifully decorated that it’s tempting to sell the house and go live in them.
(2) Sadly, many gamblers don’t bother to wash their hands after using the toilet. They simply return to the game, where they handle chips and cards.
(3) I took an Italian train from Nice to Naples back in the 1970’s. When I lifted the toilet lid, I was surprised to see the train tracks speeding by.
(4) It’s not just basketball players who pull off a rim shot.
(5) Toddlers who potty train always look flushed with pride.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I also saw that on trains in France, in the 1960s. No wonder the sign said ‘Do not use until the train leaves the station’! 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ugh…and worse for women
LikeLiked by 3 people
Yes, indeed. I know my wife never actually sits down on them.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Quite
LikeLiked by 1 person
What I like about travelling here in the US is the availability of “restrooms” – as they’re called here. Every gas station and every supermarket has their public restrooms, and mist of the times they’re well kept.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s good to know, Pit. Motorway Service Areas here generally have reasonably clean toilets too.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Here, too. I still remember a rest stop in Louisiana which was absolutely spotlessly clean.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I try to avoid them if at all possible.🤢
LikeLiked by 1 person
Most of them over here have closed down, except those in cafes and restaurants.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve been lucky enough to use ones that seem clean at least. In town I’ll get a coffee at McDonalds to use theirs, always spotless. 🙂 and when out on shoots with Sophie the places we visit have nice clean ones, so far!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Great to hear that, FR. These days, I rarely have to use any public ones, unless we go to eat out.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I loathe them. I’ll happily and much rather go in a field rather than a public loo. If however it’s completely necessary, trust me when I tell you that there are advantages to being a man.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I do appreciate that fact. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Some of the graffiti is great fun….but as a rule I avoid as well chuq
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t hang around long enough to read that, chuq. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 2 people
The worst ever for me . . I was on the road from Samarkand to Bukhara in Uzbekistan and there was a roadside building, a toilet, quite large but no light and no water, just one big room of excrement. I did not, could not, enter and I cannot forget it.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I was seriously ill in Smarkand for three days, and actually thought I might die. (Two older people in the group were admitted to hospital there) Then I saw hotel room cleaner using the same filthy rag to clean the toilet that she used to clean everything else, including our drinking glasses! But my worst ever public toilet experience was at El Djem, Tunisia. I opened the door, closed it again, then went and peed up the wall at the back of the restaurant. 🙂
Cheers mate, Pete.
LikeLiked by 1 person