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?? π±
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The first two are from (unnamed) towns in England. The last one is a public toilet in Japan.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Oh, ok. Im surprised about japan. I’ve heard Tokyo is very clean.
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I hate public toilets too. So gross I couldn’t even look at the pictures. But sometimes we have no choice.
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It’s harder for ladies. I understand that, Shakorah.
Best wishes, Pete.
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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).
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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.
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This reminds me how i once survived to hold my pee just to avoid public rest rooms.ughhh π
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They have sadly deteriorated here to the level that most cannot be used.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Great post π 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 π
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Thanks, John. The situation in Britain regarding public toilets is very bad at present.
Best wishes, Pet.
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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!
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Sorry about the photos, Elizabeth. But I think they were necessary to make my point.
Best wishes, Pete.
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That they did.
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One of the more distressing aspects of modern life, modern public toilet facilities. Warmest regards, Theo
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In my youth, they were immaculate. How times change.
Best wishes, Pete.
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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
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I’ve been forced to use some pretty dreadful ones abroad but somehow the ones here seem so much worse!
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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.
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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.
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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! π
Best wishes, Pete.
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i can’t even look.
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I know that feeling, Wilma. π
Best wishes, Pete.
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(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.
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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’! π
Best wishes, Pete.
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Ugh…and worse for women
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Yes, indeed. I know my wife never actually sits down on them.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Quite
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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.
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That’s good to know, Pit. Motorway Service Areas here generally have reasonably clean toilets too.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Here, too. I still remember a rest stop in Louisiana which was absolutely spotlessly clean.
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I try to avoid them if at all possible.π€’
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Most of them over here have closed down, except those in cafes and restaurants.
Best wishes, Pete.
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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. π and when out on shoots with Sophie the places we visit have nice clean ones, so far!
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Great to hear that, FR. These days, I rarely have to use any public ones, unless we go to eat out.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I loathe them. Iβll happily and much rather go in a field rather than a public loo. If however itβs completely necessary, trust me when I tell you that there are advantages to being a man.
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I do appreciate that fact. π
Best wishes, Pete.
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Some of the graffiti is great fun….but as a rule I avoid as well chuq
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I don’t hang around long enough to read that, chuq. π
Best wishes, Pete.
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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.
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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. π
Cheers mate, Pete.
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