Hello again. After two beautiful days of sunshine, we again were caught in the rain. However, this time, we broke with Sylvester tradition and actually took a taxi back to our camp site. The best 20 fr ever spent! We are now watching the Euro Cup finals at the campground and washing all the towels we left on the line to dry.
So today's topic, bathrooms in Europe. Now on my earlier postings, you may have noted significant apprehension about using camp and public bathrooms in Europe. Men, this fear may seem a bit absurd, however women, you know what I'm talking about. My mother, sister and I have a long tradition of finding the best and most beautiful toilets when we travel (#1 The Drake Hotel-Chicago) and I was not expecting to find any list-toppers on my trip and I have been pleasantly surprised. I have had to break out the travel toilet seat covers only a few times, as there are several innovations in toilet sanitation that have been implemented in the EU.
Perhaps the most stunning bathroom thus far was at the Swarofski Crystal Museum
(yes Sam I got you something sparkly). Not only were the individual stalls clean and fresh, the sink and mirrors were amazing. The faucet flowed water through a neon blue spicket and the mirror had blue crystals backlit to create the feeling of space. It was a highlight of the museum, along with the crystal filled walls.The other two miracles of toiletry relate to sanitation. While I have not yet seen toilet seat covers, the Europeans have this fabulous thing called SaniSeat. It is a dispenser of cleaning solution next to the toilet. You simply spray some onto toilet paper and instantly you have a hygienic seat. These are everywhere and have replace squatting in my life, which makes me happy. Even the bathrooms at the gas stations and portapotties are beautiful and clean (see picture).
If sanitation were a Nobel category, this final invention would be a clear winner....the self-cleaning toilet. That's right people a toilet that cleans itself after every use. Where did we find such a thing? At the Alpin Zoo. Now the Zoo did not see fit to clean the animal habitats, but they did invest in the finest of toilet technology. Here is how it goes. After flushing, the toilet has a retractable arm that comes out and covers a portion of the seat. The seat itself is flexible and rotates completely, allowing the arm to spray and wipe the entirety of the seat. Finally, the arm releases aromatic freshness into the bowl to alleviate any odor (peach was the scent used at the zoo) and returns to its resting state.
So begin the petition folks, we need to take a stand, clean public restrooms free of charge and free of germs. I may take this all back when I get to France, but my hopes are high!
Until next time,
Heather
2 comments:
Subject: Flushing mechanisms in Europa WCs. Keep Track. No standardization here. My tally count was 15 in 21 days trip. Every push, pull and slide you can think of.
Looking forward to your further travels! MR
Oh i'm so jealous of the awesome bathrooms. In costa rica we had to throw the toilet paper in the garbabge can and could not always flush. It was so grosssss. Well all looks well. The museum sounded like fun. Yeahhh something sparkly.
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