# Strange things I have to adapt to in a new country **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 5, 2005, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659 "2005-11-05T15:32:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Mellivora\_capensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mellivora\_capensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mellivora_capensis)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/41 "2005-11-07T11:42:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\*TellMeI’mNotCrazy \*\* > Yeah, I left out the keyword “in”. Or, I meant that he was a large landmass \ ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/42 "2005-11-07T13:05:10Z")
The strangest thing I ever had to adapt to was when I moved to Europe… _only_ toilet paper in the toilets!! Eeww ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/43 "2005-11-07T13:19:18Z")
**TellMe** - See if you can find Ariel laundry detergent in your area. That’s what Tide is called outside of North America. > [@Shagnasty](#): > > Are you think what I am thinking? Introducing a Bounce like product to Australia? The clothes lines will be coming down like panties on a 3 dollar hooker. We will make millions. Yes, you’re probably the first ones to think of this. Or it’s possible that the big multinational laundry cartels (Procter & Gamble - Bounce and Kimberly Clark - Snuggle) have thought of this, and decided that clothes dryers are not common enough in that part of the world to make it worth their while. Of course, just because it’s not attractive to the big guys doesn’t mean you can’t win there. They want to make a super-buttload of money but you’d probably be happy with a relatively small buttload. Even better, see if Bounce and Snuggle are trademark protected there and if not grab those names now, then start producing under those names. Someday, when they do want to do business there, you can clean up reselling their brandnames back to them. This worked for one brand in Turkey and some other areas. ---
**Author:** ![Mellivora\_capensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mellivora\_capensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mellivora_capensis)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/44 "2005-11-07T13:23:04Z")
Okay **gouda** , you’ve got me stumped here. Waddaya mean “only”? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/45 "2005-11-07T13:39:13Z")
Here in India, we have little hand showers next to the toilet, for you to wash your butt after you crap. If not a hand shower, then a faucet and a mug will be there. This is the norm. Toilet paper may or may not be provided - it depends from house to house. Most restaurants and hotels will provide both. The idea of dry wiping is alien to us. And totally gross! ---
**Author:** ![Mellivora\_capensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mellivora\_capensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mellivora_capensis)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/46 "2005-11-07T14:07:28Z")
Wow, talk about cultural differences. And to think that for me “dry wiping” is the norm. Thanks for the explanation, **gouda**. ---
**Author:** ![John\_F](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/43a26b/32.png) [@John\_F](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_F)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/47 "2005-11-07T14:49:58Z")
> [@gouda](#): > > If not a hand shower, then a faucet and a mug will be there. This is the norm. Toilet paper may or may not be provided I’ve never understood how that works. Hand shower - now what? you can’t just start spraying it “up and under” stuff is going to go everywhere won’t it? Faucet and mug - now what? I guess you could start pouring it “down the back” but won’t the water run down you legs and stuff? :eek: Either way what do you do once you ass is all wet, shake, shake, shake, shake your bootie? Obviously those systems work but not very self explanatory…I think the first timer in the USA would see the paper and figure out what to do even if it was “gross” but the first timer in India looking at a spray faucet (no paper in sight) might be stuck on the toilet for a while. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mellivora\_capensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mellivora\_capensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mellivora_capensis)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/48 "2005-11-07T16:08:13Z")
**John F** , stop it, you’re cracking me up. ---
**Author:** ![velvetjones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f9b8f/32.png) [@velvetjones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velvetjones)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/49 "2005-11-07T16:11:27Z")
That’s what I’ve never understood about using a bidet either. OK, now I’ve washed my undercarriage and it’s all clean, it’s also all wet. How are we to dry ourselves in these circumstances? ---
**Author:** ![Mellivora\_capensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mellivora\_capensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mellivora_capensis)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/50 "2005-11-07T16:17:53Z")
Google is now advertising “Parts Washing Systems”. ---
**Author:** ![John\_F](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/43a26b/32.png) [@John\_F](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_F)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/51 "2005-11-07T16:18:13Z")
> [@velvetjones](#): > > OK, now I’ve washed my undercarriage and it’s all clean, it’s also all wet. And…how do you _ **know** _ it’s clean? ---
**Author:** ![ILovCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e99b99/32.png) [@ILovCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ILovCoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/52 "2005-11-07T17:46:23Z")
So, Gouda, how does this work? You have “washed” but there is nothing with which to “pat dry”. But having to have change in hand to pay for the TP in european restrooms is difficult to remember. Or to pay to use the restroom stall. I am a grumpy person when I am overseas. ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/53 "2005-11-08T03:07:42Z")
Don’t confuse the hand showers with the shower head from your bath. These showers are small, with a little lever (like on a garden hose) to regulate the water pressure. They produce a controlled stream of water, sort of as though it were flowing out of a faucet, but with more pressure. So it’s not your entire butt thats wet, just the area around the hole. Of course, if you want to spray your entire butt too, you’re entirely welcome! When you stand, you clench your cheeks and then shake 'em a bit to get rid of the water still sitting on your skin. That’s what I do, anyway. Hardly any wetness remains, and it gets soaked up by your underwear. It’s not something you’d notice. With the faucet and mug, you have to get your hands dirty, so to speak. Pour the water down your crack from behind, and it’ll run down all the way to your crotch. With the other hand, wipe. When you’re done, you wash your hands before you do anything else. This is how it was done years ago. Again, much less wetness than you’d imagine, because you’re not using much water to start with. Too gross for me, but less so than TP. At home, we’ve had both TP and a hand shower in each toilet as far back as I can remember. I have used the mug on occassion, usually when visiting villages in the country, but these have been few and far between. The hand shower is waaay cleaner than TP. How I realised this strays into TMI territory, and is probably not for this thread. I will say this though - when I was a kid, we’d have plenty of visitors from overseas (from all over the world), and almost all of them preffered the hand shower over TP. Some of those who I visited years later had had them installed in their own toilets at home. ---
**Author:** ![John\_F](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/43a26b/32.png) [@John\_F](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_F)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/54 "2005-11-08T03:20:17Z")
> [@gouda](#): > > When you stand, you clench your cheeks and then shake 'em a bit to get rid of the water still sitting on your skin. Mystery solved… You can, you can do it very well. You’re the best in the world, I can tell. Shake shake shake, shake shake shake, Shake your booty! Shake your booty! ---
**Author:** ![Imasquare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Imasquare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Imasquare)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2005, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/55 "2005-11-09T03:53:02Z")
> [@TellMeI'mNotCrazy](#): > > Now, to convince someone to mail me some Bounce… You can buy it from the US on eBay. I buy quite a lot of things from the US and UK eBay sites to be shipped to me in Australia. Its usually dramatically cheaper than it costs here even considering the shipping costs and exchange rate differences. Here is a link to an eBay page selling [Case of 152 Box of Bounce Fabric Softener NEW](http://cgi.ebay.com/Case-of-152-Box-of-Bounce-Fabric-Softener-NEW_W0QQitemZ4416809480QQcategoryZ20624QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem). They will ship to South Africa and the current bid is US $14.99 with a little under 5 days to go. ---
**Author:** ![TX\_SpookyPants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a8b319/32.png) [@TX\_SpookyPants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TX_SpookyPants)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2005, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/56 "2005-11-09T10:44:01Z")
**gouda** - As someone who’s only ever dry-wiped, what about it makes it seem nastier to you? To me, the idea of using a cup and my _hand_ seems considerably nastier. And I still get the oogies imagining being all damp after using the toilet, but that’s just me. To me, being damp means that you’re still all nasty since, y’know, you are when you dry wipe. Hehe. ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2005, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/57 "2005-11-09T12:25:01Z")
Basically, it doesn’t _feel_ very clean. Maybe I’m wiping wrong… who knows?! I haven’t had much practice for sure… TMI WARNING!!! To give an analogy, imagine wiping a bit of crap off your arm with TP. Mixed up with all the hair (yes, I’m a bit hairy down there). I’d _much_ rather spray it off with water than dry wipe it. Cup and hand is nasty, no doubt… but it does _feel_ cleaner. Besides, you’re washing your hands right after anyway, before you touch anything else. And like I said, it’s not all that damp down there after you’re done. Whatever dampness left is clean water, nothing else. That’s not nasty! ---
**Author:** ![Mellivora\_capensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mellivora\_capensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mellivora_capensis)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2005, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/58 "2005-11-09T12:35:18Z")
**Imasquare,** I can’t seem to find Sydey on the map. Can you give me some co-ordinates? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2005, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/59 "2005-11-09T21:50:49Z")
> [@Mellivora capensis](#): > > **Imasquare,** I can’t seem to find Sydey on the map. Can you give me some co-ordinates? > > 😛 Try looking for Syd **n** ey. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2005, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659/60 "2005-11-09T21:59:40Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > Try looking for Syd **n** ey. 🙂 Sorry **Mellivora**. I now realise that you were lampooning \*\*Imasquare’s \*\* spelling. _Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strange-things-i-have-to-adapt-to-in-a-new-country/329659.md?page=4)