# Things you've seen abroad you wish were adopted world wide **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 28, 2021, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094 "2021-05-28T14:31:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 16
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/303 "2021-06-13T19:11:41Z")
> [@Caractacus\_Pott](#): > > I understood when I used the public men’s restroom at a local festival. All the Japanese men filed by the sink and just rinsed their fingertips in the water for a couple seconds. No soap, no towel to dry. The sink-toilet made sense to me. I’ve generally seen a spray bottle of some commercial soap product set on the sink in public venues, especially if it’s a “1-hole” bathroom. Spray hands with spray bottle, rinse in sink. And it’s not all that unusual in the US even that no method for drying your hands is provided, which is annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Caractacus\_Pott](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@Caractacus\_Pott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caractacus_Pott)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/304 "2021-06-13T19:22:21Z")
I guess I should have mentioned the street festival’s restroom was a large posh facility on the ground floor of a nearby office building with at least 10 basins. Soap and towels were available; the men didn’t use them. Just rinse and split, which somewhat corresponds to the toilet-sink’s possible use. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2021, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/305 "2021-06-19T04:17:20Z")
sink toilet is just fine. I had one in my apartment in Tokyo. I also had a sink if I needed to wash more. Most places in Japan have what is called a “unit bath”. These are prefab and come in various sizes and configurations. Tub, sink, toilet. Some can be really cozy. Others luxurious. ---
**Author:** ![fedman1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e495f1/32.png) [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/306 "2021-07-05T01:17:48Z")
I seen to recall LAX used to have taxi booths, also bus info ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2021, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/307 "2021-07-06T19:30:41Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > Credit card terminals brought to your table at a restaurant. While not universal yet, this one seems to be becoming more common in the US. I’ve had the waitress bring a credit card reader to the table at a few restaurants recently. One thing I would like to see are bus drivers who will actually make change, which is something I’ve encountered in Germany, Austria, and Costa Rica. In Costa Rica, the driver had a box with little compartments containing the change required for all the common denominations of currency already counted out. While I’m sure exact fare was still preferred, if you didn’t have it you could just giver the driver the smallest bill you had and he’d hand you the change out of the box. It barely took any more time than paying the exact fare. This is how they did it in toll booths here before switching to license plate readers, so I don’t know why it was never adopted for bus fare. Granted, the idea of purchasing a ticket before boarding as discussed upthread probably makes my idea obsolete. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2021, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/308 "2021-07-07T00:27:26Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > One thing I would like to see are bus drivers who will actually make change, which is something I’ve encountered in Germany, Austria, and Costa Rica. In Costa Rica, the driver had a box with little compartments containing the change required for all the common denominations of currency already counted out. Is this recent? Most transit systems seem to be moving quickly to cashless, I know London has ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2021, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/309 "2021-07-07T00:32:33Z")
Not really, I guess. Costa Rica would have been in 2013, and Germany/Austria would have been in 2006. I imagine by now Europe would be moving to cashless by now, which would probably be even better. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2021, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/310 "2021-07-08T06:17:47Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I imagine by now Europe would be moving to cashless by now, which would probably be even better. Certainly public transport cities like London, Paris and Amsterdam did, quite some years ago. And more generally cash transactions have dropped dramatically, particularly as a result of Covid and the growth of online and socially distanced transactions. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2021, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/311 "2021-07-08T09:56:30Z")
> [@Die\_Capacitrix](#): > > Cashiers here in Switzerland have stools for when they are at the cash register. If there’s no line, they are also stocking shelves, cleaning, etc. The stool does not mean they get to sit at the cash register and do nothing until the next customer checks out. In 2007 Israel passed the Right to Sit While Working Law, which recognized the right to sit while working (natch), and forces employers to provide chairs for cashiers, salespersons and service workers unless management “can prove that the job at hand could not have been carried out from a sitting position”. So since then, all cashiers here sit in nice (albeit often threadbare) swiveling office chairs. As far as I can tell, service quality has not deteriorated. ---
**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2021, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/312 "2021-07-08T14:36:21Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I imagine by now Europe would be moving to cashless by now, which would probably be even better. Don’t know about Europe, but COVID has really accelerated the change to using apps or buying tickets at the ticket machines before boarding the bus. It’s not permitted to even use the door by the driver, so buying tickets is out of the question. In exchange, the bus company is doing more spot checks. At least that’s my impression. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Downtown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/313 "2021-07-09T03:57:14Z")
Virtually all big-city US bus systems had quit making change by 1976. I do occasionally encounter changemaking in other countries, particularly very safe societies like Japan or places like Bangkok that still have conductors on buses to collect fares. Now there’s talk about some systems going altogether cashless, but I’m not aware of any (other than those that charge no fares) in North America that have done so. Boarding passengers would need to use some sort of prepaid stored-value card or smartphone equivalent. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/314 "2021-07-09T13:42:40Z")
Most Americans are familiar with “gate lice,” the people who crowd around airport gates waiting for their turn to board - and making life difficult for people who are currently supposed to board, as it becomes challenging to correctly locate and join the end of the actual line to board. Whenever I’ve flown from Japan back to the US, the gate staff have workers position themselves in the boarding area with signs indicating what boarding group should line up behind them. As the line grows, people showing up at the gate know exactly where they can insert themselves in the line. This would eliminate the gate lice problem, but since it requires extra staffing, it probably won’t be adopted in the US any time soon. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/315 "2021-07-09T13:47:32Z")
Southwest Airlines does [something like what you describe](https://community.southwest.com/legacyfs/online/wordpress/images/uploads/files/wp/2007/10/boarding-columns.jpg); there are columns labeled 1-5, 6-10 and so forth. People are assigned to a group (A, B or C) and a boarding position number (1 through 60). You line up when your group is called and at the position for your number. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/316 "2021-07-09T13:57:38Z")
Yep. You’d think other airlines would follow suit, or at least have a demarcated area with a sign saying something like “for active boarding only”. ---
**Author:** ![kevlaw](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kevlaw/32/2281_2.png) [@kevlaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kevlaw)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/317 "2021-07-09T14:12:13Z")
If the UK and USA got together, they could design one really good toilet. In every toilet I ever had in the USA, the cistern would leak after a while and I had to replace the flapper. But the toilet bowl itself stayed remarkably clean. In the UK, let’s just say you need that brush next to the toilet. It’s almost as though UK toilet engineers have never visited the USA or vice versa. Call in a Japanese toilet engineer to add a squirty-bum attachment and you would have the perfect toilet! ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/318 "2021-07-09T14:28:53Z")
I wouldn’t be concerned about getting on a plane quickly if I could stow my appropriately sized carry on in the over head compartment like I am supposed to. I don’t want to check anything and so pack accordingly. If I get on later I’ve found no space at all up there. We’re all going to the same place so there’s no need to rush onboard, I suspect others are doing it for the same reason I am. Enforce the rules at the ticket counter and again before the plane boarding and everything would be chill. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/319 "2021-07-09T14:40:58Z")
I was in a restaurant bathroom on the French side of St Martin. After I peed I went to wash my hands and was surprised by the sink which lacked knobs for the water. There was a handwritten sign that said, “for water use knee”. Below the sink was a stick that you pushed with your knee to get water flowing. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/320 "2021-07-09T14:51:34Z")
Nope- maybe some are , but I’ve seen plenty of people crowd around the gate who didn’t have any carry-on luggage that had to be stashed in the overhead bin.\* \* I rarely have a carry-on to put in the bin - if I’m flying, it’s generally for a reason that will require at least one checked bag between me and my husband. The bag I do bring on the plane with me can and is stowed under the seat rather than in the overhead. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/321 "2021-07-09T16:09:11Z")
I’d like to see cheap wine and beer sold in supermarkets. In Ontario (Canada), we’re slowly getting beer sold in supermarkets, but it’s not cheap. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2021, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094/322 "2021-07-09T17:47:06Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Southwest Airlines does [something like what you describe](https://community.southwest.com/legacyfs/online/wordpress/images/uploads/files/wp/2007/10/boarding-columns.jpg); there are columns labeled 1-5, 6-10 and so forth. People are assigned to a group (A, B or C) and a boarding position number (1 through 60). You line up when your group is called and at the position for your number. Before an outbound flight from Seattle I actually saw a Southwest gate agent shame someone for trying to board out of turn. It was a while back, but I think his number was in the mid hundreds and they were boarding numbers 1-50. She got on the gate speakers and shamed the guy, smiling the whole time, and sent him back to the queue. Everyone else of course boarded in an orderly fashion after. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094.md?page=15) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-youve-seen-abroad-you-wish-were-adopted-world-wide/943094.md?page=17)