# Toilets and drinking water in SE Europe **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 28, 2012, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023 "2012-01-28T21:25:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/21 "2012-01-30T17:10:51Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > I found about 10 years ago in Italy, that some of the older, quainter establishments had the squat toilets (the small shop in the Carrara quarry, the public toilets behind the Leaning Tower in Pisa… More quaint was the short length of garden hose for flushing. Almost everywhere had normal toilets. Apparently I was told, squatters became more common the further south you went. Same time frame for me, same experience - I visited Rome and San Gimignano, then Rapallo, Portofino, etc. in the Italian Riviera region. Most were pretty normal by modern standards, but now and then you’d go to a little family restaurant or something and there was a squat toilet. The one that weirded me out was - I think - a public bathroom in San Gimignano that looked exactly like any large, clean public American bathroom until you opened a stall door. Then you saw a nicely tiled hole in the floor, with tile foot-grips around the hole, and a nice modern lever to flush with. My thinking was if they’d gotten to that point of modern plumbing and other accessories, why not just put in a toilet? ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/22 "2012-01-30T17:18:54Z")
> [@matt\_mcl](#): > > The _showers_, on the other hand – that was a different story. I second that; seems like every hotel I stayed in had different mechanisms for turning the shower on and I spent quite a bit of time looking for a “washcloth” until I realized that those long skinny towels were what they used in France and Italy. I’m pretty sure the maids had a fit when they found the one I cut up to make a washcloth out of. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/23 "2012-01-30T17:31:59Z")
> [@SciFiSam](#): > > I’m not entirely sure what you mean about squatty potties. Do you mean like a [long-drop toilet?](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pit_toilet) [Squat toilet.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squat_toilet) ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/24 "2012-01-30T17:43:40Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > I second that; seems like every hotel I stayed in had different mechanisms for turning the shower on and I spent quite a bit of time looking for a “washcloth” until I realized that those long skinny towels were what they used in France and Italy. I’m pretty sure the maids had a fit when they found the one I cut up to make a washcloth out of. 😃 You did that for real or is it a woosh? I have never been closer to killing my grandmother than when she cut my brand-new shower towel in four because “it was too large anyway!” It was a shower towel, not a bidet towel! Some of us wash our whole body at the same time, and in any case you do not destroy somebody else’s property. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/25 "2012-01-30T17:50:22Z")
Stick to bottled water that you open yourself. And there will be squat toilets in less modern buildings, and that can be any country. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/26 "2012-01-30T17:52:11Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > I spent quite a bit of time looking for a “washcloth” until I realized that those long skinny towels were what they used in France and Italy. I’m pretty sure the maids had a fit when they found the one I cut up to make a washcloth out of. 😃 If you had done that in the United States, I’m pretty sure that these days you would see a charge for it on your credit card bill. > [@Mdcastle](#): > > I know I never want to go to Mexico since it seems you’re virtually guaranteed to get sick there and Florida has nice beaches too And, of course, that’s the only reason anyone would ever go to Mexico. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/27 "2012-01-30T18:03:16Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > You did that for real or is it a woosh? > > I have never been closer to killing my grandmother than when she cut my brand-new shower towel in four because “it was too large anyway!” It was a shower towel, not a bidet towel! Some of us wash our whole body at the same time, and in any case you do not destroy somebody else’s property. You have been Whooshed! 🙂 When in Rome (and Paris) I did as the Romans (and Parisians) did; strangely there were “normal” washcloths in Barcelona, but that was at a Renaissance and they are pretty westernized wherever you go. Didn’t experience the squat down toilets there either, but had coworkers tell me about them when they used the factory workers facilities. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/28 "2012-01-30T18:09:01Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > You have been Whooshed! 🙂 It wasn’t a very good whoosh. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/29 "2012-01-30T18:09:02Z")
Hey, considering the war stories I’ve got from hotel maintenance and cleaning personnel, cut-up towels would have been relatively mild, sadly. Slashed matresses, skid marks on the linens, used underwear and socks mixed with the bedclothes, condoms anywhere you care to name (I once found one behind an armchair)… And I’d really appreciate it if you learned that “the Western world” does not equal “the US.” That’s almost as stupid as cutting up other people’s towels. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/30 "2012-01-30T18:24:02Z")
One guidebook mentioned that in much of Europe, hotels did not provide wascloths becuase the were considered very personal, nonshared items. The analogy was that you wouldn’t expect anywhere to put out a toothbrush that someone esle had used and then simply washed. One problem with regular toilets I heard mentioned in China was that unless they provided a few squat toilet stalls in the public restrooms too, footprints on the seat were a common problem. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/31 "2012-01-30T18:26:46Z")
In Germany they also have those normal-ish toilets with a poop shelf in them. I thought my brother had made them up when he told me about them before I first went there. They’re not so common anymore AFAIK but I saw a few of them in Berlin about 10 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/32 "2012-01-30T18:33:14Z")
> [@Mdcastle](#): > > There is something to be said for traveling in the US. You don’t have to worry about being able to plug in your electric gizmos, but most importantly whether it’s Key West or Seattle you’ll always find a sit-down toilet where you can flush toilet paper and drink the tap water (although I have gotten mildly sick drinking untreated well water, to the point I avoid it), and can eat at a resteraunts without worry. Well then keep traveling in the US. They also speak your language and have the same culture. > [@](#): > > Flush TP in Greece? Besides the question of Toilet Paper, one thing Yanks often don’t know - according to previous threads on this board - is that women should never flush their tampons or their hygiene pads, because these are a big problem to the sewer systems. > [@](#): > > Can you eat lettuce in Poland Well if you want to be sure about the food, you can always find a McDonalds or similar so you don’t have to worry about local food. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/33 "2012-01-30T18:34:49Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > In Germany they also have those normal-ish toilets with a poop shelf in them. I thought my brother had made them up when he told me about them before I first went there. They’re not so common anymore AFAIK but I saw a few of them in Berlin about 10 years ago. And? They’re not the southern-style hole in the ground/ squat toilets. Are sit-down-toilets too difficult or weird to use for foreigners just because you can see your shit? What’s the problem, exactly? ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/34 "2012-01-30T18:36:55Z")
> [@ruadh](#): > > To this day I can’t get over the fact that they spent so much money to build a modern station and didn’t think to put proper toilets in it. How stupid of them not to ask the Americans how they should build their toilets, just going by what works! And is cheaper to build and maintain/ clean! Yeah, they should do everything exactly as the US does it, otherwise it isn’t proper. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/35 "2012-01-30T18:38:48Z")
> [@constanze](#): > > And? They’re not the southern-style hole in the ground/ squat toilets. > > Are sit-down-toilets too difficult or weird to use for foreigners just because you can see your shit? What’s the problem, exactly? The only difference is it’s hard to take a leak in them as a man without sitting down. They even have signs up saying not to. Jesus, lighten up. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/36 "2012-01-30T18:40:09Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > Most were pretty normal by modern standards, but now and then you’d go to a little family restaurant or something and there was a squat toilet. The one that weirded me out was - I think - a public bathroom in San Gimignano that looked exactly like any large, clean public American bathroom until you opened a stall door. Then you saw a nicely tiled hole in the floor, with tile foot-grips around the hole, and a nice modern lever to flush with. My thinking was if they’d gotten to that point of modern plumbing and other accessories, why not just put in a toilet? Because a squat toilet is a toilet? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/37 "2012-01-30T18:42:35Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > In Germany they also have those normal-ish toilets with a poop shelf in them. I thought my brother had made them up when he told me about them before I first went there. They’re not so common anymore AFAIK but I saw a few of them in Berlin about 10 years ago. Hungary also has toilets with the poop shelf on them. That was odd for all of about a day or two, then you got used to it. I don’t remember what other countries in the area have them, though. I’m sure they must have been used throughout the region, but I was used to seeing them, so they would not have jumped out at me. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/38 "2012-01-30T18:43:43Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > One guidebook mentioned that in much of Europe, hotels did not provide washcloths becuase the were considered very personal, nonshared items. The analogy was that you wouldn’t expect anywhere to put out a toothbrush that someone esle had used and then simply washed. Hotels don’t usually provide washcloths because people bring them with them, and because not everybody uses the same type of washcloth. They also don’t provide toothbrushes (but glasses). They do have fluffly towels in normal hotels, and soap and sometimes shampoo (more hotels are switching to big bottles instead of the special small sizes). I really don’t think about the why of it, because if you really miss a washcloth, there are these things called shops where you can buy one. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/39 "2012-01-30T18:46:05Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > The only difference is it’s hard to take a leak in them as a man without sitting down. They even have signs up saying not to. Jesus, lighten up. Peeing standing up causes a lot of splattering, which isn’t good because it’s not only unhygienic but in the long run, corrosive. I’m sorry if non-European men have problems learning how to pee sitting down. Maybe they should stay in the US which has the “proper” toilets and “safe” water. (when the rivers don’t happen to catch fire). ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2012, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023/40 "2012-01-30T18:47:01Z")
> [@Mdcastle](#): > > I know I never want to go to Mexico since it seems you’re virtually guaranteed to get sick there and Florida has nice beaches too… Your loss. I’ve been there twice, once to the stereotypical “American at a time share resort”, and the second time to very landlocked Oaxaca. Never got sick from the water or food. If you never go to Mexico, you’ll never ever taste Mexican coffee, though. That would be a hell of a shame (and I’m not a big coffee drinker. Except in Mexico.) Or Mexican chocolate, which is much much different than American chocolate. The first time I had it, I thought it was horrid, until I divorced “chocolate” and “creamy and smooth” in my mind. Then I couldn’t get enough of the crumbly, sugar crystally goodness that is chocolate in Oaxaca, Mexico. Get away from the resorts, and it’s not much like Florida. Thank goodness. Ireland, I wasn’t worried about the water at all, and toilets are toilets. The weird thing there is that the stalls in public bathrooms go all the way from the floor the the ceiling, not these half walls we use here. Makes for a teeny tiny room within a larger room, and if you’re claustrophobic, that might be rough. Oh, and showers in Ireland are weird. Never did figure out how to get them adjusted right. They’re boxes in the shower stall connected to the plumbing (at least the ones I was in were) and I couldn’t figure out how to make it work. I took fast, cold, low pressure showers for two weeks. In Bali, I was very careful with the water (avoiding ice in drinks and fruit that wasn’t peeled), and never got sick. They have all sorts of toilets, from American style to hole-in-the-ground, so you never know what you’re going to get. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/toilets-and-drinking-water-in-se-europe/611023.md?page=3)