That’s interesting. I’ve been to New Delhi twice and on my last visit I spent 4 weeks. I was training some call center reps and we ate together everyday in the company cantine. A lot of the female agents would order one large plate and share it between two individuals. All of the students were very curious about how I liked Indian food and often bites off food off their plates or out of the little metal tins they brought from home (delicious lunches prepared by their moms!).
I found dining experience to be extremely communal. I’m a right hander and no one seemed to mind which hand I ate with. I didn’t feel like faking it with my left hand. Since I am right handed, I use the right hand in the bathroom and I felt it would be disingenious to act like I was using the correct hand for the correct task while carrying on like normal in the bathroom.
From my experience in visiting restrooms in the middle east, spraying your arse with water is a hidious and thoroughly disgusting practice. A few times I have opened a stall door only to be greeted by the sight of excrement sprayed everywhere- on the walls, floor, and of course all over the toilet. I don’t even want to imagine how that happened, but I know that you can’t accidentally do that with toilet paper. ( Nor have I ever seen some thing so hideous in the countries that use TP anyway).
Another point, not only do these people wash their arses with their left hands, they wash other things as well. One time I was sitting in a chow hall in Kuwait watching the kitchen guy cleaning the refridgerator with his hand and a spray bottle. His left hand! I suddenly remembered the practice in that part of the world of personal hygeine and lost my appetite. :eek: I highly doubt he thoroughly washes his hands perfectly every single time.
Four years in Indonesia and two in Vietnam and this whitey never even dreamed of using the hand. jjimm, I admire you and all farang/bule/honkeys who can bring themselves to go down that path.
I did like the hose & nozzle, though. Bung-blasters, we called them.
Perhaps an Indian doper could confirm this, but from my experience of being in India, I’d say their true reaction if you used your left hand, would be “shock and disgust but too polite to say anything”.
Have a look at the q i answered. The washing in q was about butts, not hands.
In fact, our washing rituals last about a minute or more. And that involves vigourously scrubbing your hands (both) thoroughly, every inch of it. I have been doing it since childhood, but I never had hepatitis or any other disease.
I am a left handed Indian, and the reactions that i get are usually amusement(from the urban people) and shock (from rural folks). Nobody is disgusted anymore.