European and American Public Restrooms in Texas
Americans are known for their Puritanical modesty and need for privacy for bodily functions. For that reason, many Americans on their first trip to Europe have been shocked at how many Europeans do not seem to suffer from a need for privacy.
The first time we landed in Barcelona, we took the shuttle from the airport terminal to the train station. On the way, one of the construction workers on the side of the road, stopped and while facing the shuttlebus, unzipped his pants and urinated on the side of the road. The Americans on the bus looked surprised and almost seemed embarrassed, but there were no construction PortaPotties on any construction sites, so it must be the normal way of taking care of business when you're a mile from any restroom. Of course, when I was a child, there were no PortaPotties, so farm workers and construction workers had to find a bush or a car, or just kneel on the ground when the need arose. Now PortaPotties are required on every construction site.
In France, my father talked about how the American troops were so surprised at the portable urinals on Paris streets that had just a short wall around them. The last time we were in Paris, I believe there is only one of those public open urinals left, maybe for historical reasons. Then when we were in Provence, there were public urinals in a park that were totally open with no door and anyone walking by could see every single man standing at a urinal. So in the country, they still exist.
In Italy, I recall the first time I was in a restroom using the urinal when I heard a woman's voice nearby. I looked over my shoulder and saw that the cleaning lady had come in and was cleaning up as if there were no men in the restroom. The same thing happened in Mexico, where the cleaning lady came in and actually talked to a taxi driver she knew while he was using the urinal.
In the US, if there are women cleaners, they have to close the restroom with barricades while they are cleaning the men's restroom. This can be a serious problem for some of us older guys who waited too long before heading to the restroom. If you've waited too long, you actually have to tell the cleaning woman it's an emergency and ask her to step outside.
On the other hand, my wife says she's never seen a male cleaner come into a women's restroom in any country in Europe, so maybe either European women are not that immodest OR there are very few, if any, male restroom cleaners.
Bottom line, pardon the pun, is that this is only of interest because with all of the things we now have in common because of shared information with televisions and the Internet, we still have basic differences in our cultures that surprise us when we discover them.
P.S. If you're wondering, one of the renovation workers on this construction site obviously had a sense of humor and set up the old porcelain commode as a joke next to the PortaPotties. I'm adding this statement because an Italian man might well ask what the commode is for, as there was already a flowerbed there by the road that he could use!!
European and American Public Restrooms in Texas
Americans are known for their Puritanical modesty and need for privacy for bodily functions. For that reason, many Americans on their first trip to Europe have been shocked at how many Europeans do not seem to suffer from a need for privacy.
The first time we landed in Barcelona, we took the shuttle from the airport terminal to the train station. On the way, one of the construction workers on the side of the road, stopped and while facing the shuttlebus, unzipped his pants and urinated on the side of the road. The Americans on the bus looked surprised and almost seemed embarrassed, but there were no construction PortaPotties on any construction sites, so it must be the normal way of taking care of business when you're a mile from any restroom. Of course, when I was a child, there were no PortaPotties, so farm workers and construction workers had to find a bush or a car, or just kneel on the ground when the need arose. Now PortaPotties are required on every construction site.
In France, my father talked about how the American troops were so surprised at the portable urinals on Paris streets that had just a short wall around them. The last time we were in Paris, I believe there is only one of those public open urinals left, maybe for historical reasons. Then when we were in Provence, there were public urinals in a park that were totally open with no door and anyone walking by could see every single man standing at a urinal. So in the country, they still exist.
In Italy, I recall the first time I was in a restroom using the urinal when I heard a woman's voice nearby. I looked over my shoulder and saw that the cleaning lady had come in and was cleaning up as if there were no men in the restroom. The same thing happened in Mexico, where the cleaning lady came in and actually talked to a taxi driver she knew while he was using the urinal.
In the US, if there are women cleaners, they have to close the restroom with barricades while they are cleaning the men's restroom. This can be a serious problem for some of us older guys who waited too long before heading to the restroom. If you've waited too long, you actually have to tell the cleaning woman it's an emergency and ask her to step outside.
On the other hand, my wife says she's never seen a male cleaner come into a women's restroom in any country in Europe, so maybe either European women are not that immodest OR there are very few, if any, male restroom cleaners.
Bottom line, pardon the pun, is that this is only of interest because with all of the things we now have in common because of shared information with televisions and the Internet, we still have basic differences in our cultures that surprise us when we discover them.
P.S. If you're wondering, one of the renovation workers on this construction site obviously had a sense of humor and set up the old porcelain commode as a joke next to the PortaPotties. I'm adding this statement because an Italian man might well ask what the commode is for, as there was already a flowerbed there by the road that he could use!!