Remember how I told you in my last post that I have two favorite cafes now? How one is an old church, converted into an art cafe by day and a nightclub by night? (It's called Circulo de Arte, by the way... lovingly referred to as Circulo.)
Well, tonight I decided to pay a visit to Circulo. It was a nice visit. It's really a great place; awesome architecture, classy decor, soft lighting, peaceful music, nice ambiente. But I do, unfortunately, have to issue one little complaint... and this complaint goes for pretty much the rest of the cafes, bars, and restaurants in Spain as well.
THE BATHROOMS.
The bathrooms in Circulo are quite possibly the worst I've ever seen. I mean, really. It's like a prison toilet. (And I know, because they are the same toilets that the inmates have at the jail in Pittsburgh!) Just steel fixtures. No seats. Nothing. I mean, I know this place is a nightclub by night, (and, let's face it, those can always be rather disgusting)... but the fact that the daytime patrons are also subjected to this prison-style potty is just undignified.
You don't know just how much luck it takes to actually find a bathroom in Spain with all of the following things in it:
1. A toilet seat
2. Toilet paper
3. Soap
4. A reasonable means of drying your hands
These are pretty much the four most essential things that you could think to put in a bathroom, right? (I mean, aside from the toilet and sink themselves, of course.) But here, you might just be asking for a little too much! Rarely do you find a bathroom with all four of these necessities. But you're usually lucky if you get two. (My preferences, by the way, are toilet paper and soap.)
Since arriving to Spain, I've had to master the art of squatting. (TMI? maybe...) I've developed the habit of carrying tissues (aka, emergency TP) at all times. I've had to use my pants as makeshift paper towels more times than I can count. And I really need to start carrying hand sanitizer as well. Just think, though: a whole society that forgoes hand-washing after toilet-using! Scary! Maybe that's where the free health care comes in handy! (Please note: my tongue is firmly plastered to my cheek.)
Maybe Americans are just a little too anal about their bathroom needs (pun only slightly intended). But until the rest of Europe, or Spain in particular, catches up to our standards, we Americans are just going to have to equip our purses with the bare essentials! And in the meantime, if you do come across a public restroom here with all of the aforementioned accoutrements, you might as well make your way to the nearest lottery shop soon after, because you're probably just as likely to hit El Gordo.
2 comments:
Rachael,
I had the same problem in France, when we went to the American Cemetery in Normandy, that was the first time that I saw more than one toilet, sinks, toilet paper and a way to dry your hands after washing them.
Hahahaha oh Raquael. So good. The day after coming home from Spain, my mom and I went on a road trip and stopped at a gas station bathroom. I came out and said, "You know what the difference between an American sketchy bathroom and a Spanish sketchy bathroom is? The American one has a toilet seat, toilet paper, soap, hot water, and paper towels."
As a sidenote, I recently got into this discussion with another friend who'd lived in Spain. Her dad overheard us and started telling us about when he lived in Afghanistan. His stories won.
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