Much like my travels in Greece, Uganda has been peppered with myriad varieties of toilet. The toilet pictured here shares striking similarities to the Turkish toilets found in Greece and other parts of the world. This toilet, hygienic in nature, does not require the user to come into contact with a toilet seat. Interestingly, unlike its true cousin, the Turkish toilet, there are no textured surfaces to either side of the bowl, providing traction for the slightly weary, elderly, or inebriated travel.
One must wonder how people accustomed to such utilitarian-seeming toilets view and think about using the restroom. In America one might read a book, talk on the phone, or even use a laptop while perched upon the bathroom throne; would these too be activities conducted in the bathroom presented here? I know my lack of grace would prevent such multitasking, especially as there were no handrails to provide stabilization during one's time of vulnerability.
This was my first opportunity to use such a toilet, and of course I had to do number two! No hand rails and no traction and my natural klutzy-ness could easily lead to tragedy! With encouraging words from a university professor to "aim for the hole," I did, and sure enough every small nugget of waste made it directly into the hole, rather than becoming stranded in the large, dry basin. Again, used to American toilets, and having never defecated as some sort of lewd sex act, I was not used to having to position myself in such a way: directing the trajectory of my waste, finding leverage, working muscles, and so on and so forth.
Luckily I had some toilet paper in my pocket for this momentous event. A tug on a cord that was the flushing mechanism merely gave the bowl a light rinse, and I was ready.
No comments:
Post a Comment