-----------------------------------------------------------------
From previous experience of French toilets, I should feel quite lucky that they have at least progressed past the squatting over a pit idea, and now they tend to have flushing basins. However, I still have a few issues with the French toilet system.
The public toilets in towns are usually unisex. For example, in the toilets in the centre of Evron, there is one urinal and one cubicle. I go in first while Dave keeps guard at the shutter door in case a scary man tries to come in and listen to me wee (or should I say oui?).Then I guard the door for Dave while he uses the urinal should an old lady try to peep.
As in England, supermarkets are places where Dave and I like to spend a lot of our free time. In Super U (pretty much Tesco with a lobster tank) there is one toilet for the men, and one for the ladies. But the bloody French ignore the pictures completely. I have seen men walk into the ladies when the men’s toilet is empty. This means that the ladies toilet is also covered in pee. Another bugbear I have is that the French don’t have any BLOODY TOILET SEATS. You don’t understand how much you take these for granted until they’re gone. They are warmer than the ceramic basin, it is easier to check and wipe for drops of other people’s pee before sitting down, and you can put the lid down when you’re finished.
Lastly the best difference, and something which amuses us at least once a week concerning toilet habits in France though, is the fact that it is legal to urinate outside. It is especially common in the countryside where we live, as you can sometimes be 20 minutes or more away from a toilet. So many times, you will be driving through the countryside, and you may not have seen a house for a few minutes, and you will see a man weeing into a bush. One time, on the outskirts of town, we saw a man and his dog doing it together. I wanted to take a picture, but Dave wouldn’t drive back past.
