So, the image that is to the right is what I call a "squatting toilet". Some of you may call it other things and that's fine, but that is my "squatting toilet". Let me say, that we are spoiled here in the United States with our sitting toilets. Never in my life have I felt so blessed to be able to sit on a toilet in peace. Even a public toilet. Because let me say, that these things can get quite disgusting. Some of them do not have flushers. You have to manually pour the water in yourself and if you don't get it at the right angle, you don't get the "whirlpool effect" that you need to effectively flush down all of dinner or perhaps those two bottles of water you drank.
This next image that I am going to show you, is exactly how they would do it in Thaila
nd. Ahem.This is what I encountered when I was taken to a small village in Malaysia. I was not pleased as you might guess.
I guess I was rather lucky though, considering the majority of my relatives have a nice sitting toilet because they're all "upscale" like that. When I went to public restrooms, I always had to use the handicap stall...aka the stall with a sitting toilet.
So those of you who enjoy sitting on the toilet for extended periods of time, find someone to thank for your sitting toilet.
Here's a hilarious article that I found while googling for these pictures:
There’s no getting around it in some countries; you’ll have to figure out how to use a squat toilet and so will the kids.
Warning: relatively high gross-out factor in post below.
When we lived in Japan, our house had a squat toilet but you could buy a plastic converter thing that fitted over the toilet on the floor and allowed you to sit down above it.
Your business does not go into a water pool as it does in a European toilet. It just sits there, waiting for the toilet flushing action to wash it away. One of my more vivid Japan memories is a really cold morning when I thought I was dying of a disease; my morning offering was literally steaming.
Out in town or on the highway, we looked for the bathroom stall for the disabled, which generally had a European-type toilet. I don’t see how anyone with bad knees or other malfunctioning lower extremities can get in the ol’ squat position to start with, much less maintain it for, ahem, bigger business.
And what do you do with pantyhose? Or skirts? And do your jeans have to come all the way off? (Pretty much, I’ve found.)
And you sure can’t read a magazine on a squat toilet — or maybe my technique is lacking.
Remember when Mom said to always carry some Kleenex to use as toilet paper?
Friends, it is time to listen to Mom. If there’s no t.p. in the stall of a squat toilet, there’s trouble in River City.
In many parts of the world, there is never toilet paper. You use water, poured down your bottom. God bless Frank Bures, a fearless writer at World Hum, who provides us detailed insight into this process:
World Hum travel advice guru and Vagabonding
author Rolf Potts has also seen a few squatters in his day. “In places like India, and many parts of Asia,” he told me, “a bathroom won’t have toilet paper. It will have a little cup of water. Basically, after you’ve done your business, you take your left hand and wash the exit hole of fecal matter, then wash your hand. That’s why nobody shakes hands with their left hand in most of Asia and the Middle East, because that’s your a**-wiping hand.”
Ah, another one of life’s little mysteries explained.
So, for those who may be contemplating a trip with the family to the domain of squat toilets, march off to the airport secure in your knowledge of operating procedures, and well-armed with something to use as toilet paper.
Kids may as well learn that not everyone around the world does things the same way, but do prepare them before you go. "
For those of you who have been to places like Thailand, Mainland China, Vietnam, Cambodia, etc...you know how true this stuff is. :) Always carry toilet paper, children.
Okay now aside from the toilet stuff let's get down to the more pleasant things. SHOPPING! Oh shopping galore let me see if I can pull some pictures up.
This, my dear friends, is Causeway Bay (銅鑼灣). I spent a great deal of time here as well as in Mongkok (旺角). Causeway Bay is shopping galore. All those fancy shmancy brand names can be find here. Gucci, Fendi, Coach, Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Dior...all of it. All in one place. This is where Hong Kong's Time Square is. Time Square itself is just a pretty building with lots of shops. Lots of expensive shops so I didn't do too much shopping there but I did enjoy having many lunches, dinners, and late night walks here. There this one street, I believe it was on Lee Gardens street or something of the sort near Bossini where they had "outlet" clothing of brands like American Eagle, Abercrombie, Hollister, and the like. Now, I found some genuine American Eagle and Hollister...but the Abercrombie...? Looked kinda iffy to me. Either way it was cheap so I bought a shirt for my cousin. Speaking of which, he needs to come get. :P Anyhooo...at 旺角, I went to the Women's Market (女人街) quite often. Now the Women's market has plenty of men, it's just called that. There is a Men's Market too. But uhh...yeah. I don't want to go there.
This is what the Women's Market is like. It's like a street bazaar that goes on all day. You can find fake anything here. Fake Tiffany's, Gucci, Fendi, Burberry, Coach, Dior, Chanel, Hello Kitty, Kuma, Winnie the Pooh, Sunshine Friends, etc...At the same time though, you can find some pretty nice stuff here that's not brand name for pretty cheap. I got a nice purse for 20 bucks. I was happy. :D I got some fake Sunshine Buddies for 5 bucks too. And...yeah. You can get seriously ripped off here though. Generally, unless there's something I really really really really really really really really really really really really like, I try to stick to places where the price is already labeled on the package. You can still bargain, but at least you know the standard price isn't going to change just because you're a tourist. I got a wallet for 6 bucks too. :D
There's also another place near the Women's Market that I loved to death. THE GOLDFISH MARKET! Let me tell you, I had the greatest time ever at this place just looking at all the cute little fishies. They had so many cute little Ranchus and I wish I could've taken one home! <3 onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGWOzvdmSvObN-ozIry-iLsqsmDygtEyqcibMSsCN6gWCdnfTm3xUWzjcQHXSFYsYtprXk00A3E8EafQV4qM4sB1hyphenhyphenvXdqti45CcT5MzgSp8VFN5_gp4Qu6jJjZn6E4zlnJxytV349GUe-/s1600-h/IMG_1064.JPG">
This picture is from one of the stores I happened to walk by. The had these gigantic Orandas and Ryukins and Ranchus. Holy crap this one Ranchu I saw was like the size of my head!!! I wanted to buy it and take it home! And they are sooooo cheap! It's like 2 - 3 dollars for a nice big fish. Koi Fish were kinda expensive though. Some of them were cheap but not too impressive. Look at all the fishies!
Another strange thing that I saw was the way some stores were selling fish. It kinda bothered me actually.
This is the way that some of the stores sold fish. they were pre-bagged like this. The thing is that if you know anything about fish, you know that these things lose air and FAST. Yes it's nice that there's a plant to help give it oxygen, but it's not going to help if you can't sell the fish at the end of the day and leave them there overnight! They even put giant fish, like flowerhorns, in there!I'd be kinda scared to buy my fish from a bag like this. Cheap as it may be though as you can see by the price markings.
But as I am getting tired because I am jetlagged, this will have to end for now. I leave you with one parting picture though!
I love my 意粉！
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