eur-a-peein

i wish i could take credit for the pun, but im afraid i stole that beauty from rick steves.
I thought I would take a minute to write about a little cultural difference that I never anticipated, but which plays a very large role in my daily life- bathrooms.
My dorm room comes equipped with a bidet (pronounced bid-day). This little wonder is like a mix between a urinal and a sink- a porcelain basin with a drain and running water that- unlike an italian bidet- does not squirt up, but trickles out. It can be used for all sorts of wonders. One of my friends lined hers with used towels and used it as storage. Another friend tried to keep one of the neighborhood cats in his room and tried to teach the cat to use it as a litter box. not surprisingly- he failed on both accounts. and then there is the more traditional use. eur-in-all.
Another common phenomenon in france is the lack of toilet seat. There are no toilet seats in my dorm, in the university building, and in many other public toilets. Its more of an optional accessory than a necessity here i guess. The first time i walked into a stall in our dorm bathroom and saw this i backed out and went to the next stall, thinking there was a mistake. and then i went to the next stall. and then i stood in the middle of the room turning in circles feeling very lost, until a guy walked into the bathroom. This did not make me any less confused, because i hadnt yet realized that co-ed bathrooms are common in dorms and university buildings. he asked me, in french, with a very thick north african accent, what was wrong. I didnt catch a word of it and just kind of stood there until he repeated himself very slowly. i finally understood and put together a semi comprehensible french response. Luckily i was in the right place to have the crap scared out of me.
and then i came accross one more fun cultural difference- France operates on a BYOTP basis.