Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Stumped

Here in Spain, I really try not to be an ethnocentric American. The first lesson in any cultural sensitivity training is to avoid comparing a new country to your homeland; don't use words such as "better," "worse" and "downright weird." Accept practices that you may find peculiar as endearing eccentricities rather than character flaws. 
That's all fine and dandy, but I've been wrangling with what I refer to as "the Spanish bathroom situation" for a while now. There's rarely toilet paper, there's often no soap, and it's not unusual for toilets to lack seats. Generally, I make it work with the the scant resources provided and a spritz of creativity. 
There aren't seats in all of the stalls in the women's bathrooms at my school (yes, for anyone who's a regular reader, I've been using the ladies' rooms since "the unfortunate misunderstanding"). Then, the other day I noticed this, outside the stall:


Am I supposed to take the seat off the wall, carry it in there and use it as a removable, auxiliary accessory? This is an honest question. 
(Sorry for the haphazard photo. I snapped it quickly before anyone noticed. Since "the unfortunate misunderstanding" I've been extra cautious with my bathroom behavior; don't want the teachers to think that's where I go to be weird.)
Un saludo, 
Teresa

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