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The Evolution of the Toilet

They say the sub-conscious works twice as fast as the conscious. Hence, why some of the worlds greatest problems are solved whilst sitting on the loo. However it would be hard to imagine any epiphanies occurring whilst using one of the traditional Asian toilets which usually consists of just a hole in the floor. It’s part and parcel of any trip to Asia and you get used to it. Here is an example of the train toilet through which you could see the tracks rumbling past below you;

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Apparently it is bad form to go when the train is stationary. However, what I was interested to see is that, in Thailand at least, they have adopted Western style toilets. I found out at the end of our 13 hour journey that the cubicle opposite the one pictured was a standard Western style toilet. This is completely unlike chopsticks, where our Asian brothers and sisters have stubbornly persisted in their use despite the invention of the fork. I have my esteemed father-in-law Paul Jones to thank for that particular observation. Note that I don’t compare chopsticks with a knife and fork as knives simply aren’t used. Where a piece of meat is too big they simply bite some off with their teeth whilst holding the morsel using their sticks. I’m not sure where the ‘chop’ part comes from? Either way, the Asian society appear to have reserved all use of blades solely for ninjas.

What is great though is that whilst we’ve stuck with the same old Armitage Shanks model for years, the Asian society has taken our idea, and run with it! I found out when I went for the loo in a shopping centre in Bangkok and was faced with a control panel next to the seat;

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Looks complicated doesn’t it? It’s ok though, it came with instructions on the door opposite;

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My favourite is the symbol used for the shower option although I wasn’t sure about the ‘bidet’ button.
Anyway, I look forward to seeing how far this adoption of western toilet technology continues in the other countries we visit.

On a lighter note, here is another image of that sunset the other night, it truly was awesome;

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