A bathroom problem of “Olympic” proportions

by Jeremy Kressmann on

When I first saw the venue designs for this summer’s Olympic games in Beijing, I was quite impressed. The Chinese have pulled out all the stops to create several cutting-edge stadiums for the games, including the Beijing National Stadium designed by award-winning architects Herzog & de Meuron and the Beijing National Aquatics Center, which looks like a huge floating cube of water.

However, as the BBC reports, China may have spent a little too much money on those architecture fees. Prompted by frequent visitor complaints at test events, the Chinese are scrambling to replace traditional squat toilets at the venues with western-style “loos” for an expected 500,000 visitors. According to the BBC, who quotes Yao Hui, Deputy Head of Venue Management, “Most of the Chinese people are used to the squat toilet, but nowadays more and more people demand sit-down toilets.”

Gee, Yao, do you think? I have no problem adapting to a traditional squat toilet if I’m coming to visit China on my own, but perhaps when you have visitors coming from as many as 200 different nationalities you might want to standardize? I guess if you’re headed to this summer’s games in Beijing, make sure you bring your own toilet paper and maybe take a look at this for advice. Also take a look at this for more “traditional” background info on Beijing before your visit.

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Silverjet Announces Women-only Bathrooms

by Martha Edwards on

Ladies, do you cringe at the thought of using the airplane bathroom mere moments after seeing a big burly man exit from it? Have you ever, while waiting next in line to use the loo, crossed your fingers and offered unquestioned loyalty to the divine figure of your choice if he/she will only guarantee that the person who emerges from the bathroom next is pretty-smelling and feminine? Yeah, me too. We get segregated washrooms in the airport … why not the airplane too?

Good news: Silverjet, a new-ish carrier that offers service between London’s Luton airport and New York’s Newark is offering women-only bathrooms on their trans-Atlantic flights. And they have the controversial commercial to prove it. And while I know that women can be just as gross as men, and though I never fly between New York and London, it’s just a teensy bit exciting to a gal like me. Will other airlines follow suit? Only time will tell.

It does, however, seem a bit sexist. I wonder what the male travelers have to say about it.