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| Europe |
| European toilets a mystery to many |
| 2016-02-19 |
| [DW] Many migrants will have never seen toilet paper before, and even if they have, water-free wiping is widely thought to be an unsanitary way of cleaning oneself. Sit-down flush toilets are a mystery despite the pictogram instructions that have meanwhile been put up. Co-existence of cultures A remedy is in the works, however: Sanitary specialists at the Global Fliegenschmidt toilet manufacturers in Coswig in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt have come up with a portable "multicultural toilet." It's been on the market for just a few days, company head Peter Fliegenschmidt told DW. His company has sold squat toilet units for years, he said, but in the wake of the refugee crisis in Germany, the challenge was to come up with a combined Western-style/squat toilet. He has already received queries from organizations that run refugee shelters. His firm specializes in portable toilets, which are currently in high demand for use in emergency refugee shelters. "Generally, about 60 percent of our toilets are found on construction sites, and about 30 percent are used at special events like fairs and concerts," he said. Equipping refugee shelters is a new development that's bound to be "temporary," he said, adding that he saw a market for the new portable squat toilet abroad and at construction sites, which often employ foreigners. Fliegenschmidt's design is actually surprisingly simple. It's a regular Western-style toilet bowl with a sizeable squatting platform to the left and the right. Different body hygiene standards Toilet routines differ, and Islamic culture has detailed toilet etiquette. Islamic countries traditionally use water to wash. The myreligionislam.com website lists 20 rules and practices "to be followed when answering the call of nature." One rule stipulates using fingers to clean oneself, and "if there are still traces," washing them with water. Cleaning the private parts "with stones and similar materials" is regarded as an "acceptable substitute for cleaning them with water." Other rules forbid talking, singing, smoking or reading the paper while on the toilet. People are also advised to enter the bathroom left foot first, while exiting with the right. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #7 It's him. He's gone. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2016-02-19 18:01 |
| #6 It's him G(r)om Pappy must be commuting. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2016-02-19 16:52 |
| #5 |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2016-02-19 16:04 |
| #4 Hemingway? An esoteric reference from his stories of hunting in Africa. Hemingway developed peritonitis presumably from a native, tough-guy diet of ill-cooked meat and ingestion of unclean water which exposed him to a number of parasitic micro-organisms. Reportedly, while in-the-bush he developed a ritual of squat and purge followed by a rinse and tuck of the distended colon. Well read Grom, well read. |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2016-02-19 16:02 |
| #3 This article just begs for that graphic with the cat sitting in a litter box with a copy of Rantburg Scimitar and Times-Picuayune. |
| Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305 2016-02-19 15:50 |
| #2 Hemingway? |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2016-02-19 13:32 |
#1  |
| Posted by: Omolutle Spawn of the Gepids4508 2016-02-19 13:31 |