There’s one topic of conversation that is surprisingly common for the World Race—for the girls, at least—and that is toilet talk!!
Who knew we would have so many “restroom stories” or abdominal complaints as we travel the world. Everybody has dealt with it. And after a trip like this, nobody is afraid to talk about them.
So here are some restroom stories from around the world:
El Salvador—we were blessed with a normal bathroom and shower…complete with mice that crawled up the sink drain and scares Emma’s pants off.
Guatemala—no insane stories, other than overabundant use. Guatemala did not agree with me.
Honduras—toilet and shower tucked away inside a side room where we kept all our belongings. You know you have gut issues when a rat crawls up one leg, across your lap, and down the other side because you’ve sat on the toilet for so long. Standing water in this area may have been a source of fungal infections for some of us.
Nicaragua—normal toilets, normal bowels!! What a blessing that was.
Côte d’Ivoire—a hole outside. That’s all…a hole. It was our restroom. It was our shower. Only a sheet for a door, and it only worked if it wasn’t windy. It wasn’t hard to aim…unless you had diarrhea. It was so disgusting that the locals refused to use it…they just “went” outside. The build-up at the bottom was infested with mosquitos/larvae, and the walls were covered with cockroaches at night that resided inside the hole by day. You know you have stomach issues when you squat for so long that roaches scurry across your feet or up your legs!! Oh, and I may have left my skirt in the restroom and walked out with only underpants on…
Ghana—there was a snake in the restroom. Apparently a deadly one. It hid for a few days after the initial sighting, but we found it in the toilet paper bag. We took it outside and let it go…Pastor Calvary wasn’t too happy about it. On the bus ride to Ghana, we would stop on the side of the road for bathroom breaks. Men stood. Woman and kids squared. Jess…Jessica refused to drink water on travel days, so I stayed on the bus!
Nepal—Normal American toilets at the hostel, with occasional uses of Asian square-potties when we were out in the community. Nothing too crazy.
India—Asian squatting-potties everyday (with an American toilet available if needed). I discovered that I’d rather pee in a hole in Africa than use Asian toilets—there’s too much splatters!! It’s difficult to keep your feet clean. Andddd apparently it’s Indian custom to fully shower after having a bowel movement—I guess everyone knows what you were doing in there. (No, I didn’t shower after!!)
Thailand—Asian squatties in the community, and American toilets in the hostel. I dropped my shampoo in the toilet.
Malaysia—Asian squatties. No TP and no soap to wash your hands. I’m still trying to figure out why they have hoses AND buckets in the stall. Lots of chili tuna this month to stay in budget on the island. It burned going in and burned coming out. Taylor was smart and stopped after one can.
This aspect of life has definitely been a adventurous learning experience so far on the race!
