Sorry to say that it is the absolute truth. She even went on to mention that she used a bidet (fairly common bathroom fixture in Europe) after using the toilet. (Why women want to share these personal things with me I will never understand).

My experiences for the last three days:

Tallin, Estonia: 1/2 hard clear plastic shower curtain...mess everywhere.

Narva, Estonia: No shower curtain...

Tartu, Estonia: 8/10 shower curtain no reaching the floor...no lip to keep the water out. Big mess.

I wonder who decided on these: the owner, people cleaning, the architect? It seems like anyone that has been anywhere could come up with something better.

p.s.
Something we do like is that the toilets cannot be flushed unless the lid is closed...that is cleaver. The 1/2 flush technology is also something that should be exported to other places.

Sjoerd,

Americans have traditionally used a lot of energy and resources because energy and resources are cheap and we've been willing to pay for them. Your governments have chosen to reduce consumption through high taxes and have gained nothing through doing so but revenue.

Now that energy prices have gone up a bit many of us are doing things to save, such as switching to flouresent bulbs and the like. But we're doing so primarily in response to rational, free-market forces with only slight government nudging. As energy prices continue to rise it will become cost efficient to adopt alternative forms of energy, but it is very important not to adopt these ahead of the curve lest we give other countries an economic advantage by allowing them to use cheap energy while we use expensive energy.

I'm not prepared to say that our quality of life is all that "similar," any more than my small-town lifestyle is "similar" to that of my New York countrymen. Nor am I prepared to say that one lifestyle is "superior" to the other. Each lifestyle has been chosen because that is what the people wanted.

I will say that as a general rule American toilets and showers are superior to European toilets and showers, and I can't imagine that anyone would contradict me.

I've read the above, and I just don't get it. I've used toilets and showers in a number of European countries (at least 10 or so), and I can't for the life of me think of what about them is better or worse than the toilets and showers in the US.

What differences are you thinking of, exactly?

- Michael

Nah, it's the Japanese toilets that are clearly better.

:confused:

I've always found American toilets and showers primitive. Why would anyone prefer a fixed shower head and separate taps that require minutes of fiddling to get the temperature just right? I like my showers handheld, with single-tap controls that smoothly adjust between hot and cold, and my toilet seats heated, with little robotic arms that squirt water. :cool:

Don't mean to carp, but I couldn't let this pass without comment:

Now there's an oxymoron. And no, no -- I'm not suggesting there's a better alternative. :p

Gas prices have doubled in most places in the past few years while consumption has actually increased. We've yet to see the point, sadly, where North Americans will reduce levels of consumption in response to higher price points.

I don't understand this line of reasoning. Economic advantage...over whom?? I really can't think of too many western industries that are in direct competition with each other anymore -- most of our widgets come from Asia. And I can't think of anyone who wants to adopt Chinese pollution standards.

I think this argument, in any case, ignores the massive impact of residential energy consumers. There's no reason at all why we shouldn't be nudged a little more forcefully into using "cleaner" energy sources -- who would be harmed by this?

Back OT: I will agree that European bathrooms are smaller, but I've experienced little overall difference between North American and European washroom standards.

That's cute, but where is Ulan Bator?

they take shorter/faster/fewer showers (less water being used up, less time in there with less splatter, and everyone is thin, fit, fast moving and takes up less space to begin with)


Oh, this might explain why european women are VERY hairy. They don't have time to shave their underarms or legs.:) Birds could build a nest under some of those armpits for heaven's sake. :D

I absolutely hate the hand-held shower heads. In fact, it's a deciding factor if I find out about it before staying someplace. Why? I have waist-length hair, and need both hands to lather/wash/rinse it - and can't do that while also holding the bloody shower head. Messy, awkward, and annoying. One of life's great pleasures is standing under a shower, rinsing your hair out, IMHO.

Also, I'm overweight - so those shower-curtainless showers just mean more mess on the floor. Dainty and graceful I am not, nor ever will be.

I was in the Boston Park Plaza hotel and it had the weirdest shower setup. No tub, no lip (pan) even, and no shower curtain! The tile was only slightly slanted towards the shower wall, but it was such a mess! And this is in the U.S.! So weird and inconvenient having to deal with a watery mess all over the bathroom afterwards.

Showerless curtains are common also in Greece. In recent years they've apparently been trying to meet tourist expectations, since more showers have curtains than they used to, but the curtains mostly are so skimpy and ill fitting that everything still gets all wet.

1/2 glass wall in the shower at the recently remodelled Le Meridien Barcelona. Water inevitably splashed outside of the tub. This was the worst aspect of the stay and was enough for us to agree that we would rather stay somewhere else next time. Yes, the showerhead could be used as a handheld.

No shower door at the stylish Four Points Mississauga, but the stall was large so no water ended up outside the shower. Unfortunately, that still makes for a drafty room until the steam warms up the entire bathroom.

The stall was not as large in my regular room at the W Atlanta Perimeter last week, and much water from the rain showerhead above ended up splashing on the floor. Stepping back into the bathroom with socks on later was a mistake.

It seems to me that these hotels have put Style way too high over Functionality.

I actually prefer the European toilets where you can do a half-flush or a full-flush, depending on what you happened to do ;)

As for the no shower curtain, I had that at the Accor in AKL this past August. Only other place I have seen it was in Europe.

Wow, showerless curtains? I can deal with the 1/3 glass wall, the handheld shower, even the no-curtain shower, but I draw the line at the showerless curtain. :p