AROUND THE BLOCK
News with a Twist
High-Tech Highlights China's Restrooms
American Travelers in Ecstasy
For years one of the major concerns for Americans traveling to China was the public toilet situation. No longer, according to a report from the New York Times. (Note: For Around The Block readers of Mandarin - and you know who you are - you can access the Chinese language version of the Times report here):
http://cn.nytimes.com/china/20151218/c18chinaletter/
As reported by the Times, "As the government seeks to improve sanitation and reduce environmental waste across the country, it is planning a major overhaul of public toilets. Over the next three years, it will build or renovate 57,000 restrooms, including some that will resemble the high-tech facility in Fangshan, the first of its kind in China", shown here:
While foreign, particularly American, visitors to China are ecstatic, the euphoria isn't necessarily shared by the average Chinese.
Interviewed by the Times, Mr. Li Wen, 39, a salesman, setting foot into the new Fangshan facility, said, "What's wrong with the old one. The government has too much money and doesn't know how to spend it."
In a separate Times interview Ms. Lei Junying, 74, a retired farmer, added, "It's just a toilet. Why do they have to make it such a nice one."
According to the Times report, the new style restrooms will have vending machines, A.T.M.s, charging stations for electric cars, TV screens in the stalls and Wi-Fi. But in a nod to traditional Chinese values the new restrooms will continue to include a communal roll of toilet paper and a separate bin for the used toilet paper. (Ugh!) So while American tourists can applaud the changes they should remember not to leave home without their own toilet paper and wipes.
Despite Mr. Li's and Ms. Lei's complaints, it appears that the new restrooms are quickly being embraced by the Chinese people, with some worrying that their popularity and particularly the presence of TV and Wi-Fi will encourage guests to linger longer in the stalls.
To support this concern, a recent study by the Fangshan Medical College reported that since the installation of the new restrooms, the incidence of piles in Fangshan has increased by 57%, which every Chinese mother has told her children, is caused by sitting on the toilet too long.
http://cn.nytimes.com/china/20151218/c18chinaletter/
As reported by the Times, "As the government seeks to improve sanitation and reduce environmental waste across the country, it is planning a major overhaul of public toilets. Over the next three years, it will build or renovate 57,000 restrooms, including some that will resemble the high-tech facility in Fangshan, the first of its kind in China", shown here:
While foreign, particularly American, visitors to China are ecstatic, the euphoria isn't necessarily shared by the average Chinese.
Interviewed by the Times, Mr. Li Wen, 39, a salesman, setting foot into the new Fangshan facility, said, "What's wrong with the old one. The government has too much money and doesn't know how to spend it."
In a separate Times interview Ms. Lei Junying, 74, a retired farmer, added, "It's just a toilet. Why do they have to make it such a nice one."
According to the Times report, the new style restrooms will have vending machines, A.T.M.s, charging stations for electric cars, TV screens in the stalls and Wi-Fi. But in a nod to traditional Chinese values the new restrooms will continue to include a communal roll of toilet paper and a separate bin for the used toilet paper. (Ugh!) So while American tourists can applaud the changes they should remember not to leave home without their own toilet paper and wipes.
Despite Mr. Li's and Ms. Lei's complaints, it appears that the new restrooms are quickly being embraced by the Chinese people, with some worrying that their popularity and particularly the presence of TV and Wi-Fi will encourage guests to linger longer in the stalls.
To support this concern, a recent study by the Fangshan Medical College reported that since the installation of the new restrooms, the incidence of piles in Fangshan has increased by 57%, which every Chinese mother has told her children, is caused by sitting on the toilet too long.
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