The Way Things Were (Squat Toilet, 7)

An especially cheerful hole-in-the-ground toilet
 in one of my favorite pizzerias.

The internet calls them squat toilets but I call them hole-in-the-ground toilets.  At first look (it takes more than a glance) one thinks, "Oh no!"  But by the 25th use they come with a sigh of relief.  The only thing you have to (or might accidently) touch are the foot pads and I've never worried much about the bottoms of my shoes (well, I suppose it depends on the shoes).  So I invite curious Americans to come give them a try.  They're everywhere......except the US.  My first experience was in Turkey more than 20 years ago so it would make sense to use their Italian name, bagno alla turca (Turkish toilet). 









The Beginning of The Way Things Were
Call me what you will, but I call myself an emigrant....an emigrant who should stop talking about her homeland every day.  (Expat has too many rich, white person connotations and immigrant is what my Italian friends call me.)  Many years ago, my foreign (expat) friends in Chicago continually pointed out the differences between life in their countries and life in Chicago.  I might be mistaken, but their use of the word 'different' often sounded a bit like 'better'. 

Not long after moving to Italy (about three hours) I started doing the same thing.  It has finally dawned on me that if my friends in Italy think like I used to think (if it's better in your country why don't you go home?) it might be wise to keep my American mouth shut in Italy and share my thoughts with the other side of the world.  Hereafter, when I notice something different, be it better or just different, I'll (try to) hold my tongue and add it to my list of The Way Things Were.

My goal is to keep it simple with a few words and a photo,  giving the readers the choice of better...or just different.   With more reflection I'll probably realize that some of the "betters" are here and some of the "betters" are there.  In the end maybe they really are just "differences."