I Wish I Knew About....Before Moving to Singapore!

Birthday Blog!

I Wish I Knew About (insert strange and unusual occurrences/encounters here) Before Moving to Singapore.

I was not going to write on my big ‘31’ birthday but I feel inspired to introduce some latest news about my blog as I listen to Christmas music and stare out at palm trees in 88 degree weather!  Sorry to rub it in for those back home in the cold.  This is truly a first in my lifetime so this calls for some fun blog time!  I am launching a new series of topics that will all follow under, I Wish I Knew About…Before Moving to Singapore.  I plan to periodically update this series throughout the course of my blog, so stay tuned people. 

Drum roll please! 

First on the list…

I wish I knew about the (Squatting Seat) before moving to Singapore.

When we first made our grand arrival to Singapore I started jotting down some notes that would seem like worthy blog entries.  First on my list, ‘Watch your Step’! 

I get off the plane after travelling halfway across the world and of course need to use the bathroom.  I never seem to time it right to go in the plane right before descent.  Something that needs to be worked on for sure especially if you find yourself amongst a long line (queue for my Singapore friends) in the first bathroom you spot in the airport.  As I tried to fight a girl to get in line first she happened to squeeze in front of me and the only stall left had a sign on the door that read, Watch Your Step.  Cool, I thought!  There are steps in the bathroom.  Little did I know!  That is your huge warning ladies and gents and yes, men, there are these ‘special’ kinds of stalls in your bathroom.  You don’t get exempt from this too!  So I enter this ‘cool’ bathroom stall and to my surprise there is no toilet, only a hole in the ground.  Hmm, this is strange.  I have never seen one of ‘these’.  I later find out ‘these’ are called squatting seats.  They aren’t pleasant either.  Talk about unhygienic.  I will let your mind wander as to how disgusting this could be.  I decline to provide details on this one.  This also explains why there are photos in the regular stalls with toilets that show a picture of someone squatting on the toilet saying 'no squatting'.  Who would ever do that?  Now I know why! I always thought someone might squat on the toilet for sanitation purposes, ha!  I had no idea that people actually squatted over a hole in the ground, ha!  This now becomes topic of conversations with new expat friends.  What’s up with the gross squatting seats in the bathrooms around here?  Answers thrown out have been pretty unhelpful.  I thought maybe for religious reasons.  For some reason last week I remembered to do some research on this and what a perfect question for Google!  Revelation!  Turns out there are also health advantages and benefits to the squatting seat.  See websites below.  Who would have thought? 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squat_toilet

Those of you who can handle to read a more detailed description on the comparison between the toilet and squatting seat…read on!  The wording in the link may be enough to stop you from going further, ha!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_defecation_postures

My lesson has been learned.  The last time I used the bathroom with a squatting seat I let the lady behind me go ahead and use it.  I will wait for the next one please!  Do not go in the stall that warns you to ‘Watch your Step.’  More like ‘Watch out, you are about to experience something nasty’!  I wish I knew about the squatting seat before moving to Singapore so that I would have avoided the entire experience in the first place!