Relationships Forum Chatter & Grey Matter

But the oldies have to clean the mess too. Gets tough when the bones start creaking.

 

Try BookmyBai. It has great reviews.

 

Book my bais are good for dry bathrooms....they won' t come to wipe the bathroom dry 5 times in the day.

They have helpers for other jobs but getting someone to wash bathrooms is not easy.

Thankfully now they have new skid free floor tiles so the wet bathroom floor is not a safety hazard.

 

Read the reviews. They aren't even good for dry bathrooms.

In India, there is always something wrong. Either the maid is getting oppressed by the master or maid is oppressing the master and mistress.

Why can't all the oppressed maids and masters and mistresses come together? I am either reading about bad maids/servants or oppressive masters.

PS: I have a marble chip floor throughout my house including the bathroom. Nobody has slipped on them, including oldies.

Slippage becomes a factor when tiles come into play. The walls have tiles, but not the floors.

 

I agree, I prefer the compartmentalization in bathrooms, because I hate bathing in open bathrooms with bucket and cup, while sitting down and staring at the toilet. It's so gross. Alright, I can adjust, but when I have to bathe my toddler with his head (and mouth) near the toilet seat, I just can't take it. It feels like a punishment, just to get clean. And then each time I have to wash my hands, my feet get wet, and I have to wipe them off on a mat that has never been dry - and walk back with more junk on my feet.

I love the blurred windows for western bathrooms, which I know not every bathroom has. Living in Tornado alley, means the bathrooms are the only "safe" place, hence the no windows, so I understand why. What I don't understand is why people would have CARPET in the bathroom area? For what purpose would you want carpet while sitting on the porcelain throne? What if the toilet overflows, or the shower curtain is open - the carpet is wet and grows fungus. No tiny bathroom exhaust fan is going to fix that. This is only in the older houses, but it is so weird to me. It's not as common anymore, but even 25 years ago, it was pretty normal.

 

Agree about the carpets. Whites love carpets.

As for the toilet-staring, I guess it's a matter of where you grow up. Being near the toilet has never really bothered me. I don't bathe sitting down. Never have. Though that is the traditional Indian way. I stand up and take a shower and love making the whole bathroom wet in the process.

 

I agree with this bathroom dilemma of these NRIs, specially the kids who have grown up there.

Sadly my PILs bathrooms are similar to what is "explained" in @Rihana's post above.
It is not compartmentalized, and it takes little time to get dried completely after the shower. Of course the exhaust fan works, and this dry weather helps to quicken up this drying process. But when 2 people (BIL & Co-SIS) have to use the bathroom for almost the same time (one after the other), it becomes a mess.
But this is what these oldies (PILs) prefer. This is the ordinary bathroom of this country. This is what basically OK with so many people living here.

There is a wiper, and the user is expected to wipe off the excessive water in the floor after the shower. With the exhaust fan and the hot weather, the floor gets dry very soon.
The next person is expected to wait at least for 10 mins should he/she prefer a complete dry washroom. If not, it is still clean and neat to use.
Just that it is different from the western compartmentalized bathroom.

My folks had a tough time wiping off with a toilet tissue after a bowl movement in the UK when they were there. They needed water, and they thought cleaning your back area with running water is the only hygienic way. But due to certain bathroom patterns, they were unable to use water to clean after their bowl movement. It was highly inconvenient to them.

What is clean and comfortable is different from person to person. It is all in their head.

Just because of your own personalized comforts the hosts can't change their life style. It is the guests who needs to adjust.

NRIs have an option to offer money/assistance to the host, so that they can build/renovate a bathroom as per these NRIs standards, and keep them locked until they visit next time. So that it remains clean, and fresh.

 

Everytime I go to India, I adjust. Sure it's a bother, to have a wet toilet seat and squatting toilet (while wearing a sari or a nice salwar kameez), but I do survive and finish my business. I don't buy toilet paper, I use water, like everyone else. I am at the mercy of my host and their habits, and know that growing up. The only other thing that bothers me is SHARING towels. Am I the crazy one here? But I'm ok with sharing a towel with my mom, but no one else - including my husband, my brother, my dad, my cousins, etc. And most importantly, my FIL. But towel sharing seems to be rampant in some families (*cough*In-laws)

I wish the adjustment works the other way. My grandparents, were able to adjust to toilet paper, surprisingly, but my in-laws are very much into their wet bathrooms. So even my dry guest bathroom becomes a wet bathroom. The toilet seat and the area around become wet, so I keep floor towels handy to manage the excess water on the floor. It's hard to tell people to change, but if it's wet, the smell of the bathroom changes and no matter how much air freshener I spray, It's still humid and mildew-y. It will eventually affect the cabinetry and the grout.... but most Indians don't know that. Afterall, the cleanliness of a bathroom is often questionable, even in the nicest of homes.

 

One good feature of Indian bathrooms is the drain hole in the floor. You can scrub the floor, rinse it off and let the drain do its thing.

In American bathrooms, there's no drain outside the tub. This means you have to mop the floor and wring out the mop. It just never feels quite clean enough.

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