Before we moved to India, I did a fair amount of research about life in India, particularly Bangalore. I found a few great resources applicable to our situation online.  My favourite of these was the the expat section on the India Mike site (http://www.indiamike.com). It provided a wealth of hints and tips about what to expect, where to shop, what to bring and not to bring, and life in Bangalore.

I was a little surprised to see, as a recurring theme across several sites, references to the public toilets and how terrible they were.  I didn’t expect five star washrooms at every turn, but surely they couldn’t be so bad?? I tried not to let this build up in my head, but I will admit to being  nervous the first few times I used public toilets.  It quickly became clear that they weren’t that bad at all. Most were old and a little run down, many lack toilet paper, and some could use a little more effort by the cleaners, but almost all were acceptable. They are toilets after all.  Some of them are the Indian style (squat) toilet, but if you can pee in the bush, you are just fine with them.  Goose actually prefers to use these! 

The one exception to this has proven to be some of the washrooms found in a couple of our favourite places to visit; the Nandi hills, the zoo, some of the parks/botanical gardens in Bangalore.  Oddly enough, these are among the few toilets that you have to pay to use.  I gather they get over used, and as a result are pretty nasty.  We only use them if we really have too, but with two little people, that is pretty frequent.

The flip side of these mostly plain and serviceable toilets, is that you really appreciate it when you find a nice one.  I am happy to report that I have found the nicest washroom in Bangalore!  It is shiny and new, all the tiles are fresh and not cracked, the hardware is shiny, it’s spacious…They have lovely towels, the lighting is just right and there is always toilet paper AND soap.  The first time that Goose used it, she stood in awe, saying only “it’s so pretty”.  It happens to be in one of the only non-Indian restaurants we frequent, so we don’t go often.  I appreciate it all the more when we go.  And go.