Mexico City: Toilets I Have Known, Including This One

Public pay bathroom, Mexico City. November 2018.

I'm no stranger to strange toilets.

I've seen the toilets of:

• Joseph Stalin
• Haile Selassie
• Pope John II

Outhouse in Mestia, Svaneti, Georgia. Straight to the stream

I've seen some fancy schmancy toilets, some humble toilets, some toilets perched on the sides of hills, some godawfully filthy toilets, and some toilets that included instructions for their use.

Toilet with instructions, Tbilisi, Georgia.

I've seen toilets that were holes in the floor, some with nice tile surrounds, some with wood surrounds, and some that were just holes in the ground.


Some toilets had toilet paper. Some had water sprayers. Some had little buckets of water. A museum in Mtskheta, Georgia, offered a page from a newspaper crossword puzzle.

Museum restroom, Mtskheta, Georgia.

In Mexico City, there are public baths or toilets that you can pay to use.

One day, I turned into one. Cost: 5 pesos.

I was at the front of the line for what appeared to be the entrance to a quite nice little toilet room. However, whomever was in there ahead of me was taking her own sweet time. Someone directed me upstairs to other toilets, and well, it wasn't quite so nice there.

Public pay bathroom, Mexico City. November 2018.

Public pay bathroom, Mexico City. November 2018.

Public pay bathroom, Mexico City. November 2018.

Public pay bathroom, Mexico City. November 2018.

One does what one must.

On the Way to Louisiana: Rest in Beauty

Chamber County Rest Area, Interstate 10, Texas. September 2017.

Ohh, Texas has some glorious rest areas.

The Chambers County Rest Area is one of them.

The ladies' room threw sparkle on my little soul as soon as I walked in. What a cheery surprise.

Chamber County Rest Area, Interstate 10, Texas. September 2017.

Is this not a living testament to the Declaration of Independence's ideal of our inalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? And the power of a government to share beauty, and therefore the pursuit of happiness, with its peoples?

We can choose to share beauty in anything, right? Including a public bathroom alongside a highway?

Yes.

There is even a human-engineering logic behind it.

Antigua, Guatemala: Santo Domingo del Cerro

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

To get to Santo Domingo del Cerro, you go to the illustrious hotel, Casa Santo Domingo. From there, you can get onto a free shuttle from the hotel to the mountain.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Here is a flashy video of Santo Domingo del Cerro that the hotel produced. It's pretty.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

In addition to the angel, maybe my favorite experience at Santo Domingo del Cerro was with the birds.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

It felt special to have one hop onto my finger then waddle up my arm to my shoulder. It was good to focus all of my attention on what this small bird was doing, to be mindful of nothing else.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

I wasn't able to capture its quality with my camera, but the light shone through the chairs' muslin covers like soft candles. The chairs glowed where the sun struck them.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Outside the chapel, a large foot. Don't ask me; I don't know.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

You might be surprised, but I've seen a few celebrity toilets. Such as Stalin's. So coming across the toilet used by the late Pope John II, well, I'm just adding it to the list.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

All in all, Santo Domingo del Cerro is a must-see in my book. Mostly because of the diversity of things to entertain all of the senses. 

Poet Miguel Ángel Asturias. Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

There are sights and sounds to see up close and far away. 

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

There are things to touch, flowers to smell.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

There are whimsical works and contemplative works.  Much of the artwork is by Guatemalan artist, Efrain Recinos.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Although I didn't find my lunch entree or coffee to be particularly remarkable, both were perfectly OK and besides, pairing food and drink al fresco is a good in itself.

Getting ready for a party. Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Antigua, Guatemala: Good Signage

I notice good signage.

I was so pleased to see two examples of signage excellence.

To wit:

Bathroom signage in Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

Bathroom signage in Antigua, Guatemala. April 2016.

So clear. So simple.

Gori: School Excursion!

Nino at Uplistsikhe

Two geography teachers, mother and daughter, invited me to join student government members (8th through 10th grade) on an excursion to Kareli. The weather turned ugly, so when I walked up to the chartered marshrutka in front of the school, at a chilly, rainy 8:00 a.m., I learned we'd go instead to Gori. Specifically, to Uplistsikhe (cave city), the Stalin Museum, and to some nearby historic churches, the Ateni Sioni and "Dedas' Monastery" (a convent).

Sustenance for the trip


On the way to Gori, we stopped at a market so the boys could pick up some chacha and beer. Yes, it's a different world in Georgia. More on this later.


Ateni Sioni and the Dedas' Monastery

Georgians are very clear about the historical, religious, cultural, architectural, and artistic differences between their many (many) churches and monasteries. For me, I must admit, after the first 10 or so, they all pretty much look the same. Neli, my hostess, felt a little put off at my sheepish admission in this regard recently, exclaiming, with finger raised, "But this is our history!"

Budishi. I am sorry, but ....

The lively yellow foliage near the convent and church was really pretty.

Dedas' Monastery (convent), Ateni, Georgia

Dedas' Monastery (convent), Ateni, Georgia

Dedas' Monastery (convent), Ateni, Georgia

Dedas' Monastery (convent), Ateni, Georgia

Dedas' Monastery (convent), Ateni, Georgia

Dedas' Monastery (convent), Ateni, Georgia

Dedas' Monastery (convent), Ateni, Georgia

Dedas' Monastery (convent), Ateni, Georgia

Ateni Sioni, Georgia

Uplistsikhe

The cave city outside of Gori reminded me of the cliff dwellings in the American Southwest. The city was built B.C. The church dates from the 9th or 10th century.

I was amused by Geography Teacher the Elder. A strong Georgian woman, she seemed to delight in leading the charge, invariably identifying the path most likely to break someone's neck. While she scrabbled happily up and down rocky surfaces, I learned quickly to note her plan of attack, and then to chart my own, more timid way. I have health insurance through TLG, but it doesn't cover medical evacuation to the states or the cost of shipping my body.

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Uplistsikhe, near Gori, Georgia

Lunch


Time for lunch; afterward, time to break out the chacha and beer the boys had bought. All shared among students and teachers. Most of the girls were sitting in the back of the marshrutka (where we dined), so I don't know if they also drank.

The lead teacher gave a toast (urging me at the end to drink it all! drink it all! all being half a glassful of chacha).

So what do I think about the kids not only drinking alcohol, but drinking alcohol on a school excursion, and being joined by the teachers?

• Alcohol is not intrinsically unhealthy.
• In the U.S., a goodly number of school kids ingest prescription drugs that are mind-altering. I'm not talking about drug abuse. I'm talking about drugs being prescribed to address ADD, ADHD, and other syndromes.
• It was a bit shocking to be part of this drinking scenario. 
• It's part of the Georgian culture and there are boundaries in place to address good taste, behavior, and safety as defined by Georgian society.

Stalin Museum

After lunch, we went to Gori center and toured the Stalin Museum. Stalin was born in Gori. Here's what I want to say about Stalin and his museum:

Stalin's toilet, Gori, Georgia

Picnic dinner

Just as I thought we were well on our way home, we stopped at dusk at a park between Tbilisi and Rustavi. Out came leftovers from lunch (with some refreshments of supplies): roast chicken, seasoned burgers, khachapuri, grapes, cheese, and wine. We ate standing, shivering a little, as the dark descended.

Georgians don't let a little bad weather or night get in the way of a picnic. Gotta love that.