Hi Kristina, I thought you might enjoy this. I'm not sure why I'm telling you this because I'm sure you already know all about it, right?
Member-only story
A New Type of Loo
Haylee Frederick
Haylee Frederick
·
Following
2 min read
·
Jun 4, 2024
73
1
On your first day in a foreign country, you take a trip to the restroom. You see a sign, “Toilets” above a staircase in nearly every building in Edinburgh, Scotland. You follow the staircase and are met with just one room, labeled, “Gender-Neutral Toilets.” You open the door and are met with many doors that go ceiling to floor. You choose one, and inside there is a toilet and a sink. You approach the sink and see a soap button and two bars. As you position your hands underneath the bars, warm air grazes them.
The bathrooms in Edinburgh, Scotland are a very private area that is kept extremely tidy. You think to yourself, there are no dirty stalls, I can go to the first one I choose. The doors go all the way to the floor, I can’t see or hear anyone outside of my chosen room.
You walk out of the stall and are met with a man walking out of the stall across from you. He walks out the main door while holding it open for you. You feel safe in this environment, even though it was new for you. You didn’t even know a man was in the same space you were in your most vulnerable state.
These toilets are the key to keeping areas comfortable and inviting for everyone. The reason for the sink, dryer and toilet all in one room is to ensure gender-neutral bathrooms are self-contained. The goal is to provide safe spaces for all people.
However, some buildings in Edinburgh have separate male and female toilets and they have many similarities to the gender-neutral bathrooms I described above. In a female toilet, there are stalls. These stalls include only the toilet, but the walls are either ceiling to floor or nearly to the floor. This provides a much more private and safe environment for women than a typical American toilet that has a large crack in the seams of the door or that only covers the middle of the stall, thus leaving the space above your head and just below your knees open for viewing. In Edinburgh, Scotland, you can expect to feel comfortable and safe using the public restrooms in a foreign country.
Toilets
Gender Equality
Gender Neutral Restrooms
Travel
Scotland
73
1
