Monday 25 August 2008

Cultural chock

During my numerous visits to England, I had a recurrent problem: I could never come to terms with English baths and showers. Staying with friends, I was either forced to wash myself in ice-cold water or climb out, sweep myself in a towel and beg the host for assistance. In some English homes and even hotels there are no showers at all (and I have noticed in housing ads the clause “Shower over the tub”), and bathtubs are extremely shallow, so I have always wondered how people manage to wash their hair. I guess it’s a matter of habit.

In the old country, we got rid of the bathtub when we renovated the bathroom, as we practically never used it.

In our new home, we have both a tub (with a shower over it) and a shower cubicle. After two weeks I still cannot get the water as warm as I want. You need a higher degree in engineering to master it. In the shower, there are taps and levers, and whichever way you turn them they won’t listen. I ventured a bath the other day, and there are two taps for cold and hot, which I cannot adjust. For the washbasin, there are two separate outlets for cold and hot, so you cannot wash your hands in temperate water.

I am sure I will get used to it eventually, but right now it feels like a devastating clash between two cultures.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Jag har inga problem. Varken med varmt eller kallt. Men det är för trångt för att duscha två.

Anonymous said...

Translation
I have no problems with the shower. Nor with hot, nor with cold. But the shower is unfortunately to small for us to take the shower together.