MY 78 YEAR OLD MOTHER AND I WILL BE GOING TO ITALY FOR NINE DAYS. SHE HAS BEEN BEFORE, BUT IS ASKING BECAUSE SHE DOES NOT REMEMBER. DOES SHE NEED TO TAKE A ROLL OR TWO OF TP WITH HER? SHE SAYS SHE DOES NOT WANT TO USE THE BIDET! I WILL BE GOING TO ITALY FOR MY FIRST TIME. CAN ANYONE ANSWER THIS QUESTION? ALSO, ARE WE ALLOWED TO TAKE SOME OF OUR OWN SMALL BOTTLES OF WATER IN OUR PURSES AND LUGGAGE?

There is American-style toilet paper everywhere in Italy. Bring pocket size packets of Kleenex to have with you for places where there is no paper provided - like public restrooms or restaurants in bars that sometimes run out.

Don't put water in your luggage - what if it leaks? There is good bottled water available in stores in Italy.

Note: When typing on a message board, do not use all caps. It is interpreted as "shouting" and is difficult to read.

If your mother doesn't want to use the bidet, get her few packages of wet wipes for intimate (sp?) hygiene. They are also very popular in Italy and can be bought at supermarkets.

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Originally posted by May16Reader:
MY 78 YEAR OLD MOTHER AND I WILL BE GOING TO ITALY FOR NINE DAYS.... SHE HAS BEEN BEFORE, BUT IS ASKING BECAUSE SHE DOES NOT REMEMBER. SHE SAYS SHE DOES NOT WANT TO USE THE BIDET!

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Please, can anyone tell me why people from other coutries (except for Spain) are so "scared" by bidets? probably insofar as we Italians feel lost and confused without them!!!

Thanks.

Corinna

Corinna,
I wouldn't use the word "scared" .... for whatever reason, they're just not part of the culture here.

A while back, we had a loooooonnnngggg thread which included discussion of Americans and bidets. If you search on "bidet" I'm sure you'll find it and be informed ... and entertained!

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Originally posted by corinna:
Please, can anyone tell me why people from other countries (except for Spain)...

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Not only Spain! You have to add people from South America too. It is very common to find a bidet in "Latinos" households. In Lima, capital of Peru, every house has a bidet. Like Italians, "we feel lost and confused without them"!!! When I moved to New York, I was lucky to rent an apartment that has a bidet!!! The owner wasn't Italian but a German lady.

One of the reasons why people are "scared" of bidets must be related to their personal hygiene custom. I've seen many women coming out of the toilet stalls (office buildings, movie theatres, airports) and leave the premises without even washing their hands. That tells a lot...

Colleen!

...I didn't mean to offend anybody!
my "scared" was just ironic.

Anyway thanks for the input on search fuction....I will try!

Ciao.
Corinna

Everything you wanted to know about what travelers think of bidets, but were afraid to ask

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Originally posted by Pauline:
Everything you wanted to know about what travelers think of bidets, but were afraid to ask

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And no sex involved!

Just curious, Westsider. What does a "personal hygiene costume" look like?

Thanks Pauline!

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Originally posted by rbrazill:
What does a "personal hygiene costume" look like?

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Do you want me to post a picture? Or you are making fun of my English? Maybe I should say "habits" instead of costume? My command of the English language is very poor, so help me, please!

Westsider;
Maybe you meant to use the word custom? (A practice followed by people of a particular group or region.)
Costume is what people dress up in at Halloween. Just a couple letters difference, but like in any language, it can make a big difference in the meaning!

Thanks Diana! That's exactly what I wanted to say It was an unfortunate misspelling
I know about costumes. I wear them every year in Venice, for the carnival

Not to flog a dead bidet, but there are even some Italians who don't feel a great need for it, perhaps because they shower at least once a day. There are pieces of furniture designed to fit over the bidet and add cabinet space (above) for extra storage, in which case the bidet clearly is not going to be used.

Besides, if you have a bathtub with the usual showerhead-on-a-hose arrangement, you can, er, hang over the tub and accomplish everything you would otherwise normally do with the bidet, no?

There was a cartoon in a recent New Yorker showing a man in a shower standing on his hand, pointing his rear at the shower head and a maid saying to him "Sir, would you prefer a room with a bidet?". He replied "Oui".

The first time I went to Italy with my kids, the youngest was 3 years old. After using an Italian bathroom (equipped with bidet) she came out and announced in a loud, delighted voice, "This bathroom has a sink just my size!"
Marie

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Originally posted by Italian Connection:
"This bathroom has a sink just my size!"

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When I was a tiny child, like, I think, most Italian children, I used the bidet exactly that way, at least until I was tall enough to use the sink.

Thanks, Alice, I did not know that this is common practice - I will tell my daughter as she is still embarrassed about this, thinking that she committed a faux pas...
Marie

My husband happens to think a bidet is the perfect place to soak one's tired feet after a day of walking all over Rome, Venice, wherever!

Louise

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Originally posted by Lou:
My husband happens to think a bidet is the perfect place to soak one's tired feet after a day of walking all over Rome, Venice, wherever!

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It is. Where do you wash your feet where you don't have a bidet and when you dont' want/need to have a shower?!

Yes, bidets are for washing feet... I did that the whole time while in Portugal and Spain... My shoes still have dust permanently filling the cracks. The stuff is called albero and it has left a lasting impression on my mind... similar to its effect on my shoes. Picture the light colored surface of the bullring. That is what the earth looks like in most parts of Spain... I don't know how anything grows in it... You just had to wash your feet everyday before sticking them under your clean sheets.

But now I wish I had a bidet for that and other reasons. They are just so practical and I really don't understand why they don't have them here in Germany and why we Americans haven't caught on to them as well...

I think the question "why are people afraid of bidets?" has just been answered. Why would I wash myself in a basin where others wash their feet... haha

The only bidet I use is the one in my own home. Rarely do I even see public bidets, except in hotels.

Also - bidets are not meant as a replacement for TP.

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Originally posted by American Girl in Italy: Also - bidets are not meant as a replacement for TP.

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Nor for a good refreshing shower in the morning. Bidets are for freshen-up (or whatever you want to do with it). But, since in America we are famous for being practical, there is a replacement for bidets: the wet wipes! (not only for babies but for adults too)

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Originally posted by Westsider:
[...] the wet wipes!

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Guess what? We have them here in Italy too! And we use them too!!! ^_^