Welcome back to This is India! I always have funny/weird stories about India to share with friends or family when I talk to them. This is just meant to be an honest portrayal about my life in India through short anecdotes. I also share here what I’ve been up to online outside Hippie in Heels.

What I was up to other than here:

  • I’m just spending a low key weekend in Goa since I’m off for a MONTH on Monday. I go to Israel for a week, then straight to London for Ben’s sister’s wedding and to see his friends and family. I love his hometown even though he says he could never go back and live there. It’s really cute! His grandma’s house looks like something from a fairytale too. After London I go to Latvia for 5 days then to Morocco, getting back to Goa October 17th. A little over a month of travels that seem to have come out of nowhere!
  • I guess you can imagine with all the traveling, it’s hard to get work done… so this weekend I’m doing some and getting organized for the travels ahead. I’m also packing and will write a guide (eventually) to how I pack for a month in such random places all in one suitcase.

Now your story,

If you’ve been to India, you probably know that the bathroom situation is different from home. In fact, its so different that some people don’t want to come to India.

It’s said Indians eat with their right hand because the left is “dirty” and that is because some places, a hand is used to help with erm, bathroom duties. There is no toilet paper except in upscale hotels, and westernized restaurants and homes.

There is either a bucket of water or there is a bum gun. Even the nicest homes here have a bum gun and Indians actually think it’s gross we don’t use one in the West.

I’ve been here over 3 years and it quickly became the norm. To be fair, it’s cleaner to spray off.

bum gun

While people abroad may think it’s uncivilized the truth is the bum gun/toilet paper issue isn’t an issue at all here – the problem is actually lack of toilets and it’s a HUGE problem. So big that it was part of Modi’s platform to get a toilet in every house in India… which hasn’t happened (yet).

I came across this article: Why Manoj Still Takes a Dump in the Sea which is why I’m writing this article. I want you to take a read if you have time and it will help you see a side of India you might not know about. It’s sad and it’s unfortunately a huge part of life in India. I know toilet talk is a little weird, but this is worth a read.

This is India!

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