Fu-unny!!! JJD and Go_2. Yet only too true.
Smokenack the first rule of travelling is, "If Momma ain't happy...ain't nobody happy!" Make sure she'll be happy or split your trip into smaller parts to accommodate her.
I look forward to more instructional suggestions.
Sounds like you have a problem.
I too have used the straddle technique for years, (I also tuck my trousers bottoms into my socks to avoid the fabric on the floor problems) however now my knees are locked straight (long complicated story, followed by long complicated surgery), the thought of a "squatter" now fills me with horror and depair.
Could you reverse the trip and make it small steps at a time? Start in perhaps Australia or South Africa and let the reality since in slowly.
Best wishes
Always empty your pockets before going - especially if carrying a mobile phone.
When the train stops at night, you know if you are in a station by the rising ammonia - who ever obeys that "not while the train is standing" lark?
You can prepare for the experience before leaving home. Turn off the water, empty the U-bend then wait a short while. Then use the loo and let that ferment for a couple of hours.
Dave
Thank God for the pee bucket which I used gratefully on an overnight Indian bus while in a coffin like berth.... Simply empty out the window, rinse and empty again. I didn't repeat this story to many but it seems fitting here...
After that experience I would definitely use in on any funky train. A quart size plastic container....the stand and go and pour down the hole method.... No splashes or cramps to worry about ! Just make sure you have water with you to rinse.
If there is a will there's a way.
She doesn't believe that they are much more hygenic than the 'western' bowl and seat.
Just take her to a public toilet ANYWHERE and point to the seat.
"Are you sure you would prefer to be in physical contact with that, dear?"
I used to use go_2 and JJD's method, but after having an embarrassing accident in a cattle stall in Tunisia, then having the loo door ripped open on a ferry in Solomons while trying unsuccessfully to levitate over the travesty that called itself a toilet, in front startled onlookers, I switched to wearing skirts. Eliminates the threat of accidents and keeps you clothed (you can drop a skirt more quickly than pull up trousers) in case of interruptions.
