Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Handicap Bathrooms


My recent trip to Washington, DC was the first time I'd gone anywhere on wheels or had the adventure of taking my TravelScoot into so many different bathrooms. I even had a "country come to town" moment in a bathroom at Madame Tussands.

I found that different places (airports, hotels, museums) have different ways of handling handicap restroom access, and sometimes you'll see it done multiple ways in different parts of the same building. There is either a handicap stall in the wo/men's bathroom, or there is one separate handicap accessible bathroom for use by both sexes. These are sometimes labeled as companion bathrooms. Sometimes when there was a companion bathroom my husband and I would go in together.

I'd gotten so accustomed to this routine that when we were in Madame Tussands and looking for a restroom, I saw one that had a picture on it of a baby, a man, and a handicap symbol. I don't know what came over me, but my brain processed that and said it was okay for me to go in there because it was a handicap bathroom. Alan followed behind me. Imagine my surprise when I saw a row of urinals and realized I was in the men's room. Maybe I've led a sheltered life, but I've never been in a men's room before, and once I got over my shock and realized no one else was in there it was pretty funny. I even took a picture of a sign on the wall over the urinals that said, "It's not the size of a man but the size of his heart that matters." Ladies, think about what the signs say in the women's room. I think we're being cheated!

1 comment:

  1. Hello,

    Handicapped bathrooms are such important part of any home where an occupant needs the use of one. The bathrooms private houses which are meant for use by people with disabilities are actually of inferior quality to the many public facilities that are now available. Thanks...

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