the chiang mai train toilet

the chiang mai train toilet.

at some point into our trip north, i stepped toward the toilet to relieve myself. after latching the warped metal door behind me, i turned and confronted a rimless metal bowl protruding from the ground, two 3 ½” grooved metal platforms on either side. i stared at this for about 4 minutes, dumbfounded at what i was being asked to do. am I supposed to place my ass on that?? it then occurred to me that i was to stand on the metal platform flanking this medieval device. well, squat rather. and hold onto the handle attached to the wall. this last piece seemed the most indispensable, as one good lurch from the train would send said urinatrix sprawling across the toilet, bum- or head-first into the unnamable liquid sloshing in the corners.