It’s almost summer. Hot summer days are a chance to try out different deoderants. They are a chance to see the fun cacti and flowers around town. And, as you walk, you probably will need a toilet.
Toilets in Cluj don’t tend to be expensive, but they aren’t everywhere. There are free toilets in the large malls, some eating establishments have toilets for customers. Kaufland tends to have toilets, but many other supermarkets don’t. (Maybe the large Carrefour has one. Lidl doesn’t.)
The paid self-service toilets give you a maximum of 15 minutes. And, they don’t include much toilet paper. So, although you can usually get toilet paper, it is worth bringing a little with you. (Or, some napkins of some sort.)
I would carry a little bit of cash, about a lei, for the use of a toilet in town. Some of the modern ones do accept card, but those are the ones that only give you 15 minutes and are very stingy with toilet paper.
Unde este toaletă? Where is the toilet?
Unde este closetul? Where is the toilet?
Why do they call toilets “closet?” You know that international symbol for toilet, WC? It stands for the English “Water closet.” In the old days, and in many areas still, saying “toilet” was a bit rude. Euphamisms were created. But also, toilet is said differently in different countries, so someone decided that WC should be the international symbol.
Since blog is in English, we will remember many of the English language euphamisms for using the toilet.
Bathrooms don’t always have baths.
Little children in countries like Canada and the USA will often say, “I need to go to the bathroom.” They don’t mean that they need to take a bath, but that they need to use the toilet.
In fact, most “bathrooms” don’t have baths. Some have showers, but a lot only have toilets. Why are they called “bathrooms” then? English is weird.
What are you going to do in the bathroom? Use the toilet, of course. But, can you be more specific? Doing so might be considered rude, to some.
Now, to know how long it is going to take, a parent might ask, “number one or number two?” Number too takes longer.
On a hot summer day, a student might hear you need to drink a lot of water. But if you drink too much water all at once, you might need to urinate. This can be done at a urinal. All this sounds rather technical, so most people might say, “I need to pee.”
In Romanian, it sounds almost the same. “Face pipi.”
Now, if you pee on the wall, you might get arrested for indescent exposure (as well as making the wall smell bad.) You are not a dog, so please pee in the toilets.
You might have heard to expression, “I need to take a leak,” especially around Americans. It is not as rude as swearing, but it can be considered annoying if someone sees leeks on the buffet and keeps saying, “I’m going to take a leek! haha, I’m taking a leek! Look, they have leeks here, you need to take a leek!” Wow, that was embarrassing.
Going number 2
After you have eaten a lot, and your stomach is full, you expell some of that food in solid form. Doctors might call this defication, but few people say in real life, “I need to deficate.”
If you do not use euphamisms, you might say, “I need to poo.” However, most people use euphamisms, and they don’t directly say what they need to do in the “bathroom.”
Other people might say things like “take a dump.” This sounds a bit rude to some, but it is not swearing. If you are at a restaurant, where people are eating, you might want to use a euphamism (so you don’t ruin their meal.)
În limbă româna, “căca.”
Euphamisms for toilet
People call the toilet itself all kinds of funny things. “The John” “The Throne” and many others might show up.
Toilet paper
Americans call the paper you use to clean yourself up with after wards toilet “paper” while Brits call it toilet “roll.” Loo roll, toilet paper, toilet roll, most people will understand what you mean. Bog roll sounds a bit like a dialect.
Flush
When you are done, flush. Wash your hands, with soap.
Euphamisms for using the toilet.
“I’m going to spend a penny.” From the old days, when using a toilet cost a penny in the UK.
“I need to use the loo.” Why is a toilet called a loo? They also call toilet paper “loo roll.”
“I need to freshen up.” This could mean use the toilet, or wash your hands, are just take a look in the mirror. It is the ultimate euphamism. But, it’s best to show someone where a working toilet with a flush is when they say this (or at least a good outhouse.)
“Outhouse” is a hole in the ground designed like a toilet, with walls around it for privacy.
“Squat toilets” or “turkish toilets” are the kind of toilets that are popular in some asian countries. You do not find a lot of these in Romania, but they may pop up.
“The men’s room.” “The ladies’ room.” In England, people often abbreviate this to “the ladies'”
There are slang terms like, “The Bog, the privvy.” that you probably don’t need to know, but you might hear.
Some older people talk about “The little girl’s room” or “The little boys room” but you’re more likely to find these in old movies than conversation.