Travelers don’t always have the luxury of picking and choosing their favorite bathroom amenities when they’re on the road. Most of the time, you’re stuck with what’s available. This is especially true if you’re in a secure space like an airport, so it’s easy to imagine a woman’s horror when the nearest bathroom lacked a standard feature.
There are certain features most of us expect in even the humblest of public restrooms – namely, a toilet, sink, toilet paper, and soap. If the bathroom accommodates more than one person at a time, most would also expect a stall with a door for privacy. Recently, a traveler learned that this isn’t always a given.
The toilets were on display
(TikTok/@ladybugtravel)
An American traveler named Belencia Wallace is taking a year-long cruise around the world. According to Newsweek, she was recently flying from Portugal to Europe for a sunny Caribbean cruise. Now, a video she took in the airport’s Terminal 1 is going viral.
Wallace posted her video on TikTok under the handle @ladybugtravel. The clip was captioned, “Portugal…We Need to Talk.”
The post went on to explain that she walked into the bathroom only to find there were no doors. “Just wide open stalls with giant mirror so literally everyone can see you.”
Next, she asked the good people of the internet, “Would you use this or hold it till the cruise ship?”
In the video, the toilets are separated by walls but have no doors, so travelers are on display while they’re doing their business.
The internet has thoughts
The internet did not play it cool with their reaction to the video. Comments included:
“It’s like the architect got inspiration from my nightmares.”
“Did someone steal the doors?”
“I’d walk in and out.”
It turns out there’s an explanation
Signs pointing to the restroom in the building
(pigphoto via Getty Images)
As shocking as the sight was, Wallace learned there was a reason for the bathroom’s unique design. She told Newsweek that although she didn’t know it at first, “the design was intended for children.”
There was a separate area for adult women, and it was there that Wallace says she relieved herself. She even said there was a lock on the door. It’s something we won’t take for granted again.