Fascination with Bathrooms

When I travel to other places, I become fascinated with bathroom items.

My second day in Kerala, my fascination began with the hotel bathroom. As I ran the water in the shower I thought, “Why, oh why, does the water in the shower come out yellow?” I told myself it must be rust. It had to be rust. Please Lord, convince me that it is just rust and I should ignore the strange smell that is coming from the water as it pools in the tub. I drained the tub and decided to try a shower instead, where I would not be faced with the water color so dramatically. Across the tub, there is a very large bucket and a scooper. Goodness gracious! What tomfoolery goes on with bathing here? There is a perfectly nice tub, so why is an extra bucket required? I ignore the bucket as well.

Stepping out of the shower, I noticed a shower hose next to the toilet. What body part, I thought to myself, was not being adequately cleansed that enough other people noticed an odor, that an entire separate faucet next to the toilet became necessary. Could it be this is another form of a bidet? Would the wash away be so forceful as to really require a separate drain on the floor? I decide to ignore the extra faucet, for whatever purpose it serves, I don’t want my hands touching it behind the person who last needed it. (pun intended)

And finally, I turned to the mystery of the “Disposal Bag” that sits upon the counter. It is clearly marked to not flush (which again tells me that some idiot attempted to flush a full bag, which then required someone else to add this message to the disposal bag). I am perplexed by the disposal bag, and think about my travel experiences to figure out its mystery.

(1) India may be described as a 3rd world country, but the state of Kerala proudly proclaims that it is more developed than other Indian states. So, does that mean that its infrastructure is good enough that I can flush toilet tissue? Or, is the large trash can with the heavy lid, meant for throwing used tissue as is done in Latin America?
(2) Clearly, they want visitors to notice the disposal bag and the trash can. The bag is not a lining to the trash can, so I conclude “special” items should be placed in this bag, and then disposed (but not flushed, remember!) after using. I come with no “special” items, so I decide to ignore the bag and the trash can.

I searched the hotel room for an “Idiot’s Guide” that could explain details of the hotel. Unlike US hotels, no guide explains hotel amenities, services provided, and other facts that would be obvious to a native, but are a mystery to visitors. I decide to take my chances and hope that upon leaving the hotel does not charge me for any plumbing damage!