Toilets on Holiday

Is it wrong that one of the things I was most looking forward to about going on holiday is exploring lots of new toilets. There is nothing like the toilets at an airport to really make one feel like the holiday has begun. Here are a couple so far from Korea.

22:44 Great Northern from Kings Cross

Train loos are some of the worst in humanity. British ones at least. I personally blame privatisation, but it could also be their poor design and the lack of care given by train operators. Here is tonight's monstrosity along with their sink taps which I never find intuitive. How visually impaired used find them I dread to think (how do they even find the braille notice in the first place?).

2/3's Universal Joint Plug

I really like these plughole plugs. They have a very pleasing form and function - an elegant solution to the problem of how to plug a hole. Unlike with standard plugs it can't get lost or broken. They have two degrees of freedom making them fun to play with. The only downside is that they can not be operated from outside the water. So if someone fills a sink to use then leaves it filled, the next person can only drain the sink my sticking their hand through the now dirty water to open the drain. But otherwise, brilliant.

A nice sink plughole design

Press or turn?

What is it with bathroom tap designers? Can they at least stick to one mode of action so we know where we are. That this tap need to have the word "PRESS" etched permanently onto is suggests a failure in the design - no tap should require instructions. On the plus side I do like the clear red and blue tags, but I have an issue with these too which I will address at a later date.

Nice sink design

This was a rather nice sink I saw a while back, like some strange astrophysical phenomenon.

Has automation has made us all idiots?