As tourists, it's also quite a relief to find the loo, a small victory while navigating unfamiliar places.
Various language historians hypothesize that "loo" is a diminutive form of words like "lookie-loo" and "gardyloo," which I've blogged about in the past. So I love the notion that a loo is not just a great human leveler, but also an invitation to pay attention.
We all know modern life is endlessly distracting, competing for our attention, highlighting and monetizing clicks and likes and other nonsense that essentially interferes with the personal agency we once took for granted: living, being, discovering, experiencing, understanding, enjoying, appreciating....
Looking with intent is becoming a bit of a lost art. Dear friends, isn't the point of sightseeing to open and expand your mind? To be inspired and to learn? To cherish and be astonished? To have a good look at the world? To shake loose old thinking? To evolve?
...my mission in life is to see and hope document the details that I see. With emphasis on the small and ordinary.
ReplyDeleteHappiness is often linked to what we emphasize, isn't it?
DeleteThat's interesting. I wouldn't have thought about that.
ReplyDeleteI probably think too much about anything and everything, ha, so thank you.
DeleteYears ago I remember the bathroom being referred as the laboratory or the restroom. :) Here it is called the toilet and it causes my wife to feel uncomfortable.
ReplyDeleteI forgot about the lavatory. People certainly do have mixed feelings about the bathroom, ha.
DeleteI guess I’ve never thought about why it’s called the Loo. My in-laws have family in England, so I’ve heard it enough, but mostly just the toilet.
ReplyDeleteI love traveling and learning new things about this wide world, just as you say.
Traveling with a learner mindset is the only way to do it, iyam.
DeleteThe strangest thing I noticed in England was the toilet in a separate room from the bathtub.
ReplyDeleteYears ago I had a sweatshirt that said, "Ecoutez et tout le monde vous entend." I've always liked that.
Yes, the WC. So not typical in Canada.
DeleteWhat a terrific t-shirt slogan! 10/10!
When the urge strikes, you might want to skip to your loo.
ReplyDeleteHa, exactly.
DeleteGrowing up in England we called it the lav. Or a slightly ruder name... the loo. Or really rude... the bog.
ReplyDeleteInteresting...new to me. Thanks.
DeleteI have always thought we got 'loo' from l'eau. Something that has always amused me. My daughter did a PhD at Cambridge and was on the planning committee for events for a while. This group communicated with the larger grad student group in the main residence by posting the notices in the washrooms (Canadian for loo, hmm?). This notice was called 'The Loo Paper' by its creators.
ReplyDelete"Loo" is such a polite word. And compact, too. I'm all about efficiency, so I may have to adopt this one myself, lack-of-Canadianness be dammed.
ReplyDeleteI never thought about the word loo (but use it a lot). I’ll probably wake up in the night, pondering its origin.
ReplyDelete