kabinky


Any restroom that is susceptible to use by the masses - public toilets on the street and in fast food restaurants - is a pay toilet in Prague, and they are relentlessly policed by attendants. That's just an observation, not a complaint. I don't blame them. In fact, I'm all for it. It costs a lot of money to keep a public toilet clean! 5 or 10 kuronas per use.

I do think it's in odd juxtaposition to their unspoken civil agreement re public transport. Trams, subways and buses are also not free - but they are! About 0.01% of the population actually buy a ticket. They don't even have turnstiles in the subway. It's all on the honor system, and obviously nobody is upset that only 0.01% of the people pay. I never once saw any official checking people's tickets. And I never once bought a ticket. For the first few days Brigham and I were unaware that a ticketing system exists. We finally saw someone actually use a ticket!

On the other hand, TRAINS are definitely NOT free. Which brings us to the train station, where a strange law prevails.

All other restrooms in Prague have one set fee, either 5kc or 10kc. But at the train station, you pay 5kc to pisoár, or 10kc to kabinky! The blue lighting in the restroom is not universal, but is very common. I'm not sure if it helps kill germs, or sets a relaxing mood, or what. When you walk out of such a restroom, the world has a bright yellow glow.

In review: If you use the restroom at McDonald's in Prague it will cost you 5 or 10kc. In the train station, it depends on what you are using it for.

A large packet of ketchup at McDonald's will cost you 20kc. No free ketchup. But you can buy a beer in McDonald's. But I did not. I'm not that fond of beer.

9 comments:

dogboy443 said...

Where's Bissette? Where's Dobbs? Let the bathroom humor begin. If you sneak a pisoar while you are kabinkying, then do you pay 15kc or is it a given that you're going to pisoar while you kabinky and that's why they charge you the 10kc?

The Other Mark M.

James Robert Smith said...

Beeeeeeerrr (grrrgll).

I would buy beer in a McDonalds just to say I had. I like beer. Czech beer is supposed to be really, really good stuff. Not sure if Mickey D's would have the good brands, though.

How much in American money does it cost to shit and piss in those places?

Mark Martin said...

I had to stop and think... I think 20 kc is about a dollar, so 5kc is a quarter. And I'm wrong about the ketchup, I know it was not a dollar. Musta been 5kc for ketchup.

James Robert Smith said...

Kabinky is a totally cool word. It sounds like some of the words I used to invent when I was a kid. In fact, I probably used that one.

Kabinky. Kabinky. Kabinky.

I like it.

eeTeeD said...

you should find this appealing...

http://community.livejournal.com/scans_daily/1760298.html

SRBissette said...

I would have made a joke about Kabinky, but Senator Craig wasn't done shrimping me.

Now the right foot, Senator...

dogboy443 said...

He has quite the wide stance...BTW, NPR reports that Condoleeza Rice & Beans can bounce a quarter of her rump. Another one of her hidden, unknown talents.

Mk

SRBissette said...

I'm gonna give Mark a quarter today!

Anonymous said...

Though you might think the trams, bus, and subways are on the honoring system...but two of my classmates and I were on the tram getting into Prague from the hotel we stayed outside of the city and we got fined for not having a valid ticket with each of us. It was very tricky, once the two inspectors boarded the train, they could tell that we were not locals right away. They came up to us directly and asked for tickets. We did buy tickets but our tickets already expired and that got us fine for 500 Kuronas per person.