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Too much perfection for one bathroom

CHRISTIE BLATCHFORD

Globe and Mail Update

Latest comment posted at 11:16 PM EST 24/08/08

Christie Blatchford's final word on the Games ...Read the full article

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  1. R Miller from Halifax, Canada writes: Oh no !

    Christie Blatchford is making me think about bigger issues than just money...

    I must call her a name for making my Olympic experience a 'downer.'

    Get on some antidepressants, Negative Nellie !

    BTW I also think that bee hives are pretty cool too, but I really wouldn't want to live in one.

    Cheers
  2. iPhone from Canada writes: .
    :-- Dear Christy Blatchford,

    I think you miss the point about China and attention to detail in the ‘loo’. Japan is the same, as is Singapore they are clean.

    Workers and their corporations care a great deal about the presentation and responsibility of their public institutions and services. This is in stark contrast to say, Ontario, wherein our public services are a disgrace. For specific example, I am referring to taxis, buses, and subway systems; but my comments could be extended to other sectors.

    Ontarions/Torontians really do not care how filthy our taxis are. When the drivers have so little concern for their industry and their clients and for themselves, the quality of service is genuinely affected… negatively. Our transit systems are beginning to look like New York with trash and dirt everywhere. [I do not love New York.]

    A society that cares about attention to detail in 'bathrooms/public loos' will also care about the engineering quality of its industries, health services and care about public safety. Ontario children, it appears are no longer told to pick their litter.

    Regrettably, I argue that it is the litter and lack of public attention to civility, that is directly related to crime in the city. Japan is really really safe. Their bus drivers actually clean the bus when they are not driving. They care about their passengers... they open doors. They say thank you. They look at you.

    By contrast, ours grunt and leave the maintenance to the cleaning staff, who are under paid and may arrive in the next 24 hours.

    Please give me Singaporean or Japanese transit systems... where people are polite, care about their environment and it is safe. Naturally, I avoid washrooms in all Canadian gas stations, all Tim Hortons, all McDonalds... the list is long. These are our much vaunted Western Standard bearers!
    ~
  3. iPhone from Canada writes: .
    China did an excellent job at hosting the Olympics, probably the best I have seen.
    ~
  4. R Miller from Halifax, Canada writes: BTW I love New York, iPhone !

    It's the C of the U that sometimes drives me up the wall.

    Cheers
  5. Maurice Caissy-Cyr from Canada writes: Some people, on welfare, also ask to go back to where they feel confortable, but most, like professional, international athete, international Hotel, like to show the worl to what extreme they could go to please customer or fund supplier at home.

    Welfare people around me are always complaining on everything, whatever you do, they will be no satisfaction.

    This report on China is like some report on how Ritz is out of this world for have custumer please. For sure China will try to be even over what the Ritz customer will expect. But when you are born to complain, well.. nothing or to much is, well...complain.
  6. Ricky for a Centrist Canada from Canada writes:
    I can't believe how obtuse some of you are.

    Blatchford comments - quite well - on the price China's citizens paid (and continue to pay) for such a first-class reception and such an efficient, spectacular, and awe-inspiring Olympics.

    That China did a fantastic job is without question.

    But do not forget that Calgary achieved what were described as the 'best games ever' - and they didn't have to censor free speech and oppress peoples' fundamental freedoms to do it.

    The only thing Blatchford is 'complaining' about is the human toll behind the polished product.
  7. Olivia Beck from Canada writes: er... iphone, have you even been to China (Or Beijing, rather, since Beijing does NOT reflect all of China)? and have you been there pre-Big-O?

    China is NOT the neat and tidy place it has shown the world during the past 2 to 3 weeks.

    If anyone dared step outside of Beijing (and not as a part of a tour), I'm sure they'd get a more accurate taste of the nation.

    Head over there in about a year or so once all the glitz has worn off, once the polish has dulled, and the newness has become worn, and you'll see what I mean.

    Think... a little gritty, a lot worn, some dirty, with a smattering of semi-organized chaos.

    And I wonder if any of the tourists who are there now have heard the laments of the citizens of Beijing who mourn the loss of their historic city... which has been shined up and 'improved' beyond recognition.
  8. Tom H. from Vancouver, Canada writes: I actually agree to some degree with iPhone. There's nothing wrong with maintaining better standard. In the name of efficiency and cost saving, many North America's basic standards have gone down, e.g. patience, politeness, public cleaniness. But I do understand where Christie is coming from. I recently visited China, the level of people-intensive approach can get irratating. I appreciate my tea being filled constantly, but i don't want to be stared at while eating. Do I really need 2 people to open doors for me? Why am I alway... ALWAYS surrounded by people, who I don't know and whose service mayb not always be necessary. That sparks I think a critical problem in China - the balance between their standard of living and their MASSIVE population. If there are 13 people cleaning 1 bathroom, how much can they be making? If they are cleaning my bathroom, who's cleaning theirs? Where's the economy in my eating a $20 CAD lunch while being served by 5 waitresses (and I am not counting the 5 mending the door). I saw dozens of woman planing grass by hand at the Summer palace. The same job would be done by 1 guy with a seed sprayer in Canada. While I certainly hope North America regain its standard, China's model is not what we want. Good job, China! Challenges still ahead.
  9. Maurice Caissy-Cyr from Canada writes: I forgot about some blogger complaining with some vegetable coming from China, they could make us sick.

    Well, I prefer the China risk with to much cleaning, and, having, not sickness, but, dead product coming out of Toronto factory...not lately, but now.

    Promotion in Toronto factory to be clean is in the day news. Not promoting to be well and confortable in a dirty place, and be proud of it in surplus..
  10. R Miller from Halifax, Canada writes: Ricky the Centrist writes:

    'The only thing Blatchford is 'complaining' about is the human toll behind the polished product.'

    Did Ricky the Centrist and I just agree on something ?

    Although I really wouldn't know if the 'product' was polished or not since I didn't watch any of it.

    Cheers
  11. D Mores from GTA, Canada writes: 1) You know this reporter is running out of content when she writes about bathrooms.

    2) Okay I give her the benefit of the doubt. Then please, at least stop judging other countries by your own standards. As another posters states, you find clean washrooms in Singapore and Tokyo. This is the situation in that part of the world, and we should welcome it. Unlike here in Toronto, these people are also not blatant about expecting a tip!
  12. R Miller from Halifax, Canada writes: This Beijing 'cleanliness' argument is complete nonsense with regards to potentially toxic products from China.

    If you haven't actually been to China and want to see where a lot of these Chinese products start (and how clean the countryside is,) watch the CFB production, Manufacturing Landscapes...

    Cheers
  13. P cheng from ottawa, Canada writes: CHRISTIE BLATCHFORD, I will miss your china-basher. Have a safe trip home. Anyway, you give me something to read and L???? (you know).
  14. iPhone from Canada writes: .
    Things evolve... I do not see why dragging out the 'old communist era' arguments are relevant. China can not change over night and become Sweden... and Toronto can not change over night either.

    I have not been to Germany. I expect there is great attention to detail, responsibility to one's craft and community. This is reflected in the countries’ excellence in engineering and design. Germany is also pursuing a non-nuclear future, like Scandinavia and are betting their industrial future on other forms of energy sources. Big risk but they have vision, the creative energy and core competence. What is Canada doing… well we are MAYBE thinking about better ways of extracting oil from sand… with nuclear energy... but ‘tax cuts’ are the main focus. Hey, what do you see that is wrong with this equation? [No future for dump truck drivers in Alberta, is what it tells me.]

    I have been to Scandinavian countries... these places care about communities, their educational systems and their children.

    They put in place sports and arts programmes to enable their societies to grasp onto 'programmes, ideas, and competitions' which enables individuals to develop skills for move forward with the support (indirectly) of the country. In moving forward and achieving at these new levels; the whole of their society is up lifted and moved forward.

    Contrast this with US model which is now being adopted by Canadians, where-in there are say, no 'hockey arenas' at Jane and Dufferin; Toronto can not even keep 'swimming pools' open for kids to attend in the summer when there precious else to in the heat. We charge post-secondary school rates that benefit the banks and set the individuals in debt 40-50,000s of $ for an under-graduate programme.

    Why??

    We as a society do not benefit from this corporate behaviour.
    ~
  15. Ed Long from Canada writes: I have a Swiss friend who owned a restaurant here and simply found it futile to present meals at the level expected in a good Swiss restaurant or to hire staff able to provide the service. He found Canadians wanted cheap and understated.

    His biggest concern about the Vancouver Olympics was that we will not be able to provide international visitors with top quality consistent service .... or micro-manage bathrooms.

    Blatchford experience was definitely scripted by the state. I have experienced some pretty ugly situations in Chinese loos. Perhaps this will be the greatest Beijing Olympic legacy .... modern bathrooms.

    I agree with iPhone and Maurice but leave the field for R. Miller to hit it out of the park.

    Tom H. .... you forget they have 1.3 billion to keep busy not thinking up problems in the state. 100 people on hands and knees trimming grass is very cost beneficial. I watched hand sodding by hundreds around the fringes of Tienamen. China's government must organize 1.3B people and Canada's 33M people must organize our government.

    We have leaderless partisan quagmire. They have totalitarian dictatorship forging ahead.

    As a very old and experienced friend, an economist, once told me .... the best form of government is a dictatorship, with me as dictator.
  16. iPhone from Canada writes: .

    I would bet, that if there was 'mandatory' hockey and mandatory 'music' classes in our school system then Canada would carve out a new future. One worthy of overcoming the disasters that US Corporatism and US Media is setting loose on the world.
    --

    This is an outstanding fifteen minute (15) TED presentation that speaks to what I am saying. The presentation is witty and the most informative that I have heard:

    Reference – Sir Ken Robinson – Do Schools Kill Creativity?

    http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/kenrobinsonsaysschoolskill_creativity.html

    If the preceding URL does not work... go www.ted.com and search for 'Sir Ken Robinson'... you will not be disappointed.
    ~
  17. joe garcia from Canada writes: http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44601000/jpg/44601845beijing282.jpg

    by next week the chimneys will be belching at full blast bringing beijing back to its normality...
  18. Tom H. from Vancouver, Canada writes: To Marcus T: Christie did fill out the feedback card marking everything as excellent, and considered buying people gifts. Hold your attack! She does appreciate the job well done by China. .. a job which required 13 people to clean 1 bathroom with maximum capacity of 6.
  19. iPhone from Canada writes: .
    Hi Tom H.

    You 'brushed' on a topic that interests me. Yes, I could see that a ‘seed sprayer’ would be faster, maybe better at distributing the seeds... but the grass planter would un-employed.

    I see similar 'things' in Japan where there many construction workers and parking lot attendants. The cars are well directed and the car parking is clean and safe... and these people who maybe did not work hard enough at school or were disadvantaged in an industry lay-off... still have jobs.

    Keeping the population reasonably employed is the first challenge, this enables 'them' and their families maintain hope that the future will be different. The American model does not... it promotes desperation and there-in is the problem... no hope, crime in the streets and a democracy at risk.

    What bothers me most, is that everybody understands this. We (those with only 1 or 2 family jobs and two parents) put our children into sports, have them clean the house; feed the animals. They develop skills... they see away forward. However, left to their own devices these same kids will choose TV and drop-out. So at family level Canadians understand this... but the buck stops at the front door.

    The communities are less and less… communities and are becoming bedrooms for corporations. This is a problem.

    Reference URL
    http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/james_howard_kunstler_dissects_suburbia.html

    I expect that the URL does not work as the Globe is removing 'underscore' characters. Go to www.ted.com and search for 'Urban Design Kunstler'. Again you will not be disappointed in this 15 minute presentation.

    If you think I am beating up ‘corporatism’… I am… it is a problem.

    Cheers!
    ~
  20. Emma Hawthorne from Canada writes: Staff in the bathroom and the restaurant were likely under strict orders to note all words spoken. However, I suspect they would love to have been the recipients of western-style instructions to stand well away and to respect privacy at both venues, and likely would have begun to model that behaviour themselves.
  21. iPhone from Canada writes: .
    :-- Olivia Beck

    Yes, I know I have been China... my point... the country is moving ahead... they become more central to the world, they will more money and sense of fitting in... than they have in the past.

    Point... is forget that past... look to the future and move ahead.

    Please watch the 'Kunstler' and 'James Howard Kunstler: The tragedy of suburbia' presentation at TED sums up the problem that American and Canada has.

    www.ted.com

    Howard does use strong language communicating his ideas. But he gets that audiences attention and it needs to be said.

    Cheers!
    ~
  22. diane marie from calgary, Canada writes: If I read Ms. Blatchford's article correctly, I think she was just saying that she wanted space, aka privacy. She was saying that the service intruded upon her human need for space and privacy. It's not good service if it's annoying, intrusive, and angst-producing. Every culture, if not every person, has a different definition of good service, and we like service to be a bit more invisible.
  23. iPhone from Canada writes: .
    :-- Diane...

    Then, Christy should have been whinning about privacy over a beer in Toronto and not on the Front Page of the Globe on the Closing Day of the ceremonies.

    What was she and The Globe editorial staff thinking... or were they thinking? Which is a follow-on topic. While I have not 'grepped' the European News services today, I expect that 'Chinese loos' will be a distinctly Canadian topic of conversation tomorrow.

    Cheers... Eh...
    ~
  24. emilio D from Canada writes: Christie was actually impressed with the attention and hospitality offered by China. Nothing else.
  25. Ed Long from Canada writes: China is overwhelming purely by the numbers.

    We have space beyond their comprehension and we do not understand the hierarchy of service in a social democratic country full of rights.

    We are more concerned about the staff wage rate, hours of work, benefits than whether the napkin is at the correct angle, cutlery precisely placed and somebody standing at our shoulder.

    The 'show' is very important in many cultures.

    We just want to eat. ..... or do our ablutions in private.
  26. felix balcarce from nanaimo, Canada writes: Fussy and nosy but sounds like a slave master's stamt.
  27. Pete C from Canada writes: I think Blatchford is entitled to her opinion, and she does mention the positives along with her negatives...

    But how she's framed her opinions, given that she is part of the media is what's core to the issue. Should people whose words are read by many take more responsibility (and care) in what they say, and how they say it?

    While I can understand how she was made uncomfortable, and China isn't what we are accustomed to in Canadian society - 'Too much perfection' is an example of how language subtly passes (negative) tone and judgment.

    I think the media should take a closer look at how their stories are told. Its one thing to be entitled to an opinion, but another to judge - especially in a negative tone, in a national publication.

    Whether it was meant as a light-hearted read or not, the fact is we can benefit from expressing ourselves from a more open-minded and positive angle.

    Being different isn't 'too much' of this or 'too little' of that, it can be just different...
  28. R Miller from Halifax, Canada writes: Ed Long from Canada writes:

    'The best form of government is a dictatorship, with me as dictator...'

    Is that actually also your idea of peace, order and good government ?

    Or are you just deliberately screwing with my head again ?

    Whew, thank gawd for the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and that we don't all have to live under arbitrary Ed Long Rule...

    Anyways, this particular Five Ring Circus seems to now be over !

    Peace!

    BTW You liking the Habs or the Pens this year, Ed ?
  29. c street from Canada writes: Because I have a neurotic fear of public restrooms, I LOVED your article. But Christie, you deserve a gold for whingeing! Wait til you hit the loos in London. Looking forward to 2012 and reading that column!
  30. Johann Decruyff from BIOT, British Indian Ocean Ter. writes: Wow. I've been reading this blog for the past couple of weeks, and Ms Blatchford gives some readers what they were crying for. Something positive about China. And still it isnt enough. Why say anything positive if it wont be appreciated anyway? Good article Christie. Keep up the good work. Many of us enjoy reading it and learning something.
  31. John E. Boy from Vancouver, Canada writes: Hey, Christie, if there was such a thing I would click the mute button on the remote control device that would turn your brain off. I often enjoy your writings, but sometimes you just need to shut up. You might have had something interesting to write about had you not suffered 'performance anxiety' in your perfect little bathroom in Beijing.
  32. From Markham from Canada writes: The Russian Bear is coming, and the media should report more about Vladimir Putin! China doesn't pose any threat to world peace, so the western media should be pounding on the Russia Bear instead if the media is truly concern about the human rights. It is quite astounding that some columnists/politicians in Canada think that China is one of the cruelest regimes or the worst human right abuser. How can these statements be reconciled with the fact that 86% of Chinese are satisfied?
  33. D. Wiltshire from Canada writes: Can't see why people are trying to making political hay out of an amusing story that includes 'performance anxiety', a perfect word play on an athletic event. Obviously none of these writers have had any movement since they're so backed up its affecting any brain function they may have had. Christie invariably provides a straight story and you take it or leave it, a much better option than somebody like Lawrence Martin and his infantile diatribes, and you often get to laugh along with her too. 'John E. Boy' apparently is wallowing in his own bs if he can't take a little bathroom humor.
  34. tao peng from ottawa, Canada writes: Ms. CHRISTIE BLATCHFORD's conclusion and attitude over China and Chinese would be understandable if we could successfully understand why she considers bare-chest-in-public a universal standard for human rights and freedom and why she can't locate a 'real ordinary' Chinese people in Beijing, a city with an area only 0.2% of Canada, a city 16 million people, almost half of Canada's population, call home.
  35. D. Wiltshire from Canada writes: The posting of 'tao peng from ottawa' unfortunately sounds like a position coming from an unregistered representative of the PRC than that of a Canadian citizen, who hasn't learned yet to not sweat the small stuff. What a whiz kid!
  36. tao peng from ottawa, Canada writes: to D. Wiltshire from Canada,

    and that is how you judge people, because I do not share your idea?

    are you going to tell me that these are the human rights, freedom, and democracy you have been promoting?

    so according to you, where I come from and who I am are the two decisive elements you used to draw a conclusion?

    and somehow you sounded like you are a defence lawyer for Ms. CHRISTIE BLATCHFORD, hope you do not call her 'Holy Mary, Mother of God'--'Perfection, without even a chance to be wrong' and 'Critisizing her itself is a sin'.
  37. tao peng from ottawa, Canada writes: to D. Wiltshire from Canada,

    well, after reading some of her articles and your recent reply to my posting, I have to admit that you two at least share something unique: both of you already forged in your minds that what and how a Chinese and a Canadian should be and ought to be, respectively.

    anything that does not match your mind is simply wrong, beyond any discussion.

    tell me what you call this, if you are no whiz kid.
  38. iPhone from Canada writes: .
    :-- From Markham

    I just could not let this pass without commenting... our Dear Mr. From Markham, wants the reader to feel sorry for NATO/Western powers which are 'rolling around in the ME's oil' and committing acts of war; ethnic cleansing; criminal acts of war from: bombing hospitals in South Ossetia, to wedding parties in Afghanistan, to 600,000 Iraqi deaths, after 10 years of sanctions that killed 500,000 children in Iraq; to supporting Israel's grinding elimination of the Palestinians; from over throwing South American governments; fresh off the Vietnam war... all the while enriching the private corporations making those bombs, building the Humvees and Predators, backing the cookies to the boots on the ground in some 128 countries totaling 750 military bases.

    Oh, those problematic Russians and Chinese, oh, please. [Please somebody stop me]... and these are only the ‘international crimes’ that are committed by the US (and NATO). Look internally to the country and Mr. From Markham would have the reader think that it is OK for Mr. Bush strip all meaning from the American Constitution; no rights of assembly; no rights of free speech; to illegal wire-tapping and illegal NSA surveillance of the Internet content; no habeus corpus; hey, we don't have time for a serious treatment of US criminal transgressions against humans of any colour… here in Christie's Olympic blog... do we?

    Our favourite 'hyper-power' is really on a roll. It has NATO jumping over hoops for US corporations. It has Canadians (Hillier’s Heroes) dying in Afghanistan for American Oil Industry. The good ‘ol USofA ‘shock and awe’ democracy is lending its good name to the establishment of the new world order.

    The very least that we can ask of Canadian citizens and readers is that we stay current with the facts; and that we adhere to some semblance of intellectual honesty. Sadly, Mr From Markham does not meet the standard.

  39. iPhone from Canada writes: ....

    If there are human rights issues in Russia or China or America (and there are), then there exist non-military and non-nuclear - court processes to handle with this. If there criminal gangs in Russia, or China or America (and there are) then there non-military and non-nuclear - police services to deal with this. The problem is when the corporate globalist want new markets or new resources made available to them; they politely motivate the government to send the citizen’s family to serve those corporate interests.

    Here is to ‘rocking the free world’…. oh, I and my family feel much safer now… with Canadians fighting the good fight over where?

    The lights are growing fainter in Markham – with Mr. From Markham’s thoughts.

    There is something interesting happening the US now… finally in terms of real grass roots democracy. Watch the Republican Party and the Ron Paul organizers next week, I am faintly optimistic that the US can change.
    ~
  40. Mark Chynoweth from Toronto Beijing, Canada writes: It's important to note here that Blatch is right on the money about China. Not to diminish their efforts in any way but if any group were to take an idea to its retrograde conclusion and miss the point, its the Chinese. They have a way of running with an idea so far as to become its antithesis. I was howling empathetically at this whole article.
    IPhone: I'm afraid your are totally off. Most every other bathroom in China is a dank, miserable, putrid, medieval, cesspool. They have a special knack in a lot of places in China of making the worst possible bathroom you can imagine. So, a message to all of you here. Don't even dare compare China standards to those of Canada. This bathroom is a rare exception. Remember all of you insecure Canadian self-loathers 7 of the 10 cleanest cities in the world are Canadian. Wow! Iphone, I was just rereading you comments and you are so far off. Chinese engineers train in Canada not the other way around. Come to my apartment building and I'll the Chinese 'attention to detail'. It would have been condemned the day it was built in Canada.
  41. Canadian in China from Beijing, Canada writes: This article is bang on. And the author is not complaining - she's just articulating the feeling of being a Canadian in China (no, I'm not claiming to be the author).

    I've been here several years, and thank goodness I've learned how to patiently ask people to give me a few minutes while I look at the menu.

    That being said, the author was in her special 'Press' bathroom. The real public bathrooms have no such care. Heck, they don't even have walls to delineate where one person's space begins, and the other person's ends. There are few pleasures greater than squatting along a trough, only a newspaper to separate you from the next guy 'dropping the kids off at the pool.'

    And for goodness sakes, roll up those pantlegs before you step inside...
  42. Canadian in China from Beijing, Canada writes: Marcus T, I think it's awful that you live in my country and can't get used to the fact that this is how lots of people here deal with cultural difference.

    You should have noticed that in Canada, it's not necessary to go overboard on making your guest feel welcome. In fact, most people are embarassed too much from their host.

    I haven't met any western people who have come to China and haven't noticed how service people are hanging around in restaurants, or when you go shopping, there is one always looking over your shoulder. If we don't have cultural context, how are we supposed to know what they are waiting for?

    So Chinese people in Canada pine for some good rice...why can't Canadians in China pine for some peace, quiet, and independence?
  43. Z Gray from Canada writes: Thanks Mark Chynoweth for telling it like it is. The Chinese have made a habit of making some things look better than they seem. In other places like Suzhou, washroom facilities consist of a hole in the ground and a wall surround where you are expected to squat. Don't be surprised if you are blond or a red head if some one stands and watches you out of curiosity.
    The Chinese tend to have a very rigid form of how things are expected to done in public. Privately many very good and kind people are just interested in visitors and their views since much is censored from them. They are delighted to have the opportunity to practice their English speaking skills with you.
    I note that one reader here, tao peng, has decided to have someone else write in his place after he got his nose out of joint. This is a very common tactic used by research students who speak and write English very poorly. This is the only way many will be accepted to Universities here.
    The concept of freedom of speech is very alien to these people generally. If you challenge them, they see it as losing face. People are genuinely afraid of big brother there. You needn't go further than the two little old ladies who applied for a permit this past week to demonstrate in one of the few isolated parks designated for that. They were jailed by their own government for doing as they were required. We just don't care about things like that and shoot from the hip.
    Blatchford has her shortcomings like any individual does but she has provided a good piece of writing here. That someone would chastise her for telling the world of her own shortcomings and loss of face is pathetic indeed.
    The Chinese think they have accomplished something great with the Olympics. It was a good show that everyone in the west knows was just a show. What are they doing today or tomorrow for the genuine good of their people as individuals?
  44. Common Sense Matters from Canada writes: In other 'news', York has a piece titled 'Tallying the human cost of the Beijing Games'. Surprised (actually it's a norm for G&M), COMMENTS CLOSED, what a bunch of cowards. HAVE SOME BACKBONE AND SHOW US YOUR WORTHINESS. I think that's very difficult though.
  45. Charlotte Creamer from Halifax, Canada writes: Citadel Hill in Halifax has the cleanest, best-designed public washroom I have ever piddled in in Canada -- there's a guy stationed outside the door, and every 15 minutes or so, he knocks, announces himself, and then swoops in to make sure that no sqaure of toilet paper has escaped its roller or paper hand towel missed its trashcan endstation or tell-tale drip-drops have been left behind... There are around a dozen stalls, a dozen sinks, mirrors everywhere, and a huge counter off to one side where you can set your purse or parcels down without having them get wet on the bottom (which invariably happens if you have no place to set things down other than next to the sinks).... Plus, there are real live windows that open wide to let in real live fresh Maritime air. All this in a national park facility, right here in Canada. I was overjoyed, astounded, and almost moved to tears by the cleanliness and order of the place. And no fears of 'performance anxiety' here, because the caretaker is stationed outside the door, well out of hearing range. And yes, I do realize I need to get out more often, but I thought I'd let you know that there are other options to having that perfect public washroom experience without having to travel all the way to China.
  46. Alexander Slimnich from Canada writes: Clean toilets.. that would be a nice change of pace from Toronto where public facilities are almost uniformly disgusting (complete with an unknown 'yellow liquid' on the seat in the stalls of mens bathrooms.. eww.)
  47. gao gao from Canada writes: CHRISTIE, please come back to Toronto. We can't wait for you to share our public washroom.
  48. the vegan ninja from nirvana, Canada writes: Why didn't Christie step outside Bejing to sample the humble pleasures of a quaint Chinese country outhouse? Since a hole in the ground would be more familar to most Chinese, she should have tried one, and then delivered us a more balanced picture of her China movements.
  49. Bill Hopkins from London, Canada writes: Canadian in China from Beijing, Canada writes: ......... the author was in her special 'Press' bathroom. The real public bathrooms have no such care. Heck, they don't even have walls to delineate where one person's space begins, and the other person's ends. There are few pleasures greater than squatting along a trough, only a newspaper to separate you from the next guy 'dropping the kids off at the pool.' I haven't been back to China for a few years now, but I suspect this comment hits the nail on the head. China knows full well that their public sanitary facilities don't normally measure up to Western ideals - and they put every effort into demonstrating that they are not as backward as people believe. Hotels for western visitors in major cities are usually pretty good, but accomodations in non-tourist areas can be quite primitive. Just travel ouside Beijing and experience some of the public toilets - a simple concrete floor in an open room with a trench along one side of the room with water flowing sluggishly through it, for example. The point is that the entire Oympic event was a just a show for the government -- as it usually is for any other country. Putting your best foot forward for the world to see. And China could do it so well because they had the full and virtually unlimited resources of the State to commit -- something very few, if any, other countries can command. They were determined to put on a show the world would not forget, down to the smallest detail, and they succeeded in spades. I disagree completely with the excesses of the Olympics whereever they are held, but I congratulate China for putting on one hell of a show. As for Christie Blatchford, I find it amazing that apparently so few are able to see the humor (and, occasionally, pathos) in her writings. Go back to watching reruns of Trailer Park Boys.
  50. muriel z from Canada writes: Sorry Christie; I appreciate a clean bathroom, but in a bathroom who want's that many people watching you.

    Your comments reminded me of the Mandarin Restaurant.
    You can't take a step without 3 people saying 'Welcome to Mandarin it's irritating.

    I like to be greeted when I arrive, helped if I need it, but left alone to enjoy my meal and company in peace.

    The best kind of service is unobtrusive,
  51. Craig Stewart from Thornbury, Canada writes: This is pure Blatch! Tell it like it is and I enjoyed every word. Craig.
  52. WB L from Toronto, Canada writes: Christie, if you been to China before, you shouldn't be surprise with the number of people serving you in the hotel, restaurant, etc. This is not just Olympic, this is happening every day. You are paying them in the cost of your hotel room, your restaurant bill, etc. They are making a decent salary in the local standard. You can not compare their salary with those in North America or Europe. Having said that, however, this is going to change. Coming with the economic growth is the higher living standard. Some of the exceptional services will no longer available as they will become unaffortable. I am sure, at the time, no doubt you will complaint services going down hill.

    Open your eye & mind, and be objective. And, don't be ashame to praise unconditionally every once a while.
  53. The Iconoclast from Canada writes: For crying out loud, those are young student volunteers!! Too enthusiastic and trying too hard to please maybe. Don't you wish we have that kind of enthusiasm from our Canadian students in the Vancouver Olympics.
  54. Richard E. Gower from Ottawa, Canada writes: Good article Ms Blatchford.
  55. North Star from Canada writes: iPhone from Canada writes: . Please give me Singaporean or Japanese transit systems... where people are polite, care about their environment and it is safe.

    ***
    Jamming people into subway cars with poles is polite??
  56. Tom G from Canada writes: LOL, the bathrooms of China! I've traveled the world and I ain't seen anything like the Chinese ones. Someone noted 'a little gritty.' Boy, you haven't traveled. I have entered high class hotels and restaurants with toilets that would have had the place condemned in many parts of the world. Shopping malls? A sight to behold. If Beijing is the real China then Singapore gets 3 meters of snow every Christmas.

    If anything, this surreal perception of cleanliness just reminds me how artificial and desperate this regime is to put on a false face. I can't blame them. People are quite ready to accept the surface nature of things.
  57. gao gao from Canada writes: Actually this just occur to me. In china, a 2.5 to 3 star hotel has better service and cleaner than a 4 star hotel in Canada and US. I gotta try their 5 star hotel when I go to China in December. Even just for one night.
  58. iPhone from Canada writes: .
    :-- North Star

    Avoid the rush hour... it is a bummer!

    [By the way I, dropped acid and the climate didn't change.]
    ~
  59. Rosy Rong from Canada writes: There are a lot of people in China, so... getting alone time is pretty hard. That's something most Chinese people are used to, being constantly surrounded by people. Being Canadian and being used to going for miles without seeing anything but cows, its hard to be around so many people all the time. My grandma (from Beijing) when she came to visit would find it eerie how big of a country Canada is with such a small populous.

    As for the 13 people in the washroom, that's their job. They take pride in what they do and do it well. That's something you rarely see here. How often do you meet a unhappy or disgruntled cleaning person here?
  60. Jim Murray from Saint Paul, United States writes: In Nanjing in 1981 I had lost a button on a jacket and went in search of a button store. I found one and entered and explained to the six young women working there what I needed. They soon found a replacement and then insisted in sewing it on for me. As I waited neighborhood store people started crowding in and before long we were at least twenty people in the little store. All were smiling and attentive and gracious. I'll never forget them. China is something else.
  61. Bill Hopkins from London, Canada writes: Jim Murray from Saint Paul, United States writes: In Nanjing in 1981 I had lost a button on a jacket and went in search of a button store. I found one and entered and explained to the six young women working there what I needed. They soon found a replacement and then insisted in sewing it on for me. As I waited neighborhood store people started crowding in and before long we were at least twenty people in the little store. All were smiling and attentive and gracious. I'll never forget them. China is something else.
    .............
    So true. I remember in my first visit to China visiting a market in Beijing. A crowd began to gather and became quite vocal. Before long it was pretty obvious that they were supporting me against the shopkeeper to ensure that I recieved a quality item at a fair price.
  62. Common Sense Matters from Canada writes: Nice to see janitorial staff smiling. They don't make $50 K per year either. Consider ourselves lucky.
  63. Digital Taco from Canada writes: How come I can't leave a comment on York's Tally Human Cost of Beijing Olympics article?

    I hate it how G&M does this censorship bullcrap. This is not China.

    BTW, I feel bad for the Australian diver Matthew Mitcham. He should be like the most celebrated hero there, given that he upset China's iron grip on diving. But his coverage was relatively muted, b/c of his sexual orientation. Had no idea the Aussies were so conservative.
  64. Shawn Bao from Montreal, Canada writes:
    iPhone from Canada writes:
    What bothers me most, is that everybody understands this. We (those with only 1 or 2 family jobs and two parents) put our children into sports, have them clean the house; feed the animals. They develop skills... they see away forward. However, left to their own devices these same kids will choose TV and drop-out. So at family level Canadians understand this... but the buck stops at the front door.
    ___________________________________________________

    brilliant, couldn't agree with you more.
  65. Common Sense Matters from Canada writes: CHRISTIE________ Try KFC next time.
  66. CM Chen from Toronto, Canada writes: It will be difficult for China to keep up the service level after the Olympics is over, the world media left, the need to "impress" foreigners passes.

    What most coverage did not extend to is in the non tourist areas. The back street of Shanghai. As a non-tourist, ethnically Chinese, in an average restaurent, one would be satisfied to get the attention of one waiter, never mind the five waitresses.
  67. Common Sense Matters from Canada writes: CHRISTIE________ Try KFC next time.

    KFC serves congee for breakfast in China. Self-serve, fits your style and budget.

    I'll take Intercontinental any day. "Big fat steak", don't we envy all those Chinese ladies with their slim waist? Try fusion, more civilized but cost a lot more, mind you.

    Bathroom comments, look up the word PROGRESS in your dictionary.
  68. Mi Mo from Canada writes: D Mores who thinks you are running out of ideas to write about bathrooms - I don't really think so! My husband was in Japan a few years ago, and each time we talked, he told me about some new bathroom he had seen that day - the automatic washers, the music, the lights, the advertising on the toilet paper . . . I think that 13 people waiting to serve you would be worthy of notice, even amidst the whole Olympic glory!
  69. Tim Rutkevich from Canada writes: That is cheap labor for you. Things like that are impossible in Canada or Brittan because even if you pay minimum wage you will have to shell out over $60000 a month only for labor. Those poor people who provided such an excellent service for you have dreams and aspirations. They willing to do anything to achieve them. The question is: is it sustainable.
  70. Geja Lu from Geja, Canada writes: This type of service is not unique in China. If you travel across Asia, say Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, etc. you would encounter the same. The culture accepts personal and meticulous service as a premium, and Beijing prepared the best for their Olympics guests, without knowing that they are ridiculed in a major western newspaper.

    Perhaps you prefer the alternative, Christie. A bathroom with clogged toilets, empty toilet paper rolls, overflown water from the sink, and a smell you can detect miles away. Perhaps you would write a column and praise what a free and open society China has become. Oh, and if you have to wait for an hour to get a cold steak thrown onto you plate, you may write with joy how China is close to home now!
  71. B Lam from Canada writes: I understand Christie’s frustration over being too attentive in China because I do not like it either. However, it was the tone of her writing that made me sick. 4 years from now, Christie will probably write an article praising the wonderful experience in London for having to pay 2 euros for the right to take a leak in a filthy bathroom.

    The London Games organizer should be relief to learn that they only need to throw in a Jimmy Page mini concert in the opening and closing ceremonies, that&8217;s all the world want to see.
  72. Mad Man from London, Canada writes: Come on, everybody knows China wishes to show its best side to the world. That's every Olympic host's wish. Just go to Youtube and watch Vancouver's Olympic video and I didn't see a single slide on East Hastings. Isn't that just a bit too obvious?

    Ms. Blatchford, if you ever read this, please don't take it personally, but if I want to read somebody's comments, I go to online forums and blogs, not to a newspaper box. How can G&M expect me to pay $1.50 per day to read about Ms. Blatchford's COMMENT on how Muslims controlled the RCMP, millions of people in China pretend to like the Olympics and somehow it is a problem to see polished toilets in Beijing?
  73. Mike Sun from Canada writes: DON'T BE BITTER LIKE THAT!

    IF CHINA DID NOT MAKE GOOD GAMES, YOU HAVE SOMETHING BAD TO SAY.

    IF CHINA MADE GOOD GAMES YOU HAVE SOMETHING BAD TO SAY.

    WHAT YOU DUDES REALLY WANT?
  74. Mike Sun from Canada writes: YOU HAVE NEVER SEEN THIS KIND OF BITTERNESS BEFORE ON CHINA'S NEWSPAPERS ON PREVIOUS OLYMPICS.

    CANADA'S 'FREE' MEDIA ARE NO BETTER THAN 'CONTROLLED MEDIA'.
  75. Matthew D. from United States writes: Great article!

    This perfectly illustrates the rethinking required when North American sensibilities encounter China. Comparing China on its best behavior with England, Toronto, New York, etc. on their best behavior is an eye opener. The smallest differences are fascinating.

    Your experiences remind me of an earnest bathroom attendant in Tianjin trying to polish my shoes as I washed my hands. He was 20 or 25 years my elder and wanted to impress since this location probably didn't get too many foreigners. I was dressed casually and am a respecter of age so felt extremely awkward. But this is simply the (current) way things are done.

    One explanation would be that there are simply many people in China willing to work for relatively low wages. Restaurants and hotels can flood you with service attendants. However, there are changes in the labor market. How long will infinitely accomodating service (to paying customers) be sustainable? As China grows wealthier there will be change. Perhaps in the future Canadians and Americans will be brought over to scissor the lawn.
  76. Mike Sun from Canada writes: IT"S ALL ABOUT JEALOUSY AND ENVY.
  77. Nai Woos from Calgary, Canada writes: If Blitchford does not like the "perfect washroom" in Beijing, I suggest she use those Beijing citizens use. I will pay her for all the sick bags she needs.
  78. Mike Sun from Canada writes: ENVY and JEALOUSY - it's a good sign China has did a great job!

    I'd rather being envied.

    Had China failed the games, you would hear people like Ms. Blatchford generously gave lavish compliments.

    ENVY and JEALOUSY - that mean China has really hurt their enemies.

    LET THEM SHIVER and burn by their jealousy and envy.
  79. Matthew D. from United States writes: Another anecdote. Was driving by some orchards outside Beijing and noticed some orchards. Each piece of unpicked fruit on the tree was wrapped in what looked like paper. In North America, these apples or pears would be sprayed to within an inch of their life since it's cheaper to do that than hire a laborer to hand tend trees. In China, they can apparently currently afford to hand tend massive quantities of produce.

    Incidentally, for those classical music enthusiasts, some of the music of the great J.S. Bach met a similar fate - used to wrap fruit trees, cheese, meat, etc. Mendelssohn resurrected Bach's St. Matthew Passion using a score sent to a cheese shop to wrap the product I believe.
  80. Ed Long from Canada writes: The organic produce business is huge in China.

    The freshest greens I have encountered in a restaurant were in China and how can anybody pass up those grilled yams sold hot off the grill wrapped in foil on side street corners?
  81. Ed Long from Canada writes: R. Miller ... I've been pulling your chain ... rainy day on the coast and troll behaviour.

    Now, the sun is out ... Habs always, sometimes quietly.

    Once met a premier who helped draft the Charter. His comment was that they "assumed", his word, Canadians understood that every right carried with it a responsibility and that was their failure.

    That is basically the reason for my rants.

    We have it all but we're letting other nations pass us by due to social democratic sense of entitlement.
  82. Imperial K from Toronto, Canada writes: Well frankly I wish restaurants etc would clean their washrooms at least hourly. In Toronto it's been going down hill for sometime..even in nice places the scent of urine is pronounced and litter lays on the floors.

    Business in Canada has just gotten so low quality since i was in my 20's or a teenager. Products have grown, prices have dropped, but quality is abysmal across the board.

    Frankly, I don't think anyone in North America takes pride in anything they do anymore...and of course NOT EVERYONE, I shouldn't say that...however it just seems the mad dash for more cash, has cut every corner, snipped every extra, and now is cutting into the basics.

    Everyone moves a glacial pace, only pushed by more cash to actually be part of something. And since everyone wants 50$ and hour, and every investor wants 30% returns or more, well it just never gets done.
  83. Imperial K from Toronto, Canada writes: I think we only care about hour households, and to hell with everything around us. You see that in the states, gate communities just steps from what might as well be a "toxic waste dump" of the city.

    Just make more money, drive home, go on the internet, and fill house up with crap. Rinse r