It wasn't until we started poking around at weekend open houses in San Francisco that we realized just how common the water closet is in this city.
At first it seemed weird to us that the toilet should have its very own room. But after a while this started to make sense, and to seem more civil than the toilet/bath combo. Separating these functions into two rooms minimizes a household's wait time and keeps the room with the bath cleaner and more. . .ambrosial.
While in Paris last year, we noticed there were separate wash closets too. But like you mentioned, we became quickly accustomed and a fan of this setup, both for hygienic reasons, and also because one person could be bathing while the other "taking care of nature's call".
when i was 17 i moved to france to go to high shool there for a year and, although i knew about this setup, it was still odd to experience it first hand. i thought everyone knew this is how it usually is in "yer-a-peein" (get it? european? jussst kidding) culture. i'm just glad people haven't been putting turkish toilets in their houses. i hated having to do that while skiing, plus this little tradional lyonnais resto that i liked (as well as many places in the cities with the traboulets) had them. it is awful.
Commonplace Down Under... I took a liking to it!
I've lived in a couple of places with WCs and visited many, many more. I'm only down with them if they also have a sink in the same room. Sadly, the one in my old Paris apartment did not requiring hand washing around the corner in the kitchen or throught the bedroom to where the bathroom was. Not super hygenic to do the "business" then have to touch door knobs and go into a seperate room with a sink.
Lizzy, might be wise to have a bottle of waterless hand soap in the WC! I too also wondered why there were no sinks in the WCs in most SF homes that have them, but I believe that there is a solution to every problem out there.
In Japan there's commonly a small sink on top of the toilet water tank. After you flush, you can wash your hands with the water that's refilling the tank. See:
http://flickr.com/photos/sirpurple/96162125/
http://flickr.com/photos/sugar/40118439
Saves both space and water...
I think a WC should have a small sink, I'm used to wiping a few times with wet toilet paper for extra cleanliness. Plus, one time I was at a friend's place in Bernal Heights during a house party. I finished poopin and was wiping when the cheap toilet paper tore and a finger went up my bum, covering it in poop. I wiped it, but still had to get my pants up and button-fly buttoned with my non-stinky hand. Once I opened the door to make a dash for the other 1/2 of the bathroom, friends stopped me to say hello and introduce me to friends and... UGH, what a disgusting nightmare.
J - T.M.I.
We got this for our WC room. It is so nice to be able to wash hands in the same room and save water.
http://www.gaiam.com/retail/product/02-0334