Meine Damen und Herren

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Today being World Toilet Day,  just wanted to show you these cute Damen und Herren signs on the door of a new WC in rural Austria.

It is inside this little cabin called Wanderhütte Fernblick, in the state of Burgenland, Austria.
Apparently here you can get refreshments and a sit-down during the hot summer hiking months.
The panoramic vista of the hills and valleys is free.

Next to the typical wayside shrine they have a weather stone suspended.
Enlarge the photo a few times to read how it works.
Weda-stoa is Austrian dialect for German Wetter Stein.

Stone wet - Rain
Can't see the stone - Fog
Stone is quiet - No wind
Stone white - Snow

Stone warm - Sunny
Stone ice cold - Frost
Stone is swaying - Storm
Stone is hopping - Earthquake
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(Linking to signs, signs and SkyWatch Friday.)
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World Toilet Day

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See these signs and symbols, as if on shards?
They point the way to sanitized toilet facilities of the archaeology museum at the foot of Masada.

So yes, it's not only S day on ABC Wednesday; it is also the annual World Toilet Day.
Seriously--the U.N. General Assembly has designated November 19 as World Toilet Day. 

The idea behind it is
"We can't wait to improve sanitation.
2.5 billion people do not have access to a clean and safe toilet."

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Cutting edge technology, under construction

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No, it's not an eggshell on my head. (Remember the Calimero cartoons?)
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All the visitors to tour No. 60 of this weekend's annual Jerusalem Houses from Within had to wear a hardhat because we were in a construction zone.

We got to see the new luxurious bathrooms for future patients in the new Hadassah hospital tower (that I showed you here).
And lots more, including green technology! You will be seeing more in the coming posts.

You too would want to wear a hardhat going up in this external elevator cage!
It was exciting.

Can you see how two walls of the building come together in a wedge?
That's Hadassah--always on the cutting edge!
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For Weekend Reflections.
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Down to earth again

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OK, the holidays are over.
It's back to everyday life.
So for That's My World and ABC Wednesday O-day, let's observe my ecology-minded neighbor's new OUTHOUSE.
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Actually, it is a really nice composting toilet.
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All you have to do is sprinkle some sawdust.
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When the container is ready to be emptied, it can be pulled out through this little back door.
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I should add that the neighbor also has a normal house with conventional plumbing, but this little outhouse is good for visitors.
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It is clean and OK-smelling, nothing like the pit latrines I've seen in my travels. This one is not a pit at all.
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But speaking of pits, I just have to say this well-known expression from the Talmud:
in Aramaic it is מאגרא רמא לבירא עמיקתא Me-igara rama lebeyra amiqta.
Literally:
From a high rooftop to a deep pit.
Meaning:
A person lost his former greatness and got into deep, uh . . . , trouble.
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Be there or be square

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For World Water Day join a protest. Be there or be square.
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For World Water Day people everywhere are being asked to take a stand and join a Guinness World Record attempt to make the world's longest toilet queue.
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One month from now politicians from across the globe will gather in Washington, D.C. to discuss what they need to do to fulfil two of the most basic rights of the world’s citizens – access to a safe toilet and clean water.
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The World’s Longest Toilet Queue is a mass mobilisation event and Guinness World Record attempt bringing together thousands of campaigners from across the world to demand real change at the meeting.
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The lack of access to clean water and basic sanitation affects 2.5 billion people.
These are some results:
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> 4,000 children under the age of five dying every day from preventable water-related illnesses such as diarrhea , typhoid, cholera, and dysentery.
> Over half of hospital beds in developing countries are taken by those suffering with diarrheal illnesses, heavily overburdening fragile health systems.
> The UN estimates that half of girls who stop attending primary school in Africa do so because of the lack of safe and private toilets.
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More info at http://www.worldtoiletqueue.org/eng .
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P.S. This is the first square toilet I've ever seen. They are in the public WC at Jerusalem's Mamilla Mall.
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That's it for That's My World Tuesday.
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