The Toilet Paper Mistake You Should Avoid At All Costs When Visiting The Greek Islands

Nobody likes to talk about it, but bathrooms and what you use them for are a big part of our daily lives. You might not think about it at home, but how different countries handle the unmentionable parts of life can throw you for a loop. For example, in Italy, don't expect a toilet seat to be in every public bathroom, and many require coins to use. If you happen to be traveling to Greece in the near future, you should know that there is a rule around flushing, and you're really going to want to follow it. In Greece, you can only put waste in the toilets — no paper, sanitary products, or anything else can be flushed. If you do, it may overflow, and no one wants that. 

There is a good reason for this. Pipes in Greece are narrower than those you'll find in the U.S. The standard Greek size is 2 inches in diameter, which is approximately half the size of American tubes. Instead of putting toilet paper and other products down the drain, you're asked to put them in the garbage can next to the toilet. It takes a little getting used to, but it's certainly better than trying to find the Greek phrase for "the toilet is clogged." Oddly enough, the island of Crete is the site of the first flushing toilet around 1700 B.C. in the palace of Knossos.

You'll likely see signs around Greece asking people not to flush papers, but it's not always clear that they mean toilet paper. For sanitary reasons, it's good practice to wrap your paper in several clean sheets before throwing it out. Just remember that everyone has to deal with this, so no one is looking at what you threw away. Some newer buildings have larger sewer pipes that can handle toilet paper, but they're not common. 

Greece isn't the only country where this is customary. You aren't supposed to flush toilet paper in places like Turkey, Egypt, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and some areas in South America and the Caribbean. While you can't dispose of your tissue in the toilet, it's a good idea to carry extra while traveling in case a public restroom is out of stock. You might also find squat toilets, which consist of a hole with two slots for your feet. They're not the easiest to use (and you may want to be careful when wearing open-toed shoes), but it's all part of experiencing what it's like to live in another country. Besides the basic words to know before a trip to Greece, it's also worth learning phrases like, "Where is the bathroom?" or "Can I have more toilet paper?" To facilitate communication, tourists traveling abroad should use this Google Translate hack for a stress-free trip.