Public bathrooms aren’t the sort of places most of us are tempted to take photos. And, let’s face it, most public bathrooms aren’t that interesting. However, over the past several months, I’ve been in some public bathrooms that were interesting enough that they deserved a photo (or several in once instance).
Here is my gallery of public bathroom photos.
The bathroom that will not run out of toilet paper anytime soon.
I’m not sure who is in charge of the women’s bathroom at Bravo Burrito in St. Cloud, but they are to be commended for ensuring there is plenty of toilet paper. There are two giant toilet paper holders on one side of the toilet, along with an old-fashioned holder built into the tile on the other side … not a one of them empty. For good measure, there is a partial roll of toilet paper on the back of the toilet.
Toilet in women’s bathroom at Bravo Burrito Burrito in St. Cloud, Minnesota. The toilet is in a nook that has white tile on the lower part of the wall and beige paint above the tile. There is a metal grab bar behind the toilet and another on the right side of the photo. There are two large gray and white toilet paper holders on the right side of the photo and a small ceramic toilet paper holder built into the tile on the left side of the photo. On the back of the toilet is another role of toilet paper. Photo by Mary Warner, July 1, 2023.
The bathroom with the delightful mural.
The women’s bathroom at the Trader Joe’s in Eagan, Minnesota, has the most delightful wall mural, featuring items floating on a sea of unrolled toilet paper. This is the sort of bathroom that a toddler in potty training would find fun.
Corner of women’s bathroom at Trader Joe’s in Eagan, Minnesota. The lower part of the wall has large sand-colored tiles with an oval changing station on the left wall and a black toilet seat cover holder, white waste receptacle, and two metal grab bars on the right wall. Above the tile is a painting. On a light blue background, a boat with three boxes of tissues floats on a toilet paper sea. On the right side, two open bottles of laundry detergent float on the toilet paper sea, spreading their bubbles into the air. Photo by Mary Warner, June 14, 2023.
The bathroom with the fancy chaise longue.
My brother introduced Hubby and I to a song by the band Wet Leg (a very appropriate name for this blog post) called “Chaise Longue.” We heard the song not too long before I walked into the women’s bathroom at the Rochester Event Center and saw this … one super-de-duper fancy white chaise longue. I HAD to take a photo.
Incidentally, the men’s room had no such furniture. Now, you might think this chaise would be for nursing mothers, which would be a good use for it, but there was a separate nursing room in the event center, so I’m not quite sure the purpose of this and why it needed to be so fancy.
Fancy white chaise longue in the women’s bathroom at the Rochester Event Center, Rochester, Minnesota. The chaise is tucked into a small gray nook and has a framed floral print in white, black, and gray hanging above it. Photo by Mary Warner, April 28, 2023.
The intriguing bathroom at Linden Hill Historic Estate.
In my last blog post, I discussed a sleepover Hubby and I had at Linden Hill Historic Estate in Little Falls, Minnesota, and I promised a post on one of the bathrooms. I’m making good on my promise here.
There are numerous bathrooms in the Musser house at Linden Hill, with three of them within spittin’ distance of our room. This one was my favorite for a number of reasons, not least of which was the mechanism for flushing the toilet. Details in the photos and captions below.
Toilet with tall tank in one of the second floor bathrooms at Linden Hill Historic Estate, Little Falls, MN. A white hand towel is hanging on the wall above the toilet paper roll on the right side of the photo. A corner of the white sink can be seen on the left, with a round garbage can beneath it. Photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
A view of the bottom of the toilet tank showing the white ceramic pull on a chain that is used to flush the toilet. The garbage can can be seen in the lower left of the photo. Linden Hill Historic Estate second floor bathroom, photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
The white square sink with wide top edges, good for setting your toiletries on when there is no counter. Above the sink, built into the pale green tile are a toothbrush holder on the left, a soap holder in the center, and a Dixie Cup holder on the right. Linden Hill Historic Estate second floor bathroom, photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
A close-up of the Dixie Cup holder, which has a stack of Dixie Cups in it. I haven’t used Dixie Cups since I was a kid in the 1970s, when they were ubiquitous. Note also the delicate line of light green diamonds in a black band that is part of the light green tile work above the Dixie Cup holder and encircles the room. Linden Hill Historic Estate second floor bathroom, photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
The sink faucet features an interesting mechanism to close the drain. It’s a U-shaped metal handle that flips over a round piece above the faucet. For its age, it functions very smoothly. Linden Hill Historic Estate second floor bathroom, photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
Close-up of the drain plug on the sink. It says, “Crane – To Clean Lift and Turn – Patented.” Linden Hill Historic Estate second floor bathroom, photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
Toiletries on top of the toilet, including a white container with black washcloths with a sign that says to use them for removing eye makeup, a white three-drawer plastic container labeled, “Cotton: Rounds & Swabs,” “Just in Case: Oopsies,” and “Just in Case: A Few Supplies” on the drawers, and a white, plastic tissue box cover with a box of tissues inside. On top of the container with drawers is a round white container with a lid that contains “earplugs for a restful night’s sleep.” Linden Hill Historic Estate second floor bathroom, photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
Inside the second drawer of the toiletries container, “Just in Case: Oopsies,” there is a sewing kit, purple dental floss picks, and Band-Aids. The Friends of Linden Hill, which operate the site, know how to make visitors feel welcome with the toiletries they have available. Linden Hill Historic Estate second floor bathroom, photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
With all these interesting features, don’t you want to stay at Linden Hill to check out this bathroom? But, there’s one more feature that’s a treat for visitors … the view out the window.
Linden Hill Historic Estate, view from a second floor bathroom. The scene looks down on the tree-covered grounds and the stairway from the house to the lower grounds. In the background, beyond the sun-dappled deciduous trees, is the Mississippi River. Photo by Mary Warner, July 16, 2023.
The only “bathroom” with a better view of the outdoors is the open air toilet with only two wood walls to shield you from onlookers at the top of Lookout Mountain at Cascade River State Park near Grand Marais. Unfortunately, I was too exhausted from the climb to remember to take a photo.
Have you run into any interesting public bathrooms during your excursions? If so, please share the details.
Some very thoughtful bathroom ideas. The chaise lounge is clearly for sitting on when there’s a long queue!
A thought on public bathrooms: they can be the “make or break” as to whether travellers stop in a particular small town (for lunch/driving break etc) while on holidays. If they aren’t sparkling clean and pleasant to use, with soap and paper, people will drive onto the next town.
[Smacks forehead] Oh, but of course, the chaise is for those waiting to use the bathroom! It didn’t dawn on me because there were no lines when I was in there.
You are right about cleanliness and pleasantness being key to travelers stopping to use particular bathrooms. There’s a specific gas station in Minnesota that I love to stop at in no small part because of their nice bathrooms.
Some very thoughtful bathroom ideas. The chaise lounge is clearly for sitting on when there’s a long queue!
A thought on public bathrooms: they can be the “make or break” as to whether travellers stop in a particular small town (for lunch/driving break etc) while on holidays. If they aren’t sparkling clean and pleasant to use, with soap and paper, people will drive onto the next town.
[Smacks forehead] Oh, but of course, the chaise is for those waiting to use the bathroom! It didn’t dawn on me because there were no lines when I was in there.
You are right about cleanliness and pleasantness being key to travelers stopping to use particular bathrooms. There’s a specific gas station in Minnesota that I love to stop at in no small part because of their nice bathrooms.