Most readers are aware of the difficulties in
evaluating prices in a foreign country. The most
commonly known index for foreign countries among
young travellers is the Big Mac Index. By judging
costs according to the standard price of a local
McDonald's Big Mac (and not, incidentally, by the
taste), evaluating the other prices in the country is
easy. (McDonald's, by the way, is said to be the most
profitable CIA venture in Europe and the world.)
Certainly the Big-Mac Index remains useful
for prices, but when travelling in Romania and
Moldavia, another kind of index is relevant, one
that assesses the standards of what was once
known as the "necessary room." The "Loo-p.
Index" serves the traveller and the purpose most
accurately. "Loo-p." was actually the simple idea
of a friend, Mr. Henkel, who has many years of
experience in travelling. And like most travellers,
his survival kit for Romania and Moldavia
includes a big, fat roll of incredible three-layer,
recycled German Loo paper - the best way to
fight low "Loo-p." standards. The "Loo-p. Award"
has yet not been acknowledged as a quality
index in travel guides, but in Romania and
Moldova it is the only way to describe
indescribable circumstances.
The "Loo-p.-Index" has five different categories.
The highest is the golden "Loo-p.-Award," including
all five criteria: the luxury of light, water for flushing
the toilet, paper and a decadent supply of soap and
towels for one's hands. This standard is usually
reached only by our hosts' WCs. My own experiences
in Romania ran from a scary "0-Loo-p." to a common
"2-Loo-p." (including light and water).
The categories are not only descriptive of
standards but also acknowledge the bizarre. A trip to
the Moldavian countryside pointed up the need for a
special category, the "Loo-p. Extraordinaire." This
September the winner was a little wooden toilet shed
in the midst of a vegetable patch with a wooden toilet
seat, hand-dug sewage system and the romantic aspect
of being candle lit.
