As plumbers, we hold the toilet in higher esteem than your average Sydney household. But, just in time for World Toilet Day, we found something that takes toilet appreciation to a whole new level – a South Korean toilet theme park. A what? The Restroom Cultural Park mission is to promote ‘toilet culture’. That is, appreciate the humble toilet’s contribution to global water sanitation. It’s enough to make our plumbers flushed with pride. Lee Yeun-sook, from the Mr Toilet Sim Jae-duck Foundation, says, “…nations and governments should work to make sure everyone has an equal access to toilets and feels happiness in there.” Amen, Lee Yeun-sook.
The museum was once home to the mayor, Sim Jae-duck aka Mr Toilet. He was the push behind the toilet revolution in the country. Born in his grandmother’s outhouse, his love for the dunny grew over his life peaking with the toilet-shaped house he built in 2007. After his death in 2009, the house was extended into the theme park we now know as The Restroom Cultural Park.
The Park has a museum displaying Roman style loos, European-style bedpans and chamber pots, and ancient Korean flush toilets. The pathway leading up to the toilet-shaped building is adorned with bronze figures of humans in mid-squat. The place is also decorated with fun facts about human waste and a sculpture garden dedicated to squatting figures! So the next time you’ve got a problem with your toilet, take a moment to celebrate the fact that you’ve got somewhere to perform your most intimate ritual in peace.