For four months, I successfully avoided using a squat toilet, but my luck was about to run out. It was not in Beijing but Yunnan Province where I took part of an all-Chinese tour group of CRI employees last October.
The tour operators initially resisted me joining, saying they were concerned whether I could keep up with the rigid programme of bus, rail and walking tours. Little did they know my strength; little did I know how that strength would be tested as the tour reached its conclusion.
The hotels were comfortable and while my fellow tourists shared their rooms, mine were for me alone. I wondered if they were the only ones which contained a western style toilet because I had not seen any other foreign guests.
But after the overnight rail journey from Lijiang to Kunming, I felt somewhat uncomfortable, especially knowing it was the last day and I would have to wait until evening before the flight back to Beijing. Time was all that passed. I really needed a private visit, but the hotel where we were based for the day had squat toilets only. What was a foreigner to do?

在四个月里，我成功地避免了使用蹲式的厕所，但是我的好运就要到头了。去年十月我到了云南而不是北京，参加由全体中国CRI雇员参加的旅行。
旅行主办者最初拒绝我参加，说是他们担心我不能适应刻板的汽车、火车和步行旅行。他们不知道我的体力情况，而我也不知道为什么旅行会考验我的体力，直到结束。宾馆的房间很舒服，我的同事两个人一个房间，而我则一个人住。我想知道这是不是唯一一个有西式厕所的房间，因为我还没有看到其他外国客人。
但是连夜乘火车从丽江到昆明后，我觉得有些不舒服，尤其是知道这是最后一天而我得等到晚上才能乘飞机回北京。
时间就那样过了。我真的需要“私人访问”，但是我们今天住的宾馆只有蹲厕。一个外国人能怎么办呢？

我成功逃脱使用蹲式马桶的命运达四个月之久，可我的好运很快就到头了。这事儿不是在北京发生的，而是在云南。去年10月，我参加了国际广播电台的员工旅行团，团里全是中国人。
一开始，旅行社不想让我跟团，因为他们担心我跟不上团里紧张的日程安排，这一路可是又得坐汽车，又要坐火车，还要走路呢。他们根本不知道我有多大毅力，可我也没有料到，就在旅程结束之际，我的毅力要受到多大考验。
我们住的旅馆非常舒适，同团的其他游客都是合住一屋，只有我自己住单间。不知道我住的房间是不是旅馆里唯一有西式马桶的房间，因为我没见着其他什么外国人。
不过，从丽江坐了一夜火车回到昆明以后，我就觉得有点儿不舒服，尤其是得知这是最后一天了，可我们还得等到晚上才能坐飞机走以后，我就更不舒服了，只能数着时间干熬。我真的得去方便一下，可是我们呆的那家旅馆只有蹲式马桶，（他们就不想想）老外来了怎么办啊？