Maybe Sochi's communal toilets can help foster international relations

On Tuesday, BBC reporter Steven Rosebnerg tweeted this photo from the bathroom of the biathlon and cross-country skiing venue for the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. People weren't impressed. 

With news that at least one potential suicide bomber may have slipped past Vladimir Putin's "ring of steel", having to share a pooping space with a stranger might be the least of Sochi attendants' concerns. Nevertheless, the photo sparked controversy online:

Retweeting the photo, [Russian opposition leader Alexei] Navalny commented: "This is a men's toilet in a Sochi Olympics media centre for 1.5bn roubles [£27m; $45m]."

"Two toilets - 28,000 roubles," wrote another blogger. "Olympic media centre - 1.5bn roubles. Global embarrassment - priceless."

While Russian journalist Nikita Likhachev pointed out (link in Russian) that communal toilets aren't that uncommon in that part of the world, some US online commenters highlighted a much more worrying feature: "You see two toilets. I see zero toilet paper dispensers."

Westerners being squeemish about toilets isn't anything new of course. As part of its bid for the 2008 Summer Olympics, Beijing promised to bring toilets in the city to "four star standard", which was described as having "granite floors, sufficient lighting, lively music, facilities to wash hands, tissues, automatic flush, hand dryers and bathrooms specially designed for disabled and old people."

[Image via Twitter]