Sometime ago, an English school teacher, looking for rooms in a small town in Switzerland, asked the local school headmaster to make recommendations. He showed her several different places and she finally settled on a small but charming cottage not far from the town center.
However, on her way home, it occurred to her that she didn't notice a Water Closet ("WC"), so she immediately sent an email to the headmaster to ask if there was a WC in or near the cottage.
On receiving the email, the headmaster was troubled, because he was not totally familiar with many English abbreviations. He then decided to ask his friend, the local parish Priest, for assistance. After considerable discussion and deliberation, they concluded that the lady was referring to a "Wayside Chapel" (a place of worship), so they sent her the following reply:
"I am delighted to inform you that the WC is situated only 2 miles from the cottage you rented, and it is set amongst a beautiful grove of trees with wonderful scenery, and it is capable of seating up to 250 people, however there is also standing room for another 100 people. In fact, sometimes it is so busy, we actually have people standing outside the open doors peering inside to observe the various proceedings inside !
The WC only opens on Wednesdays and Sundays and I hope this will not inconvenience you if you are used to going more regularly. On the other hand, I'm sure you will be pleased to know that many people even bring their lunch with them and make a day of it, while others who cannot spare so much time often arrive by car just in time. I would highly recommend that you visit the WC on Sundays, as there is always an organ accompaniment. With such huge pipes, the sound quality is truly excellent and even the most delicate sounds can be heard audibly by everyone.
It may interest you to know that my daughter was married in our WC and it was actually there that she met her husband ! I remember the day quite well, because there was a rush for seats and there were 12 people sitting where only 10 would usually sit, and it was wonderful to see the expressions of happiness on their faces.
My father has been a regular visitor to our WC since he was a young boy, and he recently donated a bell to commemorate the 50th anniversary of his first visit, and the bell rings every time somebody enters the WC. A bazaar will be held during the time of your visit in order to raise funds to help to upgrade the seating, as some residents feel the seats are somewhat hard and uncomfortable in their present state.
My wife, who is rather delicate, can't attend as often as she would like. It has been six months since her last visit and I can assure you this situation pains her greatly.
Anyway I shall be delighted to reserve a seat for you next to me in our WC during your visit.
With my warmest regards,
Peter.
PS: Remember to bring your camera, as I am sure you will want to keep a memento of your visit to our WC. If you don't have a camera, do not worry, as our newspaper editor attends every session of the WC and he usually publishes selected photographs in our town newspaper "The Sentinel".