Does the man in your life wear 'skin-tight budgie smugglers'...

...well, apparently he'll need a pair if you visit France or Belgium. I know this is old news, but when I first read about Alton Towers banning Speedos from their water park because it has been deemed inappropriate for men to wear skimpy shorts when around women and children, I just thought it was the mad English at it again and promptly forgot about it.

However, what has emerged is that in some towns and cities in both France and Belgium it is compulsory to wear nothing bigger than Speedos in most public pools and the reason for this is not the one which automatically comes to mind. No it's NOT because European men are born with some kind of innate pride in their meat and two veg and want every opportunity to proudly display them in the smallest, tightest little trunks imaginable!

Non, non, say the French, it's definitely NOT to show off a Frenchman's impressive, or not, tackle, it's purely for "hygiene" reasons!? Apparently because more generous shorts and trunks can be worn elsewhere during the day, thereby picking up sand and dirt in their voluminous folds. If those same shorts are then worn in a pool, said sand and dirt is deposited in the pristine waters. The pools then need far more filtering to keep them clean!

So, now you know! It isn't a cultural difference whereby the men of France and Belgium are born with a lot more... ego to shove in their shorts and are altogether far more exhibitionist than their English counterparts. Who, apparently, enjoy the confidence building feel of copious amounts of material flapping around their nether regions, thereby disguising exactly what they have hiding under there!

Personally I'm sitting on the fence on this one. I've always quite liked the element of surprise, but at the same time I feel quite envious of those lucky women of France and Belgium. For if size DOES matter, they, at least, will never be disappointed! ;)

ETA: I posted this last night, but couldn't see it this morning and didn't know where the hell it had gone! It turned out that I somehow managed to post it in the middle of August! Mysterious! Anyway, here it is, very late as I said.