A note on cleanliness

Written 28 Sept 2007, USA (although it's still true...)

I don't feel as dirty as I used to. For that matter, I don't feel like showering, either, even though I haven't yet today. Let me explain.

In a conversation with an American friend a few weeks ago, it was assumed that we hadn't been able to shower much on our trip with all the traveling and moving around and possibly awkward or dirty showers. In fact, other than a few odd days with overnight trains or buses, the opposite was true. With such a hot and sticky climate, we were showering constantly.

So why don't I feel like showering now?
For example, in Angkor Wat, our first real stop in SE Asia, we would shower first thing in the morning. We rarely sprung for air conditioning, so a quick rinse was necessary to wash off the stickiness of the hot night. We'd then go out for the day, returning around 3-5pm. This would be later if we were on our own, but at Angkor you rent a tuk-tuk and driver for the day, which ends around late afternoon. Again, we'd rinse off the day's grime. Of course, by bedtime we were feeling sticky again and, rather than lay down sweaty, we'd take one more shower! It now sounds like a terrible waste of water, but they tended to be short showers. I'd say the three still used about the same amount of one of my American showers. Plus the water was usually cold, so hanging around too long just wasn't appealing.

I think part of my friend's assumption might also be attributed to our American ideas about other countries' hygienic standards. We tend to have the reputation of being clean-fanatics, while some other cultures, well, just don't. I wasn't sure what to expect from SE Asia, although I did suspect Indian subways (if they existed) might smell a bit like the Russian ones I'd experienced (distinctly "manly"). In some guidebook, I had read that the Thai people actually tend to shower a lot more than Americans do. Once I'd visited Thailand, this made sense. It explained why, despite the climate, they always looked disgustingly sweat-less and comfortable while we were often shiny, sticky, and pink. They also use a fantastic invention called Prickly Heat powder. I suppose any powder will do, but this seemed to be the favorite. If you are ever heading for a hot and humid climate, pick yourself up a tin. I don't suppose it helps in the long run, but a sprinkle of that stuff really helps you feel soft and dry, if only for the next 15 minutes!

All that to say, we feel so clean now that we're back in a temperate climate! Despite having grown up in a one-shower-a-day culture my whole life, it feels strange to hop under the water when I just took a shower yesterday. I haven't really gotten that dirty, have I? And we shower because we're dirty, right? For the last few months, we've been showering in order to rinse away a decent amount of sweat and grime. Here not a whole lot accumulates in one day, so if I took a shower yesterday, I still feel awfully clean today.

I thought this was just a personal phenomenon until I mentioned it to Josh. Apparently, we are both a little newly shower-shy!