The three best showers of my life.
Number three
I had been travelling in South America for about two months. I was in the south of Ecuador heading north and was given a card for a hostel by a travelling Scotsman. I was suspicious that he had shares in the particular hostel about which he spoke, by the excess of praise. The rooms were clean and lovely, beds comfortable and, he said, the showers unparalleled. I hadn’t really noticed that the showers I'd been having were bad, but it was rare that both components of a good shower were there (temperature and pressure). When I arrived at Princessa Maria hostel in Banos, Ecuador, (for US$4 a night) David the Scot was entirely correct. It was pristinely clean, beautifully decorated and that evening I had the third best shower of my life. It was all about the pressure.
Number two
The second best shower of my life was after my friend Katie’s wedding. This shower took place in my own home and was, in many respects, no different to any other shower. The difference was in fact, the build up to the shower.
I was in the bridal party and it was a really hot day. I was honestly baffled by how many layers contributed to the ‘natural’ look that the make-up artist created and wondered to how someone wearing an unnatural look would be able to hold their face up. The amount of sweat that was under the aqua dress was comparable to Iguazu falls. The amount of hairspray would have widened the hole in the ozone and the amount of bobby pins would not have allowed me to walk through a metal detector. Watching all the dirt, sweat, foundation and hairspray wash down the drain was a beautiful, beautiful thing.
Number One
A travel shower takes the cake. If you take anything from this (very) random piece of writing, or my blog, please take this on board. If you are ever in Laos, around Vang Vieng, please do NOT go tubing when it is dry season. Tubing down the river was supposed to be a fun afternoon of riding the current, but when there’s not enough water it becomes trying to paddle when your arms only barely reach the water from atop your tube. When the sun retreated a little it became barely being able to paddle in freezing cold water. Your butt is submerged in the water and occasionally and uncontrollably hits sharp rocks. This went on for like three hours. I’ve never been so cold in my life. I’ve also never been so jealous of people in canoes. When our ‘fun’ finally ended, my dear friends let me have the first shower. Probably because I was really whiney. But it was the best. Cheers BJ and Em.
