On Hygiene

Yes, we're still in the Galápagos Islands, and will be writing with an update on our time here soon, but I thought you might want to read a post on...hygiene!

We've been on the road now for 24 days, and we already know there will be clothes we'll throw out before heading back to California. Take, for instance, my running clothes. I brought three shorts and three tank tops for our two-month journey -- and each set smells absolutely awful at this point. I just keep wearing and washing, wearing and washing (and it shows). 

I also am always wearing my Athleta clothes: tank tops, long-sleeved shirts, shorts, and leggings. I dig these clothes because they're comfy, they wick away sweat, and after I wash them in the shower, they tend to dry fairly quickly. But these shower washings are getting old (how did -- and do -- people hand-wash ALL their clothes ALL the time?; clearly, I'm a first-world wimp), and honestly, I'm not sure how really clean everything is getting in the shower.

As for the kids, I take their clothes to a lavanderia about once a week or so. Taylor always gives me a good amount of her clothes to get washed...and Wyatt -- well, Wyatt says his clothes are clean and don't need a wash. I had to tussle with him to give me the Eagles sweatshirt he wore every day for the first two weeks of our trip. He obliged, the sweatshirt was washed and dried, and then it went right back on his little body.

These lavanderias are fantastic because they wash, dry, and fold your clothes -- for about $1 per kilo of clothing. But we've learned that the clothes are dried on extreme heat, and Tim and I both don't want that for our clothes. So, I'll stick with the shower washing.

An Ecuadorian lavanderia

Since we've been at the beach for the past week plus, I really couldn't tell you the last time our kids took a shower and washed their hair. When I brought up showers yesterday, Tim told me to chill and "embrace Jersey," a reference to all of his childhood summers spent in the ocean (not in the shower) off New Jersey. I'm embracing as best I can, but dammit, there will be soap and shampoo soon.

We're glad for this stretch of time in the Galápagos, since we can empty out our bags a bit and let our clothes air out. We've appreciated, too, the opportunity to ditch our pants and jackets for a while -- although once we reach the highlands of Peru, those pants and jackets will come right back on. 

All in all, we're mostly kinda clean. And there will be scrubbing of all kinds once we return to California...