Hot Showers: A Luxury I Couldn’t Live Without
“I can live in an adobe house with dirt floors without electricity and get mite infections every few months, but I cannot live without hot showers,” I remember saying back in the day.
I’m notorious for taking extremely hot showers that I come out with my back scalded red. I even enjoy hot (not warm) showers in the Philippines when it’s over 30 degrees out and humid. I know: hot showers in hot weather don’t make much sense, but hot showers in cold weather is a given, right? Not! Here in the Central Andes where the temperature is usually below 5 degrees every evening, people typically take freezing cold mountain water showers! How?!
Suffice to say, my parents knew that a gift I would most value in Peru is a hot water heater. This worked perfectly for my first apartment. And even with the water heater, I would additionally turn on our electric heater in the room, so I wouldn’t freeze to death coming out of the shower.
Unfortunately, my best friends, the water heater and electric heater, couldn’t live with us in our new apartment. We can’t install the water heater because we’re not allowed to make holes in the walls to mount it and we can’t plug in the electric heater because it uses too much electricity (being part of our rent here, our landlord is always on our backs about anything that uses up too much electricity).
The solution? I have been taking baths out of a bucket for the past couple of months. This involves boiling water in an electric kettle and mixing it with the cold shower water in a bucket. Then, I scoop and pour the warm water with the plastic lid of my thermos. The trick is to bathe as quickly as possible. =P
What’s a luxury you can’t live without? Better yet, what’s a luxury you got over and no longer really need?
Tags: cold mountain water, flexibility, hot showers, luxury in peru
Bryce Christiansen
Oh so sad 🙁
I don’t think I could handle that very well at all. You are a trooper.
You would think the land owner could use this to come to a win/win with tennants. Yes it might cause more electricity or water use, but that might mean he can charge more to compensate for it. Some people might be willing to pay more for that luxury.
I certainly would try to find a way to afford it, if it meant the difference between freezing cold showers or a hot one.
Bryce
Samantha Bangayan
Haha! Thanks for relating, Bryce! =) It continues to be a struggle for me.
You know, there are so many things about Peru that are weird to me, things that don’t seem to make sense at all and I think it’s just because of habit. =P
Katie
Sam, you are a trooper! Before I moved to Argentina, I wrote a similar post about luxuries vs. necessities. We quickly learn to adjust and make do without items that we previously considered “must-haves.” But baths out of a bucket!? You’re definitely more hardcore than I am.
Here in Necochea, I have no dishwasher, clothes dryer, or air conditioner, but I’ve learned to survive. 🙂
Samantha Bangayan
Exactly, Katie! You totally get me! =) There are so many things I’ve learned to live without that I would have *never* imaged living without in the past. =P We, humans, are so flexible!
For example, right now, I live in a room. Like, a single room with just one bathroom (kind of like a hotel). I have no kitchen, no laundry machine… hey, maybe I should write about this too. =P
Harleena Singh@Freelance Writer
You are learning a great deal Samantha!
I guess we are similar where bathing with hot water is concerned! I also prefer taking a bath with warm water in summers, or at least it shouldn’t be cold or straight from the tap- that would just freeze me too!
It’s supposed to be a bad habit and not good for the skin, as people say, but it runs in our family I guess and old habits die hard!
But good for you that you managed to find a way out of it- and yes, bathe quickly before the water turns cold.
Thanks for sharing 🙂
Samantha Bangayan
Thanks, Harleena! I’ve continue to learn a lot here in Peru. =)
Haha! And I thought I was the only one who took warm showers in the summer. =P You’re so right about it not being good for the skin. I think that’s why I’ve always had an eczema problem. =P
Jim Dougherty
It is always so humbling to hear about your experiences in Peru and realize the extravagances that we take for granted! That said, I’m glad you can’t take scalding showers – that can’t be good for you! 😉
Samantha Bangayan
Haha! What a good point — the scalding showers sure makes my skin a lot drier than it needs to be. =P
What an honor to have you stop by, Jim! TY!! =)
Abe
I have been trying to get our kids ready for their no hot water expeirance in Huancayo. They have no idea, I think it will be funny. I can’t wait to see them wash their clothing by hand in the sink then hang it on a line to dry.
Now for your dilemma. Did you know that you can buy a electric shower head attachment that will heat the water as it passes through. It’s not HOT but it is comfortable. I installed one when I was in Huancayo in 2009.
As far as what couldn’t I live without. ??????? I would be happy with any card that is delt me. I’ve endured much in my 49 years. Luxuries used to mean the world to me, not anymore.
Samantha Bangayan
Haha! =) They’re sure in for a culture and lifestyle shock. =P
I had NO idea about the electric shower head attachment! That sounds very do-able! I’ll have to go searching. =)
You, my friend, are my hero. =) I think I’m slowly getting to that point when luxuries no longer rule.
David
If you can’t even plug in an electric heater, you most definitely won’t be able to plug in an instant electric water heater. This dilemma is quite serious. :/
Samantha Bangayan
Yeah! It’s super frustrating, but I’m starting to get the hang of warm-ish showers. =)
kelli
Hi Samantha
I could not agree more with this one. After having traveled in many areas where hot water was not even available or when the hotel’s idea of hot water seemed to simply mean ”not cold”, when I encounter a hot shower, especially one with good pressure, it is truly something I savor. Definitely one of those things that you really do not realize how much you love until it is not available to you!
Samantha Bangayan
Haha! I totally laughed out loud when you talked about a hotel’s idea of hot water meaning “not cold.” That is SOO true in so many places in Peru. =P I just came back from a trip to Lima where I sure savoured those hot showers like you do. =) Thanks for relating, Kelli!
BrowsingRome
Hi Sam,
Love this post because I get you. I take hot showers too but not quite as hot as you. This winter, I was complaining to my husband that the hot water is not hot enough and we were going to call the plumber. However, it’s back to hot to the put I cant put it too the hottest hahaha. When we bought our house last year, I insisted on double glazing windows because I like to stay warm. Fortunately we have central heating and they are on for 3 hours in the morning and then from 1pm to 11pm at night. Considering that, I take my showers at night so when I get out, the house is nice and warm 🙂 When I saw the bucket, I figured you boiled hot water. I would have done the same!
The one thing I have learned to live without is a car. Public transport here can’t rival Paris nor London but it’s good enough.
Keep warm!
Diana
Samantha Bangayan
Great strategies, Diana! I always imagine building a house in Huancayo in the future and I also dream of all those little tricks to keep the house as warm as possible. =) I wonder how much central heating would cost here. I’ve never walked into a home with central heating before. =P
Same here re: public transit! In Vancouver, it’s easier to get around with a car, but here, there are combis almost everywhere or at least a cheap taxi for only a dollar around town.
Betsy Cross
Hey Samantha!
The house we moved into in December has an enormous tub that’s way too expensive to use. And I love my baths! So it has been hard. I can get used to anything, but I miss that luxury. But, even though you can adapt to frugal living, your lifestyle can really affect your life. Since I’ve been without a car during the day my friends have to come to my house. I don’t shop or do anything that is not within walking distance. So my world has changed. The Internet has become the one luxury that I would hate to do without. It has been so fun making new friends!
Sorry about your hot water. I’m wondering how big your bucket is that you bathe in? Do you sit in it? LOL!
Samantha Bangayan
Ooh! I know what you mean, Betsy! I’ve only had a few really good baths in my life, but I always dream of having a bath tub whenever I get a chance to design my own home.
Good point about not having a car. I know in Lima, there’s a person I really admire who purposely lives that way. She says that neighborhoods in Lima are set up like those in Europe with everything within walking distance and that’s the way she likes it. =) I guess it’s a matter of perspective on whether that kind of lifestyle is suffocation or a blessing.
I’d have to completely agree about the Internet too! I couldn’t walk over to the United States right now, but we’re still able to have a conversation over the web. =) Love it!
Haha! Good question about the bucket! It’s tiny, so unfortunately, I can’t sit in it. =P It can maybe hold around 3-5 liters of water.
Stuart Nager
OK…brrr, and more brrr just thinking about it. I took a Windjammer “cruise” vacation many years ago, and the ship had NO hot water. We had to do with a communal ice cold shower. Learned to take very fast ones. So, yes, I appreciate my hot shower very much.
Samantha Bangayan
Yikes! I’ve never heard of Windjammer vacations before, but I know I’d definitely be uncomfortable with *communal* showers and ice cold ones at that. =P
Kelly
Brrrr! I’m the same as you, Samantha – I hate a cold shower. The very first purchase I made when I moved to Peru was a therma for the shower. The house we live in now has a nice canister hot water heater – the water gets really hot, but it doesn’t last long.
I put the heater in the bathroom too, btw! I just never could stand to be cold. I deal much better with heat.
Samantha Bangayan
Ooh! That’s what I need in my future dream home — a hot water heater, a really big one. =P
Haha! Love how we have so much in common, Kelly!
Paula
I’m the same way about hot showers! It’s how I start my day. Everyday. But I have to admit that I haven’t thought of it as a luxury in a long time, so thank you for this reminder! It’s so easy to take things, like hot water, for granted when it’s so readily available.
Samantha Bangayan
Yeah! In Vancouver, that’s what I’m like too! Hot water shower every morning. =)
I always appreciate reminders to be grateful too. =) That’s what friends are for!
The Pepperrific Life
Be careful with that hot water. I used to do that before- mix boiling water in my cold bath water. Once, I accidentally tipped the kettle over and scalded my leg. Yes, I had a second-degree burn. After that, I had a water heater installed :). I guess, like you, I can’t live without hot showers… hot, not boiling 🙂
Samantha Bangayan
OMG! Good point, Pepper! Thanks for the lesson. I’ll definitely be more careful! Yeesh! Glad you’re okay. =)
Sherry Z.
You never cease to crack me up with your nuances. I love it. You are one of the most tenacious people I know. When it’s something you want, you go after it with fervor … even if it is a hot shower. 😉
Samantha Bangayan
Haha!! =) I never thought of it that way, Sherry! =P I *do* go after what I want. =P
vinny t
InPeru,I’m continually frustrated by the lack of adequate water pressure. So even when I can get hot water for my shower, its still often a challenge to get sufficient water pressure to go along with it.I still struggle with that and am thrilled whenever I can get a decent shower in Peru. I’m still stuck in Charlette and will be in touch when I’m able to return home.
Samantha Bangayan
Yikes! That’s surprising to hear, even when you’re from a family that has better resources than others. Maybe it’s impossible or insanely expensive to get enough water pressure and worse yet, in Huancayo!
Noch Noch | be me. be natural.
ahhhh hot showers!!! i’m the same
my luxury i can’t live without is my comfort food – chocolate!!! but with my migraines and depression i somehow lost appetite for it. and i’ve not touched chocolate for a long time!!
Noch Noch
Samantha Bangayan
OMG! I SOO agree, Noch Noch! =) I can’t live without chocolate! =P Here in Huancayo, the best imported chocolate I can get is M&M’s and Snickers. =)
You know, it might be a good thing health-wise that you haven’t been eating chocolate lately! =)
Li @Flash Fiction
I used to go camping as a kid and loathed washing up at the hand pump. So, yes, hot water would be at the top of my list as a “want that I need”. I’m glad that you at least have access to a kettle and can get a small amount of hot water that way. The truth is, we can adapt to most situations; the key to being happy is to do it with intelligence and good humour, which you have in spades 🙂
Samantha Bangayan
What wisdom, Li. =) And thank you so much for the compliment! I don’t know about intelligence, but thankfully, I have had a much better humour here in Peru. =) I think it has to do with being so relaxed. =)
Adrienne
Oh you poor thing Samantha…
I did a post not long ago to support a friend who launched his product on how to get on reality TV. My best friend always joked with me and told me I should audition for Survivor because my personality would win everyone over. I told him hell no, there was no way I could go without taking a shower, brushing my teeth or washing my hair for 39 days. Are you kidding me? A luxury I guess we all take for granted.
Samantha Bangayan
Haha! =) I guess Survivor’s not for everyone! I grew up in a household where cleanliness and hygiene were really important, so I can definitely relate. =)
Chiui
Hello! Awesome blog you got here 🙂
I used to take a bath like that everyday! I studied in the Philippines and I stayed in a dormitory which didn’t use any kind of heater so whenever I take a bath, I either heat up water and mix it with cold shower water like you do… or endure the cold (It can get pretty cold in Los Banos, Laguna, PH too). Haha.
As for me, can’t live without the microwave!
Samantha Bangayan
Hi Chiui! It’s so great to meet you! I just skimmed your blog and can’t believe how much we have in common. =P I’m Filipino and from Vancouver too!
My mom, who grew up in Manila, took baths like how I take baths now. It’s the reason I thought of it in the first place because I always remember taking baths like this when I visited my grandparents in the Philippines. =)
I’m impressed that you’d endure the cold sometimes! =) I don’t think I’ve *ever* taken a purely cold shower in my life. =P
Man, do I wish I had a microwave too. Haha! =)
Amy
OMG Samantha! I can not see myself showering from a bucket with hot water boiled in a kettle previousely! You are a trooper! 🙂
Samantha Bangayan
Haha! Thanks, Amy! =) I didn’t think I could do it either. =P
Deeone Higgs
Wow Sam, if you recall, Tim and I had a similar experience right before we moved to where we are now. The pipes in our home burst underground, and left us 3 weeks going without indoors plumbing. Being a lover of hot showers myself, I know exactly what you’re going through. Luckily for us we were in a more private setting, and was able to take bucket showers outside. It was early spring so the weather was pretty decent here in Atlanta. It was fun for a minute, but I certainly couldn’t see doing it any longer than we had too. That was certainly one of those luxuries I learned that I didn’t want to go without. I’d go as far as saying that it was the biggest luxury I’ve learned to appreciate. That’s some pickle to be stuck in. I hope it works out that you’ll be able to use it somehow.
Samantha Bangayan
Omigosh! I hadn’t even realized the consequences of your plumbing issue. Good thing you weren’t stuck in winter in Canada. =P Yikes! I had a friend once who took showers at the local gym when he was having issues with plumbing. Haha!
Penelope J.
Sam, I don’t know how you can stand not having the hot showers you love. That’s pure torture or a big sacrifice. I know what it’s like. Years ago, my husband and I and my oldest son went to live on my father-in-law’s rather primitive ranch for several months. No showers worked. My mother-in-law (who didn’t live there) told me “Bathe in the pond – that’s what I did” but that communal bathing site didn’t appeal to me. So I ended up with the bucket method – or not at all. Fortunately, being English, one is less concerned about personal hygiene when living in the sticks. However, I can’t believe Huancayo would be so backwards. You got some good suggestions so maybe you’ll find something that will work. I salute your adaptability.
Samantha Bangayan
Omigoodness! I think I would be super uncomfortable with the pond bathing idea too. =P You know, I’ve always fantasized the idea of living and working on a farm, but the adobe huts, hole-in-the-ground toilet, and lack of showers would ruin me! =) Haha!
Noch Noch | be me. be natural.
oh just one more thing i can’t live without – my Snuffles bears!!!
🙂
Noch Noch
Samantha Bangayan
Aww!! =) <3
Janine
OMG I so hear you about the shower thing. When I lived in England and the places I stayed only had baths I nearly died. And if I did stay somewhere with a shower the water pressure was terrible and the water never got hot enough. I remember washing my hair in the sink to try and get the suds out of my thick hair. I so cannot live without showers, and I too step out of them all red due to the scalding hotness that I have to have the water set on.
Samantha Bangayan
Wow! I had no idea it could be like that in England too! When I first arrived in Huancayo and we only had cold water, I washed my hair in the laundry sink too. =P And then I’d sponge bathe. Haha! I just realized how much more ghetto that was.
Hilda
Hey sammantha,
I’m the same as you, I need my hot showers. I took a cold shower before and it practically ruin my whole day 🙁
another thing I can’t live without is my make up, I have to look pretty the whole time hahahahhaha, even if I’m living in a shit hole lol
xoxo
~Hilda
Samantha Bangayan
Haha! I can imagine, Hilda! You know, I think I’ve *never* taken a cold water shower before. It would probably ruin my day too.
Haha! =) Your comment about make-up reminds me of my sister. I think she’d say the same. =)
Meghan
Sam, I am so impressed by your positive attitude! My new apartment in Lima has a tiny water heater that doesn’t keep hot water even for one shower. I’m like you and enjoy my scalding hot water, so now I am slowly adjusting to luke warm water. You are now my inspiration for being thankful for what I have!
Samantha Bangayan
Haha! =) Aww thanks, Meghan. I need to continually remind myself that it’s not the end of the world and your comment has been a nice reminder! =) <3
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