Little known fact: showers in central america have one, unlabeled nob with which to turn the water on. If you are an American, you will probably automatically assume that this means that there isn't any hot water and that the nob is really just a way to choose how much pressure you want. I made that assumption for the first week that I was here and I suffered through freezing cold showers that made my teeth chatter for a full half hour afterwards. I would turn the pressure up as high as it would go so that my hair would rinse faster and I could get the heck out of there. Showering was the one thing I dreaded all day.
And then.
Being the klutz that I am, I slipped just as I was turing off the water one day and discovered that the trickle coming out of the shower head was actually warm. Warm water! I was like a girl trapped on a desert island flagging down a passing ship. I stood there for a full 30 seconds as I realized that, 1) hot water was obtainable; 2) I had been taking ice showers for the past week for no reason; and 3) I am a complete and total moron.
I have since discovered that taking a shower here really is an art form. The hot water doesn't come out consistently unless you let the cold water run full-blast for a bit first. You cannot have both hot water and good pressure, so taking a hot shower is a long process. Also, there isn't enough hot water for two people to shower in the same three hour window. Like any art, warm showers take sacrifice but they are so, so worth it.
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