My Sanctuary

The Shower Shack

Sumbawa is a predominantly Muslim island. Most women cover their heads and most of their bodies. So you can imagine how I feel about camping in an entirely open wooden structure with guys working all over the property and scooters driving past our fence.

Bear in mind, we have no bathroom and no privacy. So ‘toilet duties’ for me are limited to a bucket in a corner of the house with the least exposure and no workers around. This ‘corner’ tends to vary from day to day and hour to hour as works progress around the house.

My daily respite is an old shack in a neighbouring surf camp, which houses a shower with hot water. The shack is an old concrete room with pipes sticking out of the wall and spiders crawling overhead. The shack’s roof is shared with a toilet so it is not unusual to overhear certain sounds from next door! It is amazing how the smell of my shower gel creates a sense of home and comfort. Those few minutes at the end of each day are magical while the water washes away the day’s grime and sweat. This is the only time I can close a door and have a few square metres of privacy. MY SANCTUARY.

Tip: Always pack a very special shower gel or shampoo that whisks you away from reality and takes you back to a special place.

friendly neighbours on my way to the shower shack

who are you staring at?