Plastic Fast Update 1 - Toiletries

So it´s been nearly 2 months since I decided to give up plastic this year. In very general terms, I´m trying not to bring any new plastic into the house, although reusing what I´ve already got. So as I gradually run out of things that come in plastic containers, I´m looking for other alternatives..... here´s a few I´ve encountered already....

Toothpaste comes in a plastic tube, which can´t be reused or recycled. Instead I´ve found a natural toothpaste that comes in a glass pot - the taste takes a bit of getting used to.... so next time, I might try to make my own toothpaste (thank you internet!). I´m also on the look-out for bamboo toothbrushes.

Deoderant is another thing that comes in plastic packaging, that doesn´t seem to be able to be recycled. Instead I´ve found deoderant stone - which comes in a nice fabric bag - and has a huge number of other advantages. The stone is completely organic, doesn´t leave any marks, is odourless and is just as protective as other deoderants. 

And then there´s shampoo. My sister suggested going the 'no-poo' route - ie stop hairwashing altogether, as left to it´s own devices, your hair and scalp will naturally clean themselves. It can be a bit of a process to get there though, and I´m not convinced that it could deal with regular chlorine and /or salt water submersion!  So for the meantime, I´ve found shampoo bars (ie solid shampoo like a bar of soap), and have cut down the frequency of hairwashing... working towards the no-poo method in the future.

In a couple of weeks, I´ll give you an update on food purchases.

San Pedro La Laguna

 Last week, I spent some time in San Pedro La Laguna. I had a few meetings and was writting and editing a couple of my essays, but obviously also had chance to swim every morning.

 I swim from outside my hostel, to the end of a rocky outcrop and back (a few times). Anyway last week, almost at the end of the rocks, I noticed that there were 2 big fluffy chicks sat on a rocky ledge - and sometimes they´d go behind a bush. So every morning I would see the chicks - who were loosing a bit more fluff each day, and occasionally visited by their parents!! From the water, I thought they were something like eagles (but I´m not much of a bird watcher)..... one day I scrambled over the rocks on foot, and managed to get these photos of one of the parents.... and once I´d consulted with a bird book, I realised that they´re actually vultures. But it was great being able to see the chicks every morning, and on the last day, they were doing a lot of jumping up and down, and flapping their wings, obviously getting ready to fly.

 Also seen last week -- a white heron ... and a kingfisher..... the best view is always from the water, but generally a bit tricky to have a camera with me whilst I swim!