nomad4ever

Countries around the equator are very different from each other. Latin America is a green jungle-hell and Central Africa is as diverse a landscape as it can get; ranging from deserts to dense forests, savannahs, high peaks and deep valleys.

The Indian Ocean with its Maldives and the scattered Pacific Islands are a different story again; and then there is South East Asia – that’s where I stay.

One thing all those regions have in common: they are damn hot all-year-round, you are perspiring constantly and need to re-plenish your minerals and body fluids. Otherwise you are getting into the dangerzone of dehydration. You definitely don’t want that!

So what to do to avoid dehydration?

Just drink something! When thirsty in my old home country Germany, the obvious choice was the way to the refrigerator. Cola, Orange, Apple or other Juices, Milk, Beer in its original form or with Malt or Root Taste – or whatever else you desire can be found in this magic white box. Is it healthy? That depends, what and how much you drink during the day. Around the equator you are basically thirsty all day. So you have to drink all the time.

But nobody would drink 3-4 litres of Malt Beer in one day, except if you want to look like Michael Moore. The calorie intake would blow you up in just a few weeks like a balloon.

So what’s your point, you ask? Just hang your head in the kitchen sink to drink plain water from the tap!

Unfortunately, besides Singapore and am not so sure about Hong Kong; this is by no means an option in the rest of Asia. Tap water is simply not drinkable here – period. Asia isn’t a single continent, it’s mainly made up of lot’s of islands, with Indonesia’s 17.000 islands and the Philippines with 7.000 islands as the next runner up. On top of that, the whole region isn’t called “The Ring of Fire” for nothing, with a few hundred volcanoes and constant earthquakes shaking up the infrastructure whenever possible. Water processing facilities are sparely scattered around those islands.

For governments it is difficult and increasingly costly to build reliable water processing facilities and pipes country-wide and provide its citizen with clear, hygienic drinking water.

That’s where the big companies jump in:

There has a whole industry around drinking water and ice cube supply developed in Asia. If you live here, it may sound trivial and all too common to you; but for the Old Europe countries this is completely unusual. For us drinking ‘water from the tap’ is the more trivial and day-2-day thing. Drinking water distribution in huge bottles is almost unheard of, of course, you can buy your Evian or Volvic fix in supermarkets everywhere, but mainly in small and handy sizes only.

Here in Bali, water is especially cheap. You can buy a whole 21 litre bottle (about 4-5 gallons) of Danone’s AQUA for Rupiah 10.000 or less – that’s only a little more than 1 USD.

Amazing! And this is even on the more upmarket side.

Of course Danone claims, that

• they source their water from protected natural mountain springs.
• Even before processing, the spring water used for the production of their bottled water is of the highest quality, and can even be consumed safely without processing first.
• their bottled water contains important minerals in just the right composition.
• The PH of its water sources is a neutral PH of around 7, which is ideal for drinking water.
• they utilize in line processes to guarantee a hygienic product, their production process has been acknowledged internationally.
• the packaging fulfills international food and beverage grade safety standards.
• Danone imposes strict sanitation standards that ensure the safety of its refillable gallon jugs.

So far so good.

If you are happy with standard processed water from small, government independent water processing stations (purified with ), then you can buy a 21 litre bottle for as low as Rupiah 2.500 (don’t even know, how much that is currently in USD, probably around 0.25). Isn’t that unbelievable cheap? This water is mainly drawn from ground or sea water and filtered, purified and disinfected by Clorine, Ozone or UV radiation.

I stick here with branded water though, you don’t have to push your health that far, right?

Still there is the problem of too hot weather and the need for a cold drink.

And even more important – how do you drink from those giant bottles?

Tataaaa! The answer to both questions is:

Water Dispensers. You can buy them in all shapes and sizes, with hot and cold water dispensing taps. Just place one in your room, connect to electricity and you have the most delicious ice-cold mountain water for your ice-tea or almost boiling hot water for a nice, hot coffee.

Prefer a bit of taste instead plain, boring water? Just mix it with syrup, cordial or instant soda powder, depending on your personal taste preferences.

So, am I dehydrated yet? Hell no!

With so much bottled drinking water around, I worry more if I will even get a water belly one day….

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written by Chris