This past week the wife and I took a little vacation.
If you remember from an earlier article about the Carnival Triumph (Click here to read the original story) I told you that I would be taking a few extra precautions and bringing my own supplies on board.
No amount of gear that I had could have prepared us for what would happen on-board that ship.
The quick and dirty of it is this; It was our worst vacation ever, involving a 72 hour quarantine in a 230 sq ft cabin, blistering sunburn, and bees; but that is a story for another time.
Our trip started out rather chilly but on Day 3 of the cruise it had finally warmed up a bit. I decided that it was time to take a relaxing dip in the hot tub.
So I tossed on my swim trunks, grabbed a towel, and headed up to the spa level for a relaxing dip.
But I forgot one very important thing… I am pale and the Caribbean sun is unforgiving.
Oh I brought sunscreen, 3 bottles of it to be exact (my wife is even more pale than I am), I just forgot to put it on.
P.S. Be sure to check in next week, I'll give you the details of our worst vacation ever!
Thirty minutes later I was back in my cabin having a quick shower.
When I stepped out the first thing my wife said was something like “I didn't know that I married a lobster”.
One look in the mirror and I understood… The next few days were going to be painful.
Luckily that was the only time I went out with sunscreen.
I have put sunscreen over a burn before and it never seemed to help keep the burn from getting worse.
But I had also never used Neutrogena Wet Skin after already being burnt.
I was dreading the next day as we had a 3 hour snorkeling excursion planned for my wife's birthday and i didn't want to end up a crispy red lump for the rest of the vacation.
The good:
A large bottle (1 bottle lasts 4-6 full body uses for both myself and my wife).
Easy to activate and lock to keep from spilling in your luggage or emergency kits.
A range of SPF ratings (30-85) to suit just about any need for protection.
Here is the best part it can be applied and reapplied to wet skin! It's not called Neutrogena Wet Skin for nothing.
This comes in really handy if you are out kayaking, swimming, or even just a heavy sweater, you don't have to stop and dry off before you can spray it back on.
The Bad:
The price is a little steep (running between 9 and 11 dollars per bottle unless you find it in a bulk pack from a Sam's or CostCo)
Chemical smell is a little strong ( as a side note applying it to 2 people in an enclosed space such as a cruise ship cabin is not recommended…)
It may just be a personal thing with my body chemistry, but extended exposure tends to make me break out.
The Bottom Line:
I spent over 3 hours in the sun with an already nasty burn and it didn't get worse… although the application did sting and itch for a bit where I was burned. But the fact that I didn't have to take time out of my excursion to towel off and wait for it to soak in saved me a ton of time and allowed me to make the most of the experience.
I do highly recommend keeping Neutrogena Wet Skin on hand regardless of if it is in your bug out bag or just taken with you on a vacation especially if you are as ghostlike as my wife and I. Even if you decide not to use this particular brand, make sure that you have some sort of skin protection.
Your skin is the largest organ in your body and it is tough, but it is still only 2-3mm thick. Having a sunburn on vacation is one thing but you can't afford to have your skin compromised during a survival situation.
What sunblock do you use? Do you have something better, or maybe have a recipe for home made sunblock? Let me know!
