If you think you are ready for island living or island hopping, think again! Do not be deceived by those glamorous island photos representing the most unimaginable larger-than-life images of island dwellers. You must know that life on islands can be quite daunting, and, of course, isn’t as fancy as it comes across.
Here are the 7 most important things I wish I knew before making that island trip on my own. Hopefully, my errors and my learning will help you to stay prepared.
Be Careful About The Wounds
When we live in regular temperatures, we don’t really anticipate a small wound to become infectious and scary. However, in tropical conditions, it isn’t that simple. A small wound here can easily become infected and spread all over your body. Particularly, the coral cuts, these coral cuts start growing rapidly. It is a very strong recommendation to bring a medical kit along on your island trips. You would invariably need medical supplies to treat infections. Also, make sure that you don’t ignore the smaller wounds as well. These wounds can get serious in a matter of time.
Communicating In An Old-Fashioned Way
Another beauty of mostly all islands is no or limited access to the internet and phone signals. This means you will have to depend on your letter writing skills to correspond with your dear ones far off. Of course, it will take a long time to write and receive hand written letters, but there is something really endearing about reading a letter written by a loved one.
So be ready to carry a writing pad and pen along with good handwriting and start writing letters in the most classic old-fashioned ways.
Dress Appropriately
Some of the islands, especially the Pacific Islands are very particular about how you dress. Women, in particular, should comprehend the culture of the island before making a trip there. For instance, on Pacific Islands, women are expected to keep their legs covered till the knees. Make sure you stay abreast with their unique island cultures, and dress accordingly. Even for boys, on some islands, short pants are best kept at home.
Even when you go swimming, sometimes, the expectations of the culture may stop you from wearing a bikini. So, the point here is, to dress appropriately depending on the island or islands that you will be visiting.
For Women Only!
If you are like those women who think tampons are easily available even on the islands, wrong! Tampons are not easily available, and, sometimes, not available at all on the islands. Therefore, it is imperative for you to carry those extra tampons with you whenever you make a trip to an island.
Make sure that you carry enough stock of your tampons while traveling to an island.
Lots Of Boat Travel
When you make a trip to an island, be prepared to hop on many boats. Living on tropical islands surely provide many benefits, and one of the major benefits is, to have easy access to several tropical islands via boat rides.
Do not even assume that these boats will have supersonic navigation facilities or life jackets at least, they won’t. Perhaps, you can consider bringing your own life jacket.
Molds Build Up Easily
Due to the rainy weather of tropical islands, when it rains almost every day, molds grow pretty easily. Therefore, make sure that your important documents, such as passport are sealed in Ziploc bags. Carry many Ziploc bags with you, and avoid keeping important papers in leather bags.
Don’t Forget To Carry An Extra Layer Of Clothing
I remember I once forgot to carry my jacket on the Alcatraz Island tour and I was shivering to death, figuratively, of course. The word of advice here is to always carry a jacket along, no matter what time of the year you are visiting the island. You may feel it’s sunny and warm, but it often turns into hellishly cold and foggy afternoon.
Of course, all islands are different and come along with different sets of challenges; however, some of the key points mentioned in this article should help you nevertheless. Stay wisely, and enjoy the thrills that the islands provide you.