Periods & Boats without Toilets
Staying Warm, Gloves and Blisters
Climbing into Boats without Ladders
How to Stay Stationary Underwater
Periods and Boats without Toilets
Yes, of course you can dive while having your period. Use tampons lah, then what?
Bring anti-bacterial hand gel, spare tampons, pantiliners and a few ziplock bags with you onto the dive boat. Bring spare underwear if you're expecting to be out all day and will not have a chance to return to your hotel room. If your flow is heavy, change tampons once or twice a day. I don't have to tell you to read about toxic-shock syndrome.
No toilet on the dive boat? This is where a sarong comes in handy. Go to a quiet corner on the boat, wrap the sarong round you, remove tampon, wrap neatly and place in ziplock bag. Tuck it somewhere in a discreet pouch and discard when you return to shore. (It's just not polite to throw used tampons into the boat's rubbish bin.) Putting in a fresh tampon is a bit tricky without a toilet, and it might be better to forego the last one or two dives and just put on a fresh pair of underwear with a pantiliner and wait it out till you get back to the hotel.
Bear in mind that I'm talking about a real sarong, not your flimsy pareo with tassles. A real sarong, wrapped around you from your bust downwards, goes all the way down to mid-calf.
Where can I get a real sarong?
If you travel frequently to Malaysia or Indonesia, you can get them anywhere, from little family run shops to department stores. If you want to get one from Singapore, my recommendation is Geylang Serai. Joo Chiat Complex is overflowing with textile shops. You can get a few metres of traditional batik print for a few dollars. (And while you're at it, buy a sarong kebaya for fun.)
By the way, Geylang Serai is especially nice during the Hari Raya Light-Up period (around Nov/Dec every year). For exact dates, go to the events calendar at www.visitsingapore.com.
