It is no secret that I have fair skin. Really fair skin. I don't mind it. These days it seems to make me unique with the "tanorexic" craze going on. If I do get a tan (which I have before!) it fades within a few days. It is more likely that my freckles will connect than I will get a deep tan. I'd like to think that even if I had skin that tanned easily, I would still apply sunscreen religiously.
During a recent sea kayaking/snorkeling excursion on Culebra Island (Puerto Rico), I thought I was prepared. I had a brand new bottle of spray-on SPF 30. The instructor kept reiterating the importance of sunscreen application. Out of about 10 people standing there, he took one look at me and said, "You're definitely going to need some!" Thanks.
So I sprayed. And I sprayed. And I sprayed some more.
I even found some SPF 50 that was in a bin provided by the instructor and put it on my face. We went out to kayak and snorkel for about an hour and a half, and went back in. I decided to reapply (from top to bottom). I ran out when I got to my knees. There was no more "community" SPF left in the instructor's bin. I thought I would be fine. Not too much longer-- the brochure said the excursion would last three hours.
I was wrong. The end result is displayed above. Sun poisoning! Blisters, swelling, sun burn. Not fun! I opted out of a hiking/zipline tour the next day because wearing sneakers was out of the question.
The moral of this travel story: when in doubt, pack MORE sunscreen! (And my recommendation is to invest in the lotion and not the spray. I find that the spray does not last as long and does not apply as evenly as it claims to!)
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