when you travel in the developing world, there's all these things you're told to do. things like drinking only bottled water, avoiding raw vegetables (because they were probably washed in the water) and ice in drinks, and only eating fruits that you peel. when i was in africa, i followed the rules religiously, but on other trips i sometimes cut some corners to varying degrees depending on my mood. i ignored almost all the rules last weekend; i'm sure that had nothing to do with my illness.
anyway, one thing that's always bothered me is why i've never heard any warnings about shaving. i always shave with a real razor, not electric. i'm also not particularly good at it. most days that i shave i cut myself, though often the cut is quite small. but no matter how small it is, the water inevitably gets into my cut because i clean the blade with the water as i shave and wash off the shaving cream when i'm done. when i was in mali i would meticulously avoid any contact between the tap water and my mouth, i'd brush my teeth with bottled water. but then i'd shave and effectively put the water directly into my bloodstream. if the water was really so dangerous, that couldn't be good. but it's never caused me any problems. and i've never seen any warnings that deal with water and shaving.
does anyone have any idea why that is?
