Monday, 7 June 2010

Um ... a Shower Cap please?

Whey yuh Say??? A Shower Cap???? uhhh .. no .. we don't have that!

Ok so finding a Shower Cap in Bergen is surprisingly harder than I thought. Ok ... but should I be surprised? .. I've moved from a majority Ethnicity in Trinidad to a minority in Norway. Of COURSE finding Afro things will now be like hunting for a hibiscus in the Tundra Snow. The comments I got about this is ... Its only for rich people.... use a swimming cap... check here... or here... or here.... a pharmacy? ... a hair saloon.
So let's look this over .. why is this? ... Surely SOMEONE MUST use Shower caps? Why then are they available in hotels? ... for style? .. or is it that Rich people don't wash their hair everyday?.. yes ... the joys of having Afro Hair in a place where it cost as much as 5000 KR just to "relax" your hair!! .
Pennywise in Trinidad was most happy with me .. since I bought about 5 Dr. Miracle Hair Relaxer products to do my self. Yes I knew that before I came here it would be a riduclous price... i DID visit the place before I said yes to the man.... I knew what I was getting into when it came to straightening my hair. It was the Shower cap part that blew me away.
It didn't help when we went around asking and people's eyes were popping out of their heads as if we were swearing at them or we were asking for the most ridiculous thing they had heard in a while.
So plastic bag on head I humbly shower... thinking of my little shower cap that I left home. No worries people...I am resourceful.
Caucasion people get to wash their hair every day ..... we mixed hair and afro hair beauties will be left with some serious Brittle if we ever attempted that!

Now its not just a shower cap that is hard to find ... its a large container of petroleum jelly, or vaseline for the parched skin the dry air creates, its the Baking Soda, Bicarbonate or Soda that is impossible to get!! ok .. they do have it online at a "everything" store, but it costs 200kr for a kilo... and a BOOk about the great 500 uses of Baking soda costs 99kr. go figure... According to my neighbour 's mom I would only be able to brush my teeth once a week for it to be cost effective!

We take for granted all the things that we are used to. Like most migrated people, I'm tempted to travel home next time with barely anything in my suitcase and tote home a suitcase filled with baking soda, vaseline and hair products. Or I can just adapt to my new home. I'll think about what i'll do.... but for the meanwhile, I'll just enjoy the shock of lack of what I'm used to....
Shower Cap?? Whey Yuh Say??

3 comments:

  1. A SHOWER CAP! FOR RICH PEOPLE! Oh it is to laugh. Good grief. (I'll leave my comment there. The rest I'll tell you in person) A Shower cap?! EH? Whey you say dey?

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  2. Yes I Know Racquel! .. Its absolutely Preposterous! ... But when I run out it will be easy to use a plastic bag again

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  3. well darling, we are in the same boat. I decided to 'chap' my hair off rather than pay out over 100 euros to have mine chemically relaxed. and well as for beauty supplies I buy them in trinidad cause even if you find black hair products in europe they cost a hell of a lot of money. For dry skin i suggest the really thick nivia cream in the navy blue tin quite effective against drying due to cold dry wind.
    But i think you should be able to find a shower cap man, make friend with some old woman in the village and she may tell you where to find them. Or maybe in one of those lage chain supermarkets with everything inside.

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