I’ve always been a water baby. I have a very strong suspicion that I was a mermaid in my past life.
Before the pandemic, I used to go to the beach here in Dubai at least once a month. Also, one of the main requirements when I go flat-hunting is to ensure that I will have access to a pool at least. I would rather pay more in building association dues, just so I have the convenience of having a pool right where I live. It was unfortunate that when this pandemic blew up, the government closed down all community pools, including shared pools in residential buildings.
But since this week, the Dubai Government has lifted the restrictions on community pools. I’m not so sure about the beach, but also, I’m not brave enough to go to the beach yet, so pool it is. I’m sure all that chlorine in the pool will kill all the bacteria and virus going around. For the rest, I have my trustee alcogel.
Since our pool opened this week, I have been going to the pool everyday, as I mentioned in last Sunday’s Sunday the Currently post, along with my trusty Pool Kit. Yes, I have a Pool Kit. Live with it. And because you asked, I will show you what my Pool Kit is, and this kit can easily be expanded to show you what my essentials is for a day trip to the beach.
The Kit
So this is what I normally take to the pool. My travel time is the length of an elevator ride to the pool, so I normally don’t need to grab anything else but my Pool Kit, sunglasses and keys. I wear my swim costume and my toweling robe down the elevator, so that makes it really minimal.
The Kit has the following items in it:
- Speedo Goggles – I wear my contacts to the beach or the pool so I don’t have to wear my eyeglasses. I have to be extra careful not to lose my contacts so I make sure to wear my swim goggles to the pool/beach.
- Alcogel in Muji travel pump bottle – ya can never be too careful
- Adidas 3-1 (Hair, Face, Body) shower gel in Muji travel container – I really like the Adidas 3-1 Shower Gel, especially the green one. I like the For Men variant because I like the smell, and it’s cheaper than the women variant. Also, this is especially handy when you go to the beach or pool with your man. You can share this one container for the day, as this container is good for 2 showers. For longer trips, I would suggest the bigger container.
- Two hair ties – to tie my hair in a ponytail and a bun (I lost my swim cap in Palawan, and I haven’t had the chance to replace it yet.)
- Lucas Pawpaw ointment – good for cuts, insect bites and what have you – this is my all-in-1 first aid kit in a tube.
- Small Hair Brush – This travel brush from body shop has been with me for more than a decade now!
- Sunscreen lotion – this is a travel pack version I got from Manila. I learned the hard way that I burn in the hot UAE sun. Who knew? I’ve always been an island girl and I never burn!
- Sony Waterproof MP3 Player – As I’ve mentioned previously, I’ve always preferred the pool to the gym, so I do all my exercises in the Pool. I love water aerobics – more than I do normal aerobics.
- Unicorn Pouch from Typo – This small pouch is where I keep the MP3 player and its charger, just so they don’t get separated and I don’t lose them. (and also, I love pouches)
- Deo Stick – (not in photo because i forgot to take it out of the locker!) I always keep a deo stick when I do physical exercises.
- Water-resistant pouch from Typo – I just think this is the cutest pouch ever for a Pool Kit! This typo pouch fits everything, including my deo stick and swim cap perfectly.
- Keys in key chain – Locker key and house key. This is normally not in the pool kit, as the pool kit stays in the locker, I just take my slippers and this keychain to the pool!
So that’s my normal everyday pool kit, this gets upgraded to a few more essentials when I go to the beach for a day.
Let’s talk about this beach pouch. This is from Palawan and I love this thing. It’s the smartest 5 dollars I’ve spent ever! This pack is waterproof (and sand proof) which was super super useful to hold my gadgets and beach essentials when we took wet Banca rides to island paradise in Palawan! This thing also floats, so it will keep your gadgets safe and dry in case the boat capsizes. Hopefully you can swim so you’re safe too!
The Beach Kit
So my beach kit has everything in my pool kit plus a few more essentials. I also sometimes take this to the pool if I have more “lounge around” time.
- Pool Kit so my pool kit will normally be here as it has all of my water baby essentials
- Dji Osmo Pocket Camera, tripod and charging case – I like to take photos/videos, in the beach, and this camera makes it extra fun
- Sony Water Proof Action Cam – not in photo right now because I didn’t think to bring it to the pool. I have several. cameras in my collection and I’m sure The Geek will be happy to give you a small preview of my different cameras and their uses. she’ll be more than happy to discuss that, actually!
- Kindle – I like to do my reading in the pool or the beach and this kindle is waterproof, so score! I also bring my Skull Candy Blue Tooth Headphones – Which is the normal partner of my Kindle so i can use the text to speech function and have the kindle read to me while I laze around in the sand.
- powerbank – to juice my gadgets
- iPad – Optional, only when I plan to work by the beach, which is not very often.
- Beach towel
- Spare set of underwear and maybe an extra shirt or a dress. – I normally wear my bathing costume inside my street clothes on my way to the beach so that I can just take them off and run to the beach. After a hard day of swimming, i just wear the clothes i was originally wearing so I don’t have to bring anything but a fresh set of underwear. I try to bring an extra shirt or maybe a dress just in case my first set of clothes are sweaty or yucky already.
Maybe one of these days we’ll all be confident enough to go to the beach for a day trip and I hope these kits will help you pack too! Do you have any other pool or beach essentials? I’d love to hear them. Maybe I can improve my pool kit! Let me know in the comments section below. Until then,
Stay Wild, Moon Child!
XXOO The Gypsy
EllaLand 