Would being naked ever get boring?

“Always wearing the same thing is boring.”

Clothes

This is what I heard a while ago. Given the amount of different kinds of clothing, one might almost think that’s a valid statement.

However… if we think back to ancient times, and I mean the times before you and I and even the oldest person in the world was born, most people didn’t have that much of a choice in attire (if they even needed that). Let’s have a look at that.

Prehistoric life and times

Prehistoric people apparently wore skins to keep themselves warm. I doubt they had many options, like a Versace bear skin, or a Levi’s loin cloth. They’d probably wear what they had until it fell apart and then got something new.

The image above should demonstrate that, but for me there’s wrong with it. If the temperature is such that their upper bodies are not covered, and the child is entirely naked, why would they even wear such a thing? I’m pretty much convinced that this originates more from the painter’s modest mind than from actual need during that time.

Killing a bear with a stone axe (like she holds) or a bow (like he holds) would be quite a chore. My guess is that prehistoric people would go around naked much more than modern ideas allow. Look at how the man’s leg movement would be restricted by his ‘skirt’, and now imagine him running after some game to hunt down. That’s not going to fill stomachs well, unless prehistoric people had a particular way to run. In that case I would love to see that. Please share your prehistoric videos!

Living life naked

Paul in the woods

With this in mind, I started writing this blog post, the start of which might have confused you. Clothes? Yes, that was how I wanted to get to this spot.

Anyone who has spent a significant amount of time in the nude, be it at home, on vacation or wherever, has experienced the freedom it brings.

Have you ever had the idea that wearing the same skin all the time is boring? After all, it’s the only one you have, and as far as I know there are no shops to get another one, in the right shade of red that’s fashionable this summer. For myself I have never had that idea.

Charco del Palo, nude in the street
Charco del Palo

On my vacations to naturist places, like Charco del Palo, I have spent a lot of time naked, and not once did that feel boring.

Many others there also walked around in the same lack of attire and everyone had a good time. I don’t think anyone ever gave the boring concept some thought. And even then, if your regular skin is boring, there’s always body painting!

sunday body paint
Body painting session in New York

Do you know the (perhaps) strangest nude job ever?

You might think that a person ironing clothes at a naturist resort has a strange job. Maybe you can come up with something that, for you, is even weirder.

Let me tell you about something I learnt a few days ago.

Henry 8

For this we have to go back to the times of Henry the Eighth in good old England, around 1520 CE.

In those days people loved to eat, and eat well, especially in the courts of the royals. That food had to be prepared.

A fine tradition for meat-eating England in those days was roasting animals on a spit. You all know the contraptions; close to a fire and turning the spit before one side is black and the other is raw.

Back in those days there were no electric motors, so turning the spit was something done by hand. And who could do that better than children?

Yes, no one was scared of child labour in the swinging 1600s, so kids were recruited to work in the kitchen, turning the spit. The positive thing was that they were off the street, warm and near food. The negative thing was that ‘warm’ was taken to extremes because the spit was very close to a fire and so was the spit-turning child.

Naked in the kitchen

Yes, very often the children would be naked in the kitchen for that very reason. If they wore something like a loin cloth, that was often too much already.

Maybe it is clear already that not every naked job is one to be envious of, because the spit was large, the chunks of meat on them too, so the work was very heavy. Also, because the meat slab was so huge, the roasting took upto 3 or even 4 hours to get done well. Imagine standing near a blazing fire for that long, constantly rotating a spit. As a child.

Nope, not a healthy thing.

Adding clothing to the mix

At one point this practice came to an end. No, the children weren’t relieved of this job; they did well. The problem was that, at some moment, someone from the court entered a kitchen and saw a naked child.

Being the good royal, this was reported to Henry 8, who then decreed that funds should be made available to clothe those children. Which made their situation even worse…

Historic references

This turnspit practice is referenced in several works:

The boy was taken into the King’s kitchen and made a turnspit. – “A Child’s History of England” by Charles Dickens

You’re nothing but a turnspit. – “Misalliance” by George Bernard Shaw

Morning quiet. Feeling nature naked.

Not the view from my balcony!

A few days ago, early morning, I was out on the balcony. Naked, because the temperature was surprisingly gentle for a February morning so I took advantage of it.

There is something amazing, wonderful, soothing to be out there, hearing blackbirds call out (yes, they are early this year) and hardly hearing anything else out there.

I even was blessed with the absence of cars while I stood there and took in nature from where I was. It was still dark. That helped me to imagine I was out in nature, surrounded by trees, grass, lakes, anything non-human.

In nature, away from people

Sometimes I need that. To be all alone, away from the madness of humanity, mingling with the feel of nature itself.

That is a big part of nature-ism for me. Nothing on me, no one around me. I just want to take in the healing feeling of what nature has to offer, and enjoy that as much as I can.

It doesn’t take much to enjoy that, for me. I know many people have difficulties with that, though. They are so much into the stress and haste and hurry of life that they forget to stop and really ‘feel’.

I pity those people.

Calm down. Undress. Unstress.

Naturist vacation in South America. Where to go?

What are good naturist vacation options in Latin America?

My girlfriend and I are looking at a naturist vacation far away. I understand that South America doesn’t sound very far away for people in the US. From Europe it’s quite a haul.

I’ve been looking around for Mexico but the options there seem to be quite limited. I found a place that’s super luxurious and costs an arm and a leg for a night. That’s not what we want.

Also it’s not what we can afford.

I had a look at the Dominican Republic as well. The only nudist hotel there that I found is Eden Bay. There are many references to it online, e.g. on TripAdvisor, but their website is either down or broken – I can’t get to it. Does anyone have experiences with Eden Bay? Is it still operational even? (Since their website doesn’t work…)

Through naturist-resort.com I found 3 options. 2 no longer have a working website. Only Caribbean Nature on St Martin looks operational, and that seems to be a nice place.

Naked Crow 3 - Nagual

I’m genuinely surprised that the number of naturist vacation options in South America is so limited. Either that, or they do their best to stay hidden and under the radar.

It really makes me wish that the resort from Naked Crow 3 had really been built.

So yes, this is not your regular blog post. This is a call-out to people who have been to decent naturist resorts or hotels in Latin America. I would love to hear from you. Where were you, what were your experiences, what do you recommend and what is totally a place to stay away from? A big, nude thank you from me and my girlfriend!

Normalising Nudism

You don’t have to be naked to normalize it

You may have heard of it. Or seen it online as #NormalisingNudism.

And yes, the British s in Normalising pops up everywhere.

A great naturist/nudist friend of mine,Nevada Motojicho, wrote: “You don’t always have to be naked to normalize it.” (Follow the link to find him on MeWe or look for him on Twitter.)

That struck a chord with me that sparked this post. Because he is right.

Traditionally nudists flock with birds that have the same lack of feathers, in this instance: clothes. That’s how they feel most at home and natural. The fewer restrictions for the body, the more nudist they are. Check.

But… statistically, as far as I know, the majority of people in this world are not nudists but textilists. They’re the human species that do not come close to nude beaches and such venues because, well, there’s a lack of textile there. Figures, right?

So, take your average group of people.

Like on the left.

All happy and… dressed. Poor souls. We all know that.

What better setting than this to start educating?

No, this doesn’t mean you should find a bunch of people in clothes and get naked near them. Unless you like that and want to risk being arrested, which will happen in most Earthly places.

It’s just grabbing the opportunity to talk about nudism or naturism. As soon as hobbies come up. When vacation comes up. When spending a leisurely evening comes up. And you don’t need to slap nudist in their face immediately either, unless you know it won’t be a problem. There are many ways to introduce a nude lifestyle to people. Expressions like ‘clothes are overrated in my house’, for instance. That leaves it to everyone to draw their own conclusions. If they’re curious, they will come and ask, even when it may take some time for them to gather some courage.

I think it’s also important to keep it at one or two remarks at first. Don’t overdo it, or you risk ticking people off. Looking like a nudist addict can stigmatise you as a pervert in modern society.

I’m curious what you think about this. How you approach things like this.

Paul