I'm from Brazil and last year I spent a month in France with a host family (french course).
I usually take 2 showers a day, one in the morning and one before sleep.
I did that for the first days, but the family start to "question" me about it and make some 'jokes' about it ("You get dirty while sleeping?"). I was't sure it as just a joke or they war sarcastic (its really hard to know when its in a foreign languague...), so I decided to stop and take only 1 shower a day.
I had my own room but i shared the bathroom with 2 teenagers from the host family -14 and 18 years old- , and I noticed that somedays I was the only one who took a bath.
Well, I think it depends upon the individuals habits.
I can say for my family in Switzerland, even having the habit to take shower more than once a day in Brazil, they tend to be more relaxed about it in CH. I would say it is related to weather in Europe vs. in the Tropics.
From a different perspective, these days we should be saving clean water, energy, etc. So, reduce the number of showers and still keep a good hygienic condition seems to be a trend anywere.
In Australia we would assume that adults take a bath/shower daily...however we do have a common belief that the English only bath once a week.
It's cultural and it has to do with availability of water, climate and beliefs about cleanliness...as well as what you do in your work - my brother-in-law is a Plumber and he definitely showers before coming into the house after work every day - he even has a separate bathroom in his house that he only uses for 'sanitation' purposes...
I've heard somewhere that swiss people only use 2 wet serviettes, one for lower part, one for upper part. hehehe anyway, i'm also from indonesia and is used to taking 2 times shower a day. but i cannot handle not having a shower for 2 days!.
The Swiss bath water is of better quality than the water drunk by, let's say, three fourths of the world's population.
Unless one has an unusually high propensity for body odour or skin infections or "getting dirty while sleeping", IMO having more than one shower a day is unjustifiable (and unfashionable).
Despite the thread title, the OP is talking about the French family joking because she has 2 showers per day, saying that you don't get dirty while you sleep.
I do think this is a waste of water and wouldn't do it unless I skink like smoke, exercised or been for a swim in the lake.
I never felt that, but I grew up in Australia and constantly dipped into the pool in the backyard if the weather was too warm. I guess that counts as a type of wash...
The French where I live certainly expect to shower daily, like many of my British friends, but I guess there are always exceptions (one British friend has a bath once a week after her mum has used the same water - she's 28!). I think in these cooler climates, a shower once a day is quite normal, but twice a day excessive.
Ja, it does seem to be pretty much the norm for Swiss people to not bathe too often ...... My grandson sleeps over at friends and says his friends only bath once a week. Girls seem to "top and tail" before going to bed at night, boys just wash their teeth and face.
Body sheds skin every day, and my family all bath/shower every day. Sweaty outdoor work requires 2 showers. We do not like to make our beds smell of "old body"!
Switzerland uses only a fraction of its available water supply, so I do not see what the issue could be? (apart from personal hygiene standards)
In hot countries with dwindling water supplies excessive bathing could be a problem.
In my Gemeinde you may shower as often as you wish. However, just like it is not allowed to crop the tails off of puppies in Switzerland, the Brazilian wax is also illegal here. If you appear to be anything other than "au naturelle" while at the public beach or pool, you will face a hefty fine.
I was talking to my Uncle last month, and the subject came up about student exchange and he told us all never again, so i was really curious why never again, and he told me that his eldest daughter had a French exchange student stay with them, she had travelled on a coach from France to the UK, and when they picked her up she was not smelling wonderful, they asked her if she would like a shower and she refused, and never showered the whole week she was there .