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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][b]Op, don’t you hydrate? Or you one of those constantly buying plastic bottles?[/b]

I always carry my backpack— even when out in the US. I have water bottles, snacks, books, wallet, chargers, sanitizer, first aid, and whatever else we need. I have 3 kids but used to carry the backpack while traveling in my 20s! [/quote]

I mean, I do think this concept of constant "hydration" is pretty new. When I was growing up, kids did not carry around reusable water bottles all the time, and I don't recall an epidemic of dehydration. We just went to the water fountain if we were thirsty.

As an adult, I do not carry a water bottle around NYC, where I live, or around the urban metropolises that I visit, unless it is extremely warm. I will bring water to national parks and rural areas, where there's no guarantee of a cafe for me to get a drink. So while I do not support OP's anti-backpack stance, I also don't buy into the hydration hysteria that has gripped so many. [/quote]

Well, carrying water with you is new, but hydration is not.  When we were kids, many people had hoses and kids just drank from water hoses whenever they could.  There were many moms who told kids when they ran off for several hours to rememeber to drink water (on hot days).  We didn't carry water around, but we definitely were warned to stay hydrated.  Maybe not as militantly as we are now, but it was definitely mentioned back then (I'm 58, so I was a kid of the 70's)

As another PP mentioned, water fountains used to be much more available and maintained.  Nowadays, they aren't always maintained, so water is not nearly as available as it used to be.  I've found lots of times that water fountains are out of order.  Facilities don't repair these as quickly or often as they used to.

Additionally, many places now charge for cups or water, so carrying water with you is cheaper.  It's also more environmentally sensitive as you don't waste cups, especially non-recyclable cups (styrofoam, waxed paper, non-recyclable plastic cups, etc).  Also, many places have a "facilities are for patrons only" so if you are not a patron, then you can't use rest rooms and since the water fountains are by the rest rooms, you often can't get to water fountains unless you are patronizing that establishment.

There are lots of good reasons to carry water with you now, if you aren't going to a specific place where you know there are working water fountains.

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