When I went to live in the West Indies in the mid-60s air travel was just beginning to make it possible for West Indians to fly to New York to visit family & friends, or to get an education. It was not unusual for women to come home with a large suitcase containing plastic bottles – the large, brightly coloured ones which had contained fabric conditioner were especially popular.
Empty, of course; no one could afford the excess baggage for full ones. But the novel containers were valuable in themselves for all kinds of storage in a humid, insect ridden climate.
We had no municipal rubbish collection service out in the country – you had to be your own waste collection & disposal officer. Not a very onerous task since most food waste went to animal feed. Fruit peelings – pineapple in particular – were put into large glass carboys, covered in water & left out in the sun to produce a pleasant, slightly fizzy drink. Large tins of dried milk, with lids, made splendid cockroach-proof storage for rice & flour. Medium size tins which had contained butter, ghee or margarine could be used as cake tins or small saucepans. Bottles of locally produced beer or soft drinks could be returned to the shop for ¢ & the small bottles of imported Carlsberg found a ready market in those who used them as containers for home-made sauces for sale in the market – a new crown cork applied with a machine which looked rather like a giant stapler. Coconut husks made splendid fuel for a barbecue. Only small amounts of stuff had to be burned, bashed or buried.
