November 24, 2004
Travel jabs
Prior to embarking on a round the world trip, there's travel jabs to think about. The last immunisations I had was back in school(a few years ago). First things first I needed a consultation with the travel clinic (if you mention travel jabs to your GP they instantly boot you out the door) anyways first meeting £20 poorer and a list of jabs the length of your arm. Personally I have an aversion to needles more so when you have to pay for the pleasure.
Here’s a breakdown of what is needed for travel to Malawi, Mozambique and a long stay in Northern Thailand(5 Months).
Travel Jabs
- Rabies x3 jabs you need 3 jabs with intervals of a week £15 per jab
- Japanese Encephalitis x2 jabs £35 per jab
- Hepatitis A 1x jab £35
- Hepatitis B x 3 jabs £28 per jab
- Polio – free from the NHS woohoo
- Diphtheria / tetanus – free from the NHS
- Typhoid still to get this one
The only one i didnt seem to need was a yellow fever jab, although you have keep an eye on this depending on where you go in Africa. No side effects to report, bit of a sore arm, you may get some funny looks if you go swimming, lots of needle marks and bruises in your arm? Tends to look a bit dodgy, unless your nearest swimming pool is in Leith.
And that’s about it for travel jabs, you still need anti malarial pills I’ve opted for doxycycline (6 months worth), there are couple of options for malaria pills but this seems most commonly used with very few side effects (You may become more sensitive to the sun) its also used as an antibiotic so will help you out with little cuts etc and any other dodgy bugs you pick up along the way. They can be purchased either 40p per tab from the travel clinic or if you sweet talk your GP you can get a prescription and shop around for them, Sainsbury’s seems pretty good 30p per tab I’ve heard asda is good also but not confirmed.
Grand total
Travel Jabs £234
Malaria pills £70
Travel Jabs Related links
Yellow fever
Info about travel jabs with clickable map
World Health Organization travel page
Information on malaria and its prevention as well as general travel health advice.
Bird Flu - HN51 information
Posted by jon jack at 12:20 PM | Comments (1)
November 22, 2004
Essential travel kit for backpacking
Here’s a list of items I’m taking when travelling maybe essential is a bit over the top, but will all come in handy im sure. I’ve not gone into too much detail and excluded clothing as we’re going to too many different places and will need more than we can carry in a backpack (snowboarding gear etc... which will be shipped separately)
- Inflatable Globe - good for showing kids where live and how far you have travelled.
- Bungee cord - ??? Not sure about this one
- Ziploc bags - Keep essential documents dry
- Stuff sack x2 - hmmm not sure but probably good for dirty socks.
- Leatherman multitool - 101 uses
- Swiss Army Knife - Is there anything they cant do? Open bottles of wine, open bottles of beer…
- Backpack rain cover - don’t need to explain this one, do I?
- Mosquito net
- Clothes line
- Doorstop – for when you are staying somewhere with no locks on doors, hostels etc...
- Silk sleeping bag liner - for when it’s to hot for a sleeping bag
- GPS - I was going to take one of these but have read a few horror stories of being caught in possession of one of these in a developing country, as they are still seen as military hardware outside most western countries.
- First Aid kit - Basic things plasters antiseptic cream, paracetemol
- Sterile pack - syringes, drip gauzes etc… very important if visiting developing countries
- Iodine Tablets - Water purification
- Vitamin C tablets - neutralize iodine taste and make purified water not taste like S*$t
Money and lots of it ;-)
Special thanks to The Universal Packing List website.
Posted by jon jack at 3:18 PM | Comments (1)