I am full of bugs

Got most of my vaccinations today. Three needle sticks for 6 diseases and I get to go back next week for meningitis. Whoo hoo!

ReckenRoll = Human Pin Cushion

I got more than one strange look walking home. I made the mistake of wearing a sleeveless shirt and for some reason the nurse thought it better to give me the big cotton bud with tape over it to cover the needle prick instead of a plaster. So there I am, in a bit of a daze, wandering home with a bag full of malaria pills and three big bandages on my upper arms.

Needless to say my posh little hood didn't know what to think of me.

Of course I couldn't find my old immunizations record anywhere this morning either so we started from scratch. I got a lot of this:

"Well, you're American so...

• ...you're at a disadvantage because you haven't been immunized against TB, like all of the Brits and Irish." (Apparently the vaccine is not mandatory or legal or something in the USA.)
• ...you're really healthy. You're a really healthy girl aren't you?" (I was beginning to think she was calling me fat)
• ...you've had your TB, mumps, etc. but that runs out around the age of 25." (more shots, yaaay!)

I also learned that:

• with a hepatitis shot, if I get a booster in a year, I am immunized for life.
• In 10 days I will be 100% immunized against Yellow Fever, a near fatal disease, for 10 years. One shot does that...but it stings like a bitch.
• My tetanus, typhoid, and polio vaccines will last me 10 years.
• If a dog bites me, I need to get back to the UK ASAP. Under no circumstances should I be treated for rabies in Africa. Apparently the treatment involves blood culture thingies. Now, as a general rule I don't approach wild dogs that foam at the mouth but I will apparently need to be extra vigilant.
• I should be careful not to drink unbottled water, eat fruit or veg from a street vendor, or drink unpasteurized milk. Again, kind of a general rule of mine for traveling in a 3rd world country but I'll be extra vigilant.
• I am not supposed to let anyone sneeze or cough on me. Again, kind of a general rule, but (say it with me) I'll be extra vigilant.
• Malaria is carried by the female mosquito and apparently she only bites at night. I need to leave the air conditioning running in my hotel room at all times because it keeps the mosquitos out. Yes, I will be bringing long sleeved warm clothes to sleep in in Africa. That makes sense.
• Tsetse flies are attracted to the colour blue. Mosquitos are attracted to dark fabric. Wear light colours.

Now, mind you, I will be spending most of my time in the conference centre and the 5 star hotel so all of this may just be for show. Also 50% 0f the country is muslim so it's not like I could accidentally get drunk (not a lot of booze in muslim countries), put on some jeans, dturn off the A/C and drink unpasteurized milk while eating a salad from a street vendor and petting a rabid dog...but stranger things have happened.

ReckenRoll, now with 600% more immunity.