Shots, drinks and pills - Maybe we need rehab instead of vacation.

So Judy and I went to Nova Travel Clinic on Friday. It turned into quite the epic event, almost two hours with the nurse. I figured I must be almost immune to every travel issue on the planet by now but not so apparently.

Judy was starting fresh so she got two shots, Twinrix for Hep A&B and tetanus. I got the Twinrix to complete my Hep A, I have to go for my last booster for Hep B after I get back. We are both good for polio, rubella etc. India doesn't have Yellow Fever so I didn't need to worry about whether or not mine was still active from our Africa trip. My typhoid shot was only good for two years so I have to update that. Judy and I both decided to go for the drinkable version which is good for 4 years but apparently it is quite the regiment. Drink, day off, drink, day off, drink, day off, last drink on day 7. No food before or after, keep refrigerated. I can barely remember to go to work for a whole week, this is going to be a challenge. I think that is why they usually just do the two year shot. They even gave us a reminder bracelet (although I will just look like I am supporting Lance Armstrong) and stickers and a magnet. I wish it came with reminder phone calls too. We know who to blame if I get typhoid - Lance Armstrong!!

There was much discussion about Japanese Encephalitis, a mosquito borne nasty that is in India. Apparently there is a one in a million chance of getting it. We would have to be hanging out for extended periods in rural areas and living in a barn with the livestock, eating live mosquito salad. Plus the vaccination is almost $400 (!) for three (!) shots (!). I will be there for a shorter time than Judy so it was a no-brainer for me - no thank you. But Judy wisely weighed all of the factors and then also rejected it. I think it was the discussion about the brain swelling side effects (you lost me at "don't fly for 14 days after the last shot or you could die because they can't get you to a hospital fast enough to save you")

Then the standard rabies talk, don't touch dogs, don't play with bats (although what if I want to hang out with cricket players?). Even cats are off limits. I know they can't be serious about that though, because who can say no to a kitten, even a rabid one, if it is fluffy and big eyed.


No surgery, sex, dental work, manicures, knife fights, intravenous drugs, eye poking, vampirism. So many rules. I can handle those but the food restrictions are too much. Don't eat at street vendors (phsshh, whatever), don't eat raw veg, ice cubes, under cooked meat, eggs, food of any sort, beverages of any sort, water. I can say already that I will ignore most of that. I think Val and I were in Thailand only a few hours before we were buying food from a moving buffet table in the street in Bangkok. I can pretty much guarantee that the temperatures on that did not meet food safe recommended levels.


Cholera - something to avoid

Which leads me to the Dukoral. E-coli in a cup. Yes, despite my whining about the disgusting flavour, I will be partaking again. I only need one dose this time so at least that is better. Judy gets the full two fizzy-lisious doses.

Dukoral - poop in a cup.

Plus we each got a prescription for the don't-die-of-dehydration anti-diarheal pills but the ones I got for Africa haven't expired yet. Knock on wood, I haven't had to take them yet.

I got my ticket and it was almost painless!!

So after speaking to Ms. RBC Travel yesterday, I called them on my lunch hour (I use the term lunch HOUR loosely as this story will show). I called up new RBC guy, Abdoul. Abdoul was very pleasant and looked at the 1700 flight that I had discussed the night before. He called the 'consolidators' and was able to save me a couple of hundred bucks. Excellent. But there was no way around the overnight in Delhi. So, I said I would do it as long as I could check my bag all of the way through to Bangalore. That way I would only get robbed of my carry on. He checked and found that, no, I would have to keep my bag with me overnight in the airport and then check whatever was still in my possession in the morning onto my connecting flight to Bangalore. He suggested that there might be lockers at the Delhi airport but then he had the decency to laugh at his own suggestion. I said I would rather just buy my ticket through Flight Network and save my points if this was my only option.

Just for fun I searched for images of the Delhi Airport, Instead I found the The Guide to Sleeping in Airports website who gave Dehli the title "past worst airport winner".

After an hour of me rejecting options and whining about Delhi, Abdoul moved up several notches in the best phone service ever poll. He suggested that maybe a Vancouver departure might work. I had sort of rejected that option earlier when I was doing my own online search for tickets. I had found that to fly out of Vancouver would cost several hundred dollars more than from Victoria and I would have to get to Vancouver to boot. But at this point, I figured if it cost a bit more, it would be worth it so that I could avoid the whole Delhi issue. So Abdoul ticky ticked away on his computer for many minutes of silence and announced that he had found a ticket from Vancouver that got me into Bangalore at 1:30 AM. I don't even have to land in Delhi. Excellent. So then Awesome Abdoul asked if I wanted to know the price. He seemed almost giddy. It was three hundred dollars cheaper than the overnight Dehli option!! By now Abdoul and I were old buds so we had a over the phone high five. It turns out I am booked on the Lufthansa flight from my first attempt, the one that cost $3000 yesterday. But the consolidators came through for me. Abdoul checked the price without the consolidator and it was still almost 3K but with the consolidators, less than $1500 minus my $1200 in points = only $240 out of my pocket. Yeah!!!

I can't seem too happy here so I will add a Air Canada rant just because I can. When Abdoul went in to see if he could book my seats, he said that he could reserve my seat from Frankfurt to Bangalore because it was with Lufthansa however the Van to Toronto and Toronto to Frankfort legs he couldn't reserve because the actual airline is Air Canada. Arrrrg. Stupid Air Canada doesn't let you reserve ahead. Many of you may remember my last encounter with AC so you will know I wasn't too keen about flying with them but the price is right so I will survive (hopefully).

Before we locked in the booking, I had Abdoul check how much it would be to throw on a connector from Victoria to Vancouver since I was going to be on Air Canada anyway. Ok, remember, my ticket from Van to India is $1485. Add in Victoria to Vancouver - drum rollll - $2300+. $800 more!. Honestly. Another good laugh with my new best friend Abdoul. One more travel agent to add to the list of AC haters. We are legion. Any way, Abdoul checked the price of a ticket from Victoria to Vancouver without the official connector status. Air Canada price - almost $500. I would rather swim there than pay that so I left that leg of my journey open for now.

So, e-ticket in email inbox, I finally officially requested my previously unofficial vacation time and it was officially approved by Lynda and all is well in the world except for an extra long lunch 'hour'. I will make up the time, I promise.

Next on my to do list - travel clinic. I can't wait for the liquid e-coli raspberry delight beverage mix - yum.