The Best of the Great Ocean Road

A good article from The Times travel section on the Great Ocean Road, which I visited in January. It includes a video of the helicopter ride you can take over the Twelve Apostles.

Safe and healthy traveling

With the influenza pandemic hitting the world, someone asked me recently if I was afraid to travel during this time. The answer is a definite ‘no’, but I have always taken self-imposed precautions after returning home from a holiday. I started doing many of these things after the first time I visited Southeast Asia, and saw first-hand that ideas of cleanliness are different from those found in industrialized Western nations.

For starters, I wash everything I’ve taken on holiday, whether it was worn or not. I also wash any clothing bags I’ve used, and also wash my toiletry bag. Toothbrushes are taken as older brushes, not new, and then thrown away at the end of a trip. Any shoes I’ve taken are washed or wiped down as appropriate.

I also disinfect my luggage. If I’ve used my backpack, which is washable, I soak it in a bucket of water with Dettol disinfectant for at least 1 day, and then rinse thoroughly and allow to air dry. When I lived in Japan, I had a balcony with a clothesline, so I hung my bag out in the sunshine. In Qatar, though, I have to settle with the spare bathroom. If I’m using my dive bag, though, or a regular suitcase that can’t be submerged, I wipe down the outside with a damp rag, using cleaning water with Dettol. Then I open all the zippers, even to pockets, and spray with Dettol, and allow to air out for at least 1 day.

With this trip, for the first time, I added a bottle of alcohol-based hand sanitizer to my toiletries, and used it liberally. I frankly should have been doing this before, but things like this are easy to forget.

Reports say that a lot of germ spreading can be stopped through the simple act of handwashing. Having had my experience in Japan, I must say that the act of handwashing is instilled in young children until it is unconscious habit, and is a practice that continues. Restaurants, in fact, bring a disposable towelette with menus, and sinks are found in abundance in many public places. Having gotten into the habit myself of handwashing before meals while working in the schools (a combination of following suit, feeling social pressure to do so, and knowing it was important to set a good precedent for the younger children), I find it nearly impossible to sit down and eat without having first washed my hands.

In stark contrast, though, I work in a medical college. Health-related personnel are some of the most frequent hand washers around; yet, finding a sink outside the restrooms (which are a challenge in themselves to find) is almost impossible. It was not until 2 months ago, or so, that hand sanitizer dispensers were finally placed in the building at all the entrances, and in the student lounge. One can argue, though, that many more are needed. Furthermore, I hope that they are checked and refilled regularly, and not just placed and forgotten about.

Call me paranoid, but I’m certainly don’t want the responsibility of helping to spread disease.