Swine Flu

Okay, so it's not here in China (yet), but if news from the UK's officials is anything to go by, it will be round the world in a matter of weeks rather than months (thanks to air travel, mass movement of populations, and so on). Joy. They also said that's just a "maybe" and we'll have to wait and see - don't you just love certainty? - and finally that of the many viruses out there, if you were to choose one, the strain of Swine Flu that seems to be emerging in people outside of Mexico is one of the "better" viruses with which one could hope to be infected. Beautiful.

As and when it does hit China, I am sure the spread across the country will be RAMPANT, thanks to the behaviour of the average Chinese (about which I have blogged previously and at length - think spitting, coughing, sneezing, and so on, all without protective measures like tissues). And I wonder how the Chinese medical system will cope. Actually I don't wonder very much about this at all - those who have money and insurance might be able to get themselves SOME KIND of medication (whether it's on par with Western stuff is doubtful), and in the worst cases there might even be hospital beds (clean? You must be having a giraffe!) and life support systems (in Urumqi, I'm not holding my breath).

The British Embassy kindly sent an email round to say that at the moment there's nothing to worry about, and if there IS a pandemic, there will be no arrangements made to repatriate British citizens (makes you wonder why we paying taxes at all really when our politicians have just given themselves a pay rise but our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan are ill-equipped and citizens in a country with a crap healthcare system can't even get a free or discounted emergency ticket home should a disease reach pandemic proportions).

Anyway, I'm rambling a bit; to conclude, I have just 84 days until I leave this country. I hope Swine Flu can wait a little longer to spread itself, but at the same time, if it happens it happens, and I'll just have to deal with it if it happens to me ... now, can anyone send me some Tamiflu? Pretty please?


[[Actually, if it reaches mammoth proportions I wonder if they'll shut the uni down ... in which case Mum, sack off your trip here and I'll be back home ASAP, assuming transport still works!]]

Guess You Had To Be There ...

In the last week I have seen:

* A girl, about 4 years old, squat down outside a clothes market, spill the contents of her bladder on the pavement, not wipe (or even be offered one, the mother was just watching impassively from a distance with the other child), and happily jump up and run back to join them before they walked off, fresh urine gracing the pavement.

* A toddler, about 2 years old, squat and relieve herself on the floor of a restaurant in which I was eating (actually I didn't SEE this, I heard it from where I was sitting, the splash was quite audible thank you - I leaned over the table to check I wasn't imagining things, and the yellow puddle was more than a giveaway). The mother / co-proprietor of the restaurant just said to the grandmother to get the mop. In she comes, I don't even know if the mop was damp let alone wet, there certainly wasn't a bucket to accompany it (the Chinese havent got a clue what mopping is really like or for) and she "mops" the urine up, except it's not really mopping is it? It's just SPREADING it across the floor to evaporate faster.

* Finally, this week I have seen a grandmother sitting outside on a step, grandchild in lap, now you would have the child on a knee or something right? Or sideways? Or facing you? Or anything really, EXCEPT facing out, one leg on each of your legs, the split trousers (remember my rants on them?) gaping open exposing all to the elements and anyone who happens by. I don't know whether the grandmother was making the soothing "shhh" noises they use to encourage their kids to go, and I don't want to know.

I've been told urine is sterile at the point of exit; true or not, you wouldn't clean your pans with urine just because of this, and you would certainly balk if someone had a slash right in front of you, in a dining area no less.

This is foul, disgusting, backwards, dirty, horrible, filthy, unhygienic, irresponsible behaviour, and I cannot see why it is happening in a major city, in a region which borders on at least 7 other countries. What the hell kind of impression do you get of China if THIS is the first place you see, and THESE are the people who live here? I could understand if it was a village maybe, but a fairly developed city of 2 - 3 million people, with cars and internet, chain stores, internationally sourced goods?

Can you imagine Birmingham, Nice, or Dusseldorf with people like this? China needs a kick up the arse (and possibly one to the crotch).

Things I Have Seen

Some things from the last day or two that stick in my mind:

* The Urumqi Splatter

Okay, let's imagine you have a blocked nose, or a slight drip, or something similar. It's winter time, most people will be having this kinda problem around now. How do you deal with it? Tissues? Hankie (a personal hate of mine but hey) ... Not in Urumqi you don't. As with other places, I imagine this is a popular method, but I've only seen it here, so it's the Urumqi Splatter. Take your thumb and forefinger. Pinch your nose a bit, and lean forward slightly (or lots, if you are worried about spray) and exhale forcefully through your nose. This may be done over pavement, roads, or (if you're classy) flowerbeds and grassy areas. It saves tissues and to some extent therefore the environment. It remains absolutely disgusting and I never want to find myself doing it. Do the people here seriously wonder why chest infections and colds and general illnesses spread so rapidly? It's because you all lack basic hygiene, common sense, and civilised behaviour.


* Strange Child

I saw a kid today, scuffling through some leaves like most of us do, crunching away, then he paused and let out some kind of cry. The only thing I could think of was "Pterodactyl". Why a child felt the need to make such a scream, I dont know. Only in China.


* Change of Scenery

I've voluntarily moved myself up a class - I'm now with people who have been learning Chinese considerably longer than I have, in fact I think one of them was with LAST YEAR'S Newcastle lot. The reasons for the move were (a) my friend said she wanted to move and didnt want to go alone, (b) I agreed with her points for wanting to move - the pace of the class was sluggish, the atmosphere in the class was often disruptive, and (to a lesser extent for me) the material was too easy. Now personally I thought the material to be okay for me, but the pace to be the main problem. Anyway, I've spent about a week in the higher class now, and the material for grammar and reading really isnt SO hard, just a lot of vocab to look up, and the pace isnt so much faster but the ATMOSPHERE, now that is different. This class is larger, maybe double the other class, and yet it's mostly quiet, the questions are sensible, there's no misbehaviour, in short .... it's just a good atmosphere! And this, I've found, has helped my learning considerably. I prepare for classes more, the words are sinking in better, and I've had just as much chance to practice in class, despite the larger size. So, I've decided to stay - I think I can hack it. The listening is hard, but ... I'm sure I'll get better (I'm going to buy a radio and listen in the evenings, lord knows the TV is useless, I don't even watch English TV in the UK so why I would start here I dont know). My teachers worried this morning that I would flunk on the exams, but I said that's okay because Newcastle really dont care. So they asked if I care. And I suppose, actually, I dont. As long as my Chinese improves, I dont give a damn about some exam result in China that no one will look at in the UK.


* Homesickness

This has subsided since last weekend, when I was DISMAL. I spent a day just sitting in the house, mostly on my bed, watching English and American movies and TV shows, feeling like doing NOTHING even though I had plenty to do. Sunday was better, I got out the house and saw a friend for lunch, but still didnt want to DO anything. This week I feel heaps better, though I still wish I was at home, and I'm trying to work out where my life is ever going to go :(


That's about it for the time being. Next update when I can really be bothered, lazy creature that I am!

Travel Preparations (Part One)

Before you get anywhere near jetting off, you'll have a couple of meetings to sort out what you need - you'll probably get a handbook with some useful information in it as well. There's heaps to sort out, and this post is only going to cover the following:

* Vaccinations

* Getting to China

* Accommodation

I am constantly reminding the girl who is travelling with me to Urumqi that "China is not like anywhere else". Whether this is in respect of people coughing their lungs up in the streets, the fact that a "Chinese" toilet is little more than a hole in the ground, or that mentioning you have a religion on a visa application can land you in hot water, it holds true - China is different, and you cannot be too careful. For this reason your handbook from SML will probably advise you to get a variety of vaccinations (or at least be up to date with most of them). The most common ones are:

• Hepatitis A - quite a high risk in China, where it can be found in plenty of foods.
  
• Hepatitis B - less of a risk (usually bloodborne), but if you end up in hospital and they don't have clean equipment, well you're just asking for trouble.
  
• Meningitis C - most people have this before even coming to university. I think it lasts for about 10 years.
• MMR - Measles, Mumps, Rubella - usually people receive one as a kid and one later on in life. According to my travel nurse, if I've had the second shot, I should be good for life.
• Tetanus, Diptheria, Polio - none of these are nice, get vaccinated. Chances are, if you've been abroad any other time in the last decade you will have had these vaccinations.
• Typhoid - waterborne, which in China means quite a lot of places (the tap water is not potable by any means).

Most, if not all, of the above can be obtained free of charge. With the exception of Hepatitis B (and possibly HepA), the above are all one-shot vaccinations (as far as I remember). Where HepB is concerned, a full course consists of 3 injections, followed by a blood test to ensure your body is sufficiently immune. If you are anything like me, your body will for some reason or other refuse to produce antibodies; if this is the case, a booster shot (or sometimes second course) may be prescribed, followed by another blood test. Not being immune to HepB isn't a massive deal, as above I said it is mainly bloodborne, so unless you plan to be shagging around or shooting up with people you should be okay ... But there is always the chance you will end up in a less-than-hygienic hospital, and if you're clever you'll remember the title of my blog. :)

However there are more serious diseases common in certain parts of China, and it is up to you to find out about them. Use a travel clinic, books, go online, and ask around. Of the more common serious illnesses that may be contracted in China, the following three are probably the ones you will hear about the most:

• Rabies - "mad dog disease", carried by just about any mammal, and almost unstoppably lethal once symptoms develop. It is entirely acceptable to enter China (where the disease is prevalent) without any form of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), but there are certain advantages to taking precautionary vaccinations. Number one, if you are bitten / scratched / otherwise come into contact with a rabid animal, a pre-exposure course gives you a little extra time to get to medical help (somewhere in the region of 36 - 72 hours I believe). Number two, it reduces the number of shots you require having come into contact with the virus. A normal course of Rabies injections is 5 shots given over a number of weeks. The pre-exposure course is 3 shots given in a 4-week period. Following this, should you be exposed, the post-exposure course is just 2 shots (instead of all 5). Cover lasts between 2 and 3 years, after which a booster shot is needed to keep the protection of the original pre-exposure course. From personal experience, doctors at the "Dog Bite Clinics" (yes they have them) in the large cities like Shanghai will have heard of PEP and know the correct procedure is to receive 2 additional shots only. Other locations, in smaller towns for example, may never have heard of PEP and will insist on giving all 5 injections. Fortunately vaccines like this are very cheap in most areas.
• Japanese (B) Encephalitis - normally transmitted in tropical regions (find a regional danger map online), the chance of getting the disease even if bitten by an infected insect is quite low, but as I said above, you cannot be too careful. The first course is almost the same as the Rabies PEP, 3 shots given sometime over a 4-week period, and then a booster shot every 2 or 3 years. Side effects can be worse with this shot (my experience anyway), but severe reactions are incredibly rare. Unlike Rabies, no post-exposure course is needed in the event you get bitten by a mosquito or whatnot.
• Malaria - tropical regions only, and I think the majority of people takes pills (if they take anything at all - I know people going to Haikou who are more "at risk" but will not be taking anti-malarial medication because of the side effects of prolonged usage).

Apparently a vaccine for Cholera exists. Apparently it is kind of useless as well - take it at your own risk (and your wallet's risk too I am informed). From what I've been told, if you are going to get cholera, you are going to get it. Lovely.

A word on costs - your GP can charge whatever the hell they want. In some cases you will have a wonderful practice where the logic goes something like "you are going to be at risk, therefore you need to be protected, therefore we will keep the cost as low as possible so you can be vaccinated and be safe". If this is the case, consider yourself lucky. A 3-shot course (Rabies or JapB Encephalitis for example) could cost as little as £6.50 (per 3-shot course). When I went to China on my GAP year I paid just £13.00 for those 6 shots. 

Other practices take the "you are travelling, you are having some odd vaccination, it is your choice, so we will charge you a heap of money for inconveniencing us" - right now, I am registered with one such practice. I knew two people on my GAP year who were forced to choose between getting a vaccine or not simply because the full course ran into triple figures - if possible, change practice! I do not like the idea of not being protected against something just because I can't afford it. Fortunately I only need boosters for Rabies and JapB Encephalitis (one shot each), but both of those shots still costs £60 here. That's approximately 30x more expensive than at my last practice. You've been warned.

Remember to start having injections long before you intend to travel. Remember some vaccinations need blood tests and / or several weeks to be completed. Remember it is not very nice to have six or seven different vaccines running around your body all at once just because you left it a bit late. And remember to set aside a load of money for it all (if your GP is of the second variety especially).

Accommodation will vary from location to location - you'll be informed of what's on offer when you get your handbook. As for Urumqi, supposedly there is university accommodation (dorms / halls) for just £250/year. Yes, that's right, £250 for the whole year. The downside is that this year's students discovered the accommodation was that cheap because it was that bad. So bad they moved out as soon as they could. From what I have heard, there are plenty of refurbishments going on and the price has stayed the same, but I am reserving my judgement for when I arrive and see it with my own eyes. In the meantime I am seriously considering living out of the uni accommodation, not least because I enjoy my own freedoms and my own space. Yes, it will be more expensive, but it will still be a lot cheaper than the UK! And I can have a place to call my own. Be aware that if you go stay anywhere (hostels, hotels, even overnighting at some places) you may be required to register with the local police office (PSB - Public Security Bureau), and that not registering is something kind of serious. More on accommodation once I am out in China I imagine!

Part Two will probably cover things like Visas, Packing Extras and Money - but of course I've not written it yet ... so we'll see.