*Warning: this blog post contains a horrifying medical term*
My original Africa plan had us taking a white-water trip on our last day in the Nairobi area. When we went for shots, the doctor cautioned us about Bilharzia; this is a common disease in Africa, and I was loosely familiar with it, but I had thought it was limited to standing (as opposed to fast-moving) water. Apparently not. After a horrifying Internet search, which exposed the new (to me) (ALERT, HERE IT COMES) term ‘male menstruation’, I decided to cancel that activity.
We’re going to spend an extra day at Lake Nakuru instead. That is one of three ‘safari lodges’ we are staying at … well, one is more of a camp than a lodge, but the truth is, they all look very luxurious. I’m not really sure what they cost, since it’s a package deal, but we are paying a little under $1,000 per day to be in Kenya, all-inclusive but not including airfare. (Did I mention this trip includes ten flights?)
All of a sudden, your vacation doesn’t sound as fun anymore!
Oh, this is scarier than Bilharzia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candiru
Ha ha, Ben and his friends were talking about that exact thing when I got home yesterday! I think that is more South America than Africa, but its definitely enough to put you off wanting to go for a dip in the Amazon!! Bilharzia by comparison is relatively harmless, and I think if you get it, it is relatively easily solved. But I don’t really want to find out.