Not really. Sort of, in the technical sense, I do. The vaccine I took is a live vaccine, which means there are really alive typhoid bacteria in there, which when it comes right down to it I have a very very mild, antibody-inducing case of typhoid fever.
I also got vaccinated for hepatitis A and polio today. The hep A arm feels mostly OK, but the polio arm is all swollen and sore. Hours of fun!
This trip starts to seem more real with each little preparation that I do. The visa sticker in my passport, filing my paperwork with NOLS, studying Hindi, going to the funky little travel office to get my immunizations and anti-malarial drugs, running and hiking to get myself in shape. It all adds up to: wow, I am really going to India in just under two months! I get more terrified and excited week by week. I have to admit that one of the things I am most looking forward to is being able to buy onion bhaji and vegetable samosas from street vendors. Intestinal parasites be damned! I have herbs and Bactrim!
The funky little travel office was very funky, a scruffy little place with floor tile much like the tile I remember lining the halls of my elementary school. The office staff were actually using typewriters--I didn't see a computer in the place. But the doctor with the--I think, since he asked about my "Ukrainian name"--Ukrainian accent definitely knew his stuff, and had a funny, gruffly sweet bedside manner. I was the only woman, and the only American, in the waiting room. Everyone else who was there seemed to be getting immigration paperwork in order. I kind of enjoyed hanging out there, in this little tiny corner of my city, catching a small glimpse of a world I don't usually see.
At this point I'm a little confused about whether I need more vaccines or not. I have to check my records to see the last time I got a DPT; if it was more than 10 years ago, I need to do the booster. And while the doctor didn't seem to think I needed a shot for Japanese encephalitis or rabies, I've seen them strongly recommended elsewhere. Time to do more research.
I'm so excited for you!
Posted by: cheesepuppet | March 08, 2007 at 12:28 PM
It's so exciting that you're really really going.
Posted by: Rachael | March 13, 2007 at 07:39 AM