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Advice wanted please (1 Viewer)

I have been contributing to a Yahoo Egypt group to find out more information and was about to organise a fortnight over there, after receiving a request to join someone, who lives over there. The dates would be April 26th to May 4th.

They will put me up for a few days then drive me around the country visiting various sites (staying at hotels on the way).

Obviously with all the problems going on in Egypt I have had to put it on hold for a while to see if things calm down but upon checking what inoculations I might need if I were to visit Egypt I might have to knock those dates back even further.

According to the information I have found on the net I need the following three months before I travel.

Inoculations for:
Diphtheria
Tuberculosis

2 months before I travel:
Hepititus B.

1 month before I travel:
Rabies

2 weeks before I travel:
Hepititus A.

10 days before I travel:
Typhoid

As I don't have a spleen (no immune system) I can't take any chances so if these are necessary for me it means I have to take the first two now and one in a couple of weeks time, which is too soon as I can't make a decision to go just yet.

How do you guys see the problems over there and would they interfere with plans if we were birding well away from the trouble spots on those dates (is there a chance that these problems could spread to other areas, such as Aswan etc).

John
 
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First off: Where will you land?
Second: Where will you bird (main areas).

As long as you don't plan to go to the real troubled areas, you should be fine, as far as my Infos go from people in Egypt. Cairo is still not a great place to be right now, of course and I don't know what the future will bring.
But for example the news of tanks rolling into Sharm: My friends there haven't seen any,...

Doesn't Hep B take 6 months to be finished (3 shots, I think).
 
At the moment I am looking to land at Luxor. I will be picked up from there.

The suggestion so far is go south along the Red Sea, and end with trip over to Aswan (and Abu Simbel) and back to Luxor for departure. I think something may be in place prior to going south along the Red Sea.

One of the Hepititus I won't need as I contracted it a few years ago (over 10 years ago) but I can't remember which one (the least dangerous one whichever one it was). I will check with my doctor.

John

First off: Where will you land?
Second: Where will you bird (main areas).

As long as you don't plan to go to the real troubled areas, you should be fine, as far as my Infos go from people in Egypt. Cairo is still not a great place to be right now, of course and I don't know what the future will bring.
But for example the news of tanks rolling into Sharm: My friends there haven't seen any,...

Doesn't Hep B take 6 months to be finished (3 shots, I think).
 
Luxor is currently in the areas recommended to avoid, eg by FCO, but in reality if you are avoiding the main areas of protest, there likely would be no problem currently .

However, and this is the maybe that you might consider - the situation is simply unpredictable. I would imagine things will have stabilized way before April, but renewed or continued protest could have major impact on your trip - in particular relating to your flight.

If the flight operator pulls out due to unrest (and currently many have, and [charters especially] are likely to continue to do so until FCO recommendations change), you're stuffed - many carriers are compensating and you might be entitled to compensation, but don't count on it - civil unrest can be deemed force majeure. Likewise you would want to check carefully if any insurance you might have would be valid, cancellations due to force majeure may well not be covered.

If your airline does fly, but you feel it is not safe due to events happening at that time, you are simply (and quite rightly) considered a 'no show' - absolutely no chance of compensation or insurance claim.

If you worry that you may lose money or worry about the risk, I would simply choose another destination for this April - Egypt will always be there next year, plenty of other totally risk-free places elsewhere.
 
Thanks Jos

I have copied and pasted your comments into the reply I have sent my contact in Egypt.

I will also investigate the Luxor flights, plus alternative arrival airports, plus check out the Insurance side of things as well.

Thanks for your reply. As you say, Egypt will still be there and if things don't look right for the dates I was hoping to do I will have to look elsewhere and do Egypt at a future date.

John

Luxor is currently in the areas recommended to avoid, eg by FCO, but in reality if you are avoiding the main areas of protest, there likely would be no problem currently .

However, and this is the maybe that you might consider - the situation is simply unpredictable. I would imagine things will have stabilized way before April, but renewed or continued protest could have major impact on your trip - in particular relating to your flight.

If the flight operator pulls out due to unrest (and currently many have, and [charters especially] are likely to continue to do so until FCO recommendations change), you're stuffed - many carriers are compensating and you might be entitled to compensation, but don't count on it - civil unrest can be deemed force majeure. Likewise you would want to check carefully if any insurance you might have would be valid, cancellations due to force majeure may well not be covered.

If your airline does fly, but you feel it is not safe due to events happening at that time, you are simply (and quite rightly) considered a 'no show' - absolutely no chance of compensation or insurance claim.

If you worry that you may lose money or worry about the risk, I would simply choose another destination for this April - Egypt will always be there next year, plenty of other totally risk-free places elsewhere.
 
Hi Nicole

I must admit that Mubarak staying surprised me and the repercussions of that decision could cause even more major unrest and could also upset my plans.

The person I am meeting in Egypt is American but she has lived there for over 25 years and at the moment she, and a friend, are out birding on a seven day trip around the Red Sea area, Aswan and various other places. These are some of the areas we will be doing if I go over there at the end of April.

What I have decided to do is to look at it again when I get back from Spain (I am there from Feb 26th to March 5th). Hopefully by then things will have settled down. I certainly will be in a better position in a month's time to make a more informed decision on whether or not to go ahead with my plans or to change them.

Kuwait is possibly an alternative but I haven't even begun to consider any alternatives just yet. What is the food hygiene like over there. Is it the same as Egypt or much better?

John



Since Mubarak decided to stay 'in power' things most likely will only get worse.
:(
Come to Kuwait during Migration ;)
 
The decision really didn't surprise me. He thinks he is god's - sorry, Allah's gift to Egypt,...
Anyhow, there sure will be more unrest and most likely worse than we've seen so far. Mubarak will rally more supporters which will in turn cause more trouble :(

And I agree, only time will tell what will happen down there. :(

Depending on where you eat, the hygiene is supposedly better here. But we honestly have had more stomach troubles here than in Egypt.
So, a tough one to answer :)
 
Power corrupts, absolute power corrupt, absolutely.
Its no suprise the he's not letting go before he has no other choice, think of Idi Amin, Saddam Hussein, etc etc Imho, Egypt will get worse before it gets better and I for one would avoid it. There's always next year!

Andy
 
Kuwait is possibly an alternative

I would hesitate in recommending this as an alternative, depending how the kettle decides to bubble.

Incidently also far more expensive than Egypt (unless you are hoping for the charity of a resident, car hire, hotels and usually flight all well above Egypt's level).

Additionally, the attitude amongst the populace rather poor towards birds. To think about, example link here.
 
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I must admit that Mubarak staying surprised me and the repercussions of that decision could cause even more major unrest

Presuming he does topple, the repercussions of this could also cause major unrest, even if all appears moderately settled for a while. Voids tend to cause as much conflict as unpopular plugs.
 
@Jos - see the -> ;) <- behind my suggestion for Kuwait - I wasn't entirely serious.

It is also hard to get to the right birding places, you either have to book a tour with Peka (who is quite busy) or be lucky if you can tag along one of the other great birders.
There are not only bird shooters in Kuwait. People that care are here as well (and not only the foreigners - there are quite a few Kuwaiti birders).

Just saying :)
 
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Hi Nicole

Something's going on according to the news I heard whilst driving home to work. It appears Mubarak has gone to Sharm El Sheikh and the rumours are he might be giving up office. I don't know how much truth there is in that.

Regarding the food hygiene. The only reason I was considering Egypt is because someone who lives over there invited me over on the promise that she knows what food to get and how to prepare it (she has lived there for over 25 years). Without that in place I would have to say no to Kuwait.

The decision really didn't surprise me. He thinks he is god's - sorry, Allah's gift to Egypt,...
Anyhow, there sure will be more unrest and most likely worse than we've seen so far. Mubarak will rally more supporters which will in turn cause more trouble :(

And I agree, only time will tell what will happen down there. :(

Depending on where you eat, the hygiene is supposedly better here. But we honestly have had more stomach troubles here than in Egypt.
So, a tough one to answer :)

Hi Andy

At the moment I am fairly close to that opinion myself but in another month things might have changed for the better.

There's no panic as the person who lives there isn't doing anything over the period I am possibly going so I can leave things almost to the last minute.

John


Power corrupts, absolute power corrupt, absolutely.
Its no suprise the he's not letting go before he has no other choice, think of Idi Amin, Saddam Hussein, etc etc Imho, Egypt will get worse before it gets better and I for one would avoid it. There's always next year!

Andy
 
Regarding to Reuters, Mubarak def. has resigned.
Regarding my humble opinion, he has been in Sharm since 3 weeks - the only place he feels safe :)

Like I said, Kuwait was more a 'not so serious' hint :)

Not sure what you would want to do here for a whole week :)
 
Nicole and I spent a morning with mubarak's body guards binoculars and guns trained on us as we whizzed round his manor on a golf cart.

Very pleasant it was too.
 
Having checked information on the net it confirms what you have said, he's gone.

Now things will become interesting.

John

Regarding to Reuters, Mubarak def. has resigned.
Regarding my humble opinion, he has been in Sharm since 3 weeks - the only place he feels safe :)

Like I said, Kuwait was more a 'not so serious' hint :)

Not sure what you would want to do here for a whole week :)
 
To return to the initial question: only a qualified MD can answer if you really need all these shots. Generally, tuberculosis shots are not currently recommended (as far as I know), the antibodies (if produced) are not really protective, but may well make the diagnosis of the disease more difficult so that it is more severe before you get a proper diagnosis!

Hepatitis A and update of your typhoid might very well be a good idea if you will be traveling at all (in other words also to other places), but again, consult a specialist.

Niels
 
That's already in place Niels. I have an appointment on March 9th.;

John

To return to the initial question: only a qualified MD can answer if you really need all these shots. Generally, tuberculosis shots are not currently recommended (as far as I know), the antibodies (if produced) are not really protective, but may well make the diagnosis of the disease more difficult so that it is more severe before you get a proper diagnosis!

Hepatitis A and update of your typhoid might very well be a good idea if you will be traveling at all (in other words also to other places), but again, consult a specialist.

Niels
 
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