It's Not Just A Credit Card

If you're as ignorant as me when it comes to travel it's time to learn about one very important document. I've talked about the passport previously, but its sister document that holds just as much importance is the visa. This little baby isn't just the brand of credit card PNC hands out to all its new freshmen assets or liabilities, whichever way you want to see it.

wikimedia            courtesy of:              wikimedia

To start, if you are planning on traveling you need a passport. This little book is required by most countries around the world in order to visit and it also serves as a re-entry document. There are a few exceptions to the passport necessity. The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, or WHTI, have set standards for travel between the United States and or neighboring countries (aka Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean). In the past these countries simply asked for a U.S. birth certificate and photo ID! Now travel to the WHTI countries requires a passport  or WHTI approved travel document, such as a state driver's license, or special groups ID, like the military. If you frequently travel between these areas a good substitute to a passport is a passport card. The only downside is your travel must be by land or sea. 

courtesy of wikipedia

Outside of passports, the next best (and typically required) thing are visas. Visas are tricky though, because they change for every country. Depending on where you plan on going you'll have to check what your destination requires. For example, if you aren't a part of a specific set of countries you have to pay for an invitation, pay the consulate, and register in order to enter Russia. It's a messy process unless you simply need a 3 day transit visa, but Russia isn't the only place like that.

courtesy of  pixabay

Most countries are not as complicated as Russia when it comes to getting a visa, but in general a visa is a good thing to have. For clarification, if you have a passport you are permitted to reenter your own country, but without a visa you aren't automatically allowed into other countries.

There are other complications that come with visas as well, especially when they are for employment. In the US there are times when you here visa workers being compared to slaves. Granted if the individual is an illegal immigrant there is little they may be able to do to legally fight their employer, but if they are under a visa they can. According to a pamphlet supplied by travel.state.gov, if an individual is a visa worker in the United States they have a right to fair treatment and pay, and may seek justice in US courts if necessary. Another fact they highlight is that individuals are allowed to retain their passport. My recommendation is that before you go abroad, look into visa requirements for your destination. If you plan on being employed and you must forfeit any of your natural human rights you should avoid the place, or at least being employed there.

courtesy of The Blue Diamond Gallery

Now most people have heard the topic of visas come paired with green cards. Green Cards are uniquely American, and stands for a United States Permanent Resident Card. Many permanent residence cards are available for other countries, but they are not "Green Cards." These residence cards allow one to reside and work in that specific country. For example, in order to gain a permanent residence card in the United Kingdom one must be a resident for five years. In Canada you may apply or a PR if you have permanent residence, have not been asked to leave, and are not a citizen of Canada. It is actually kind of funny because in defining these requirements the Canadian government actually has to specifically tell the Canadian resident they are not eligible.

So passports and visas! Look into the documentation you need where ever you're planning on going so you don't wind up stuck in some foreign country or more likely, getting detained or restricted from traveling while you're on the move!

courtesy of BaronTremayneCaple

Do Yourself a Favor

So the TSA keep us safe at the airports (or they're supposed to at least), but who is supposed to keep us safe while we are thousands of miles away from home?

Courtesy of tyrchon

The excitement of travel can blind people to the small things. And by small I mean microscopic. Have you ever taken the time to consider where you're going, what kind of sickness and disease is typical in that region, and what you should do before branching out to that region? I know I don't in the heat of the moment.

Many countries have required travelers to obtain specific vaccines in order to avoid infection upon arrival. The yellow fever vaccine is required in many states located in high risk nations, such as in Africa and South America. The World Health Organization has a 32 page document regarding the requirements for yellow fever and malaria in each individual country. Specifically cited, when considering cholera and smallpox, the WHO does not report a single countries request for the vaccines and the WHO actually "does not recommend the smallpox vaccination for travelers," de to that certified eradication of the disease in 1980.

left to right: MMR infection, Typhoid fever

A commonly recommended vaccine is the MMR shot. The measles-mumps-rubella trio of disease is decently common among even the most visited locations such as Europe and Asia. According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention there are roughly 20 million cases of measles every year and about 0.73% of those cases result in death! And as the circle of life continues the rate of infection is slowly increasing annually.

Another recommendation if traveling to Asia, Latin America, or Africa is the typhoid vaccine. Around 90% of all US cases are a result of foreign travel (75% coming from the India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan regions). Although routine vaccination is not advised in the US, travelers are advised to be treated before their voyage due to the potential risk of exposure to the Salmonella serotype Typhi.

Basically, go get your shots so you don't disappear off the map and die without anyone knowing!

Another major and more recent problem revolves around Brazil and the Zika virus.

WARNING: WHO has declared the virus an international public health emergency.

Courtesy of Wikipedia

The disease could infect as many as four million people come the end of 2016, but why is it an "international public health emergency!?" In October the idea that Zika causes microcephaly was purposed, and of course it's transmitted by mosquitoes.. For those of us who don't keep up with the medical world (like myself before writing this), microcephaly is a disease that causes infants to be born with unusually small heads and often brain deformity or damage. This really means the virus only noticeably affects pregnant women so a number of Latin and South American countries have made the "Worst Place for Pregnant Women to Visit" list.


On the bright side, experts do not suspect the virus sticks around long after pregnancy so the chances for a woman to give birth to an infant with microcephaly when she got pregnant after dealing with the virus is low.

Courtesy of Gizmodo

On the dark side, as of February 24 there was no known treatment or vaccine. Efforts had just begun, but regardless, extremely mosquito-infested regions would be difficult to protect/heal quickly. Oh and did you realize that the OLYMPICS this summer are in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil? Although extremely unlikely I feel I must do my civic duty and so, if any there are any women reading this blog, who are both pregnant and were planning on attending the 2016 Summer Olympics, please don't. Think of your baby and stay away!!!

Courtesy of picserver

So, for all of those of you planning on going abroad, do yourselves a favor and look at where you're planning on adventuring too and figure out which vaccine(s) you should invest in. The CDC website  can supply you with the necessary knowledge about what specific treatments you should acquire before travel. Generally, you will want to be up to date on routine vaccinations. These include your MMR, Meningitis, Diphtheria, Tetanus, Tdap, and Polio shots... I know... needles are scary, but imagine going abroad and then having to lay in a hospital bed the whole time because you weren't brave for five seconds!