Foreign adventures

Recently there was some discussion on the TES Teaching Abroad forum about whether or not to go to China, in view of this new health scare. Well, the great and good Harry Deelman (of Search Associates) always said that "a gentleman's word should be his bond". Therefore, in my opinion, if the job still exists in August, then you should keep your promises and get on the plane for the Middle Kingdom. 

Although the new virus is worrying, the reality is that hundreds (maybe thousands) or people die every year from ordinary strains of influenza. As per usual, I completely agree with the view that it will probably have fizzled out in another month or two. By then, the BBC and CNN will have found something else to exaggerate. (HD also had some wise words about "the CNN factor".)

A few months before we left for Kenya, a friend of ours told us lurid stories of expats getting murdered in "Nairobbery". We imagined that we would have our throats cut as soon as we stepped off the plane, but the reality was rather different. We had two wonderful years and Kenya was an excellent start to all of our foreign adventures. 

With my dear wife in Luzor, a few years ago

A few days after our arrival in Egypt, we finally managed to get the TV working. There was something about a burning tower and we thought that it was one of those awful American "disaster movies". Actually it was 9/11. Egypt emptied of tourists very quickly, which meant that Aswan and Luxor were pleasantly quiet during our first trip up the Nile during the Christmas hols.

Yes, I suppose that a lot of expats and their families might want to stay away from China in the next month or two. On the other hand, if you are going to risk your health by breathing in the pollution that is to be found in many major cities in China, then a virus or two is not really that much of an added danger. 

Breakfast for champions, Chinese style?

I also remember reading lots of horror stories about street food in China, that the meat comes from rats and it is fried in "gutter oil". Hen hao che! Maybe some of the stories were true, but the cheap eats were so yummy and so cheap that we could not resist the temptation.