They recount experiences from my expeditions and travels. I hope you enjoy them. Let me know. 1. MALARIA IN BRISTOL You hear of people dying of malaria in Britain, weeks after they return from the tropics. Sometimes the patients don't help the medical staff by warning them of where they have been travelling. At other times the incubation period can be so lengthy that the symptoms aren't thought to be related to that distant tropical holiday. Doctors will normally send off some blood for analysis if they are told about your travels, but not always unless you pressure them to do so. Also in the early stages malaria imitates flu or other fevers, and the patient can delay getting to a doctor. But malaria debilitates you really fast, and serious complications come within days. Anyway, here's a tale of a malarial recurrence in the UK, where some medical staff were particularly incompetent! 2. THE WIDOW. I've always loved hitch-hiking. I've done it from London to Cape Town, Tierra del Fuego to Canada and around most of Europe. It's a social act of mutual trust, and I've received extraordinary kindness and generosity. I've met interesting people who've confided their tragedies, loneliness, dreams and experiences as the miles tick by. I've also encountered a few loonies, but perhaps they felt the same? There were some bad experiences too. I had a pistol pulled on me. One guy was extremely aggressive and my attempt to get out was thwarted by an absence of door handles. Too many drivers were drunk or doped to the eyeballs, or drove suicidally. One guy was intending to commit suicide that very day, and it looked as if he was going to take me with him. Anyway, one or two of those stories will appear in this collection later. But here's a sad, sweet, even happy-in-a-way, sort of tale. 3. RIDING THE RAILS Who hasn't felt like hopping on a freight train in North America? Become a hobo for a few days and emulate Jack London, Woody Guthrie, Kerouac or Boxcar Willy? That scenery, the huge distances, the mournful whistle blowing....... You know you have. It has its dangers though........ 4. ARRIVAL IN APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA 21 years old, less than a day in the country, and thrown into the harsh realities of this pariah state, I was totally out of my depth. But I'm glad I didn't stay long enough to regard such things as normal. 5. THE KAZOO KING We all have memories that make our toes curl in embarrassment. Here's one of many.... |
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