Watch what you eat
Here in a western country, the mantra “watch what you eat” tends to refer to watching your weight and ensuring that you don’t scarf down too many BigMacs or packets of M&Ms. This is fair enough, I suppose, since unless you venture into a particularly dodgy restaurant or buy from a street vendor who may or may not be licensed, our food preparation rules and hygiene laws are pretty strict. Bear in mind, though, that this isn’t necessarily the case in developing countries. This isn’t to cast aspersions on them at all—many people in developing countries simply don’t have the resources to be able to prepare food in a hygienic manner. In addition, while there may be ample evidence that they’re washing their dishes and their salads, they may well be doing so in contaminated water. The thought and the intention is there, but the results perhaps aren’t quite what was intended. If you do visit a developing country, never drink the water—don’t even rinse your toothbrush using the water that comes out of the tap. Bottled water is usually inexpensive, so stock up on it, and use that for your drinking and toothbrushing needs. In addition, be very careful buying from street vendors. If you do buy any food off the side of the road, ensure that it’s hot. I can speak from experience here, having contracted serious food poisoning after eating a plan bun bought from a food vendor! Consider sanitizing your hands after handling money, too—money’s not known for being the most hygienic of things! Also, when in a restaurant, even a reasonably nice one, avoid ordering uncooked or cold foods such as salads. While these may have been rinsed, commonly the water used for doing so is polluted or unhygienic.
As for the news on the next trip that I will be writing about! The Chalet val thorens booking is sorted out, I am looking forward to our annual ski trip! I need part of the payment by this Friday.
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