Poked and prodded, all in the name of travel


IMG00079-20100622-1521  I travel a decent amount, but apparently not particularly broadly. I thought my list of 40+ countries visited so far was pretty decent but with my most recent booking I’m also realizing that perhaps I’ve visited as many as I have because they have been relatively easy. And then along came a deal that I couldn’t say no to.

I needed to be in San Juan, Puerto Rico in mid-August. Airfare was running around $300ish round-trip. Not great but reasonable for the route. I was pretty close to booking that trip until I noticed that there was, perhaps, a similarly priced deal that would get me a ton more frequent flyer points. Instead of just flying to San Juan and back I’ll be flying in via San Francisco, Chicago, Brussels, Accra and Philadelphia.

Yeah, I’m going from New York City to Puerto Rico via Ghana.

IMG00080-20100622-1525This won’t be my first trip to Africa – I visited Egypt over Christmas last year – but it certainly will be the first trip into what I consider a “hard” country to visit. Among other things, the list of vaccinations required is pretty significant. Typhoid, Tetanus, Hepatitis A & B, Meningococcal Meningitis and – the big one – Yellow Fever. So on Tuesday I found myself hopping between clinics, getting vaccinated and giving blood to test antibody levels for some vaccines. I’m guessing that I’ll need a few more shots in a couple weeks when I get home, but the big one has been taken care of. I got my Yellow Fever vaccination and the certification card that will serve me for the next 10 years.

I’m not a huge fan of needles, but if this is what it takes for me to explore Ghana, Benin and Togo in August and other more adventurous destinations in the coming years, so be it. My obsession with travel is much, much stronger than my aversion to needles.

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Seth Miller

I'm Seth, also known as the Wandering Aramean. I was bit by the travel bug 30 years ago and there's no sign of a cure. I fly ~200,000 miles annually; these are my stories. You can connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

5 Comments

  1. How did you manage a routing like that for a similar price? What airlines are you taking over there?

  2. I just went through this whole process myself for the first time for a trip to Kenya next week. Like you, it’s my first trip to Africa.

    I did get all my shots updated at the same time (5 in all). I have no aversion to needles, but by the 3rd shot- ow! But it’ll be all worth it to explore a new continent.

    I look forward to reading your Africa report- how long will you be there?

  3. I’m only going for 3 nights on the ground in Africa. Way too short, but it is what I could fit in my schedule. I’m very much looking forward to it.

  4. hi Seth
    impressive flight deal!
    But where are you staying in Accra?
    You emailed us for a reservation, I answered, you never responded?
    phoenix
    the rising phoenix
    the best beach front city centre budget hotel in the west coast of Africa (I think)

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