ENDEMIC COVID AND TRAVEL
What You Might Want to Know
The Big Lie
The CCP virus is still being treated as if it were Ebola, while the vast majority of people experience merely cold symptoms if anything at all. Just like the common cold (coronavirus is a cause of this) or the flu, a lot of people may get sick in any given year. Few will die. As the numbers of Covid deaths continues to be adjusted downward, governments should start to act accordingly by merely suggesting that the old and infirm take precautions. For the rest of us, it simply is no big deal.
Our Recent European Trip
We just returned from Portugal and Spain, a trip we had delayed after cancellation in 2020. Here are some things to know that might help you in your travels.
Testing – once very hard to find, tests are easier and cheaper now. I recommend Binax-Now which allows you to do a self-test through a video 24x7. This helps you manage the tricky timing issue, as, in general, you need to be tested safe 48 hours before your first flight AND your connecting flight. https://tinyurl.com/53rcyjrw It was quick and easy and results in getting the code you need for the airport. In Europe, testing is available most places and isn’t that pricey, unlike the US. If you simply want to know, most pharmacies offer a self-test for about 2 Euros. That won’t get you a travel certificate, but you can find out how you are inexpensively.
However, when we took off from SFO, we weren’t asked for proof of testing, just our vax cards. On our return, the same thing happened. No one cared. I’m not suggesting you don’t test, but it seems that many operators have decided this is like a cold or flu and they don’t stop you flying with either of those.
Protection
To ensure that you either don’t get sick or, if you do get exposed, that your illness will be mild, seek out and FLCCC doctor and follow the protocol.
https://covid19criticalcare.com/
We started it a month before our trip, including twice weekly ivermectin. The result was that we were able to pass the tests and weren’t stranded like many others on our trip. (If you fail a required test, you have to stay where you are till you test negative. And some places require that you quarantine X number of days, no matter what your test status). There is a cost to do this, but I still recommend it, as changing airline reservations and staying extra days in a hotel is costly too.
Masks
We had strict rules on our group travel to wear N95 masks. You can actually get used to this. However, as I noted, quite a few people got sick anyway. Hand sanitizers were sprayed on us constantly and aside from ending up with bleeding cuticles, I couldn’t see that this made any difference.
The airlines are now dropping the regulations as are ride-share apps. If you are fearful, you may want to continue mask-wearing, but I don’t see that it is any protection. Some of those who fell ill on our trip (all of us were seniors) wore their masks religiously, indoors and out, and it didn’t help.
Irritation Factor
With rules changing constantly, vaccines appearing to have little or no effect and dealing with the fear of being stranded, I’m trying to avoid any further European travel until we get to the point of realizing that the CCP virus will be with us for a long time and we simply have to deal with it, not in fear, but in prudent behavior.
While I’m sure that not every member of our tour group got Covid, almost every one of us had a dry, persistent cough throughout the trip. Annoying, but awful. For this, carry your favorite cough lozenge. It seems to soothe your throat and help you cough less. Nothing else seems to work. It seems to be like hiccups—a tic that you can’t control, but that doesn’t impact your enjoyment of the trip. You can find Hals lozenges in almost any small grocery; these places are everywhere. And though the cough was prevalent, no one seemed to have breathing issues or a fever.
Pro tip: it’s also where you can score cheap snacks and affordable diet Coke.
