लैंड ऑफ़ थे फ्लू एंड थे बरवे

South China: Land of the Flu and the Brave

A friend here recently told me that the flu virus originates in south China each year before it spreads around the world and that this area is often referred to as "ground zero for infectious diseases" by foreigners who work here. I feel pretty naive not learning about this before I left, since I take public health risks very seriously. So, naturally I developed a flu/fever over the weekend and my throat go really sore. So I went to the intl. clinic here and was diagnosed with abscess tonsillitis. The doctor said I caught it simply because of the poor air quality and the amount of pollution in the area. Having puss coat your tonsils really sucks!

Work is going well though, despite the fact that I have been stuck in my apartment trying to get better.