Unfortunately there's not a whole lot to report, other than little tidbits of information. I really thought that I'd be knee deep in research when moving to a new country, but you'd be surprised how little I actually have to do at this very moment. I mean my leave date isn't until August so realistically nothing should be happening in May, and I've got a pretty great Recruiting Agency that I'm depending on. Also, I've joined a number of Facebook groups that focus on Korea and getting an idea of how cool the people are over there, so all is going well.
I did recently have my annual physical (good to keep on top of these things you know), and had them throw in a tetanus shot for good measure. I think the statute of limitations on those is about 10 years, and I haven't had one since I did cheerleading freshman year of high school. Anyway, after a clean bill of health, and a sore left shoulder I was curious if I'd have to endure being a human pincushion in the future. Fortunately, Ask Now (my recruiting agency) told me that there are no requirements for immunizations, and I do not have to get any shots if I choose not to. (And I definitely choose not to).
With that being said, I'm sure my mother (who works in medicine as a profession, and reminded me of this today when I called to wish her a Happy Mother's Day) will not agree with my choice to take a risk and see if I wind up getting anything abroad, and I did some more digging around. According to MDtravelhealth.com South Korea RECOMMENDS that you be vaccinated for Hepatitis A & B, Typhoid, Rabies, Measles Mumps & Rubella (MMR), Tetanus, & Japanese Encephalitis. Do I think its a good idea not to get Typhoid? Sure. Am I too lazy to get these shots? Your guess is as good as mine, I guess we'll see in time how convincing my mother can be after she reads this.
I do plan on visiting various countries though, and I figured I'd see if there was anything anywhere that had pressing "YOU MUST GET THIS SHOT TO SURVIVE" requirements. After checking Hong Kong/China, Japan, Australia, India, & Taiwan they all recommend the same things. The only difference being Yellow Fever and Malaria in India (but I doubt I'll get there anyway). Even the CDC echoes MDTravelhealth.com so I think everything will work out. Either way with my luck, I'd get all the shots and still wind up getting SARS or the now more trendy Bird Flu.
