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Mountain Sickness and Frost Bite

HIGH ALTITUDE OR MOUNTAIN SICKNESS

Mountain sickness may be experience by travellers going to destination 3,000m (10,000ft) or more above sea level.

If ascent to a high altitude is gradual and not more than 3,000m (10,000ft) per day, the body acclimatises and the traveller will eventually experience no change in general health. However, if a traveller ascends rapidly, such as when flying to a high-altitude city of climbing up a steep
mountain, he is more likely to experience the symptoms of benign acute mountain sickness (AMS), such as headaches, nausea, vomiting, malignant acute mountain sickness may developed. The 2 types of malignant AMS include:
a) High altitude pulmonary oedema (HAPE). Fluid builds up in the lungs. This lead to breathlessness, cough and blueness of lips.
b) High altitude cerebral oedema (HACE). Fluid accumulates in the brain. This lead to drowsiness, unsteadiness on the feet, abnormal behaviours and even coma.

Treatment
• Evacuate the person to a lower altitudes as quickly as possible.
• Drug: Dexamethasone may be used in HAPE & HACE and nifedepine for HAPE.
• Supplemental oxygen.
• Individual pressurization in a portable compression system (e.g. Gamov bag)
• Rest in bed

Prevention
• Gradual ascent with rest days every 3,000ft above 9,000ft (the motto is: climb high but sleep low).
• Drugs, such as acetazolamide (Diamox) 250mg tds or dexamethasone 4mg bd or 4mg tds. These drugs prevent or reduce symptoms of AMS and should be started one day before ascent and continued 2-3 days after reaching the high elevation. However, some people taking them have been known to develop AMS. It is, therefore not advisable to use prophylactic drugs unless rapid is unavoidable (e.g. rescue attempt).

FROSTBITE

Local severe chilling of exposed or poorly insulated tissues (e.g. nose, cheek, chin, ears, hands and feet) can occasionally result in freezing with or without general chilling or hypothermia.

Predisposing factors for frostbite include:
• How cold it is.
• Degree of wind chill
• Amount of tissue at risk. (area exposed, tissue to which blood supply is restricted)
The initial symptoms of frostbite is intense pain in those body parts at risk and at this stage the part must be re-warmed. The part subsequently becomes numb, white and hard to touch
because it is frostbitten.

Treatment
• At the painful stage of impending frostbite, the treatment is stop, protect, insulate and re-warm the affected part.
• Take the opportunity to correct any factors that may lead to frostbite by changing wet clothing and consuming a hot meal.
• To avoid instant freezing, avoid touching bare metal with bare hands.
• The patient should be kept in a warm room, where a high temperature 21¼C of can be maintained. The affected part should be washed with antiseptic solution (certimide 1%), bandaged lightly and elevated.
• Commence a course of antibiotics such as penicillin and pain killers such as paracetamol.
• Surgery e.g. amutation might be required.

Prevention
• Be aware of the risk of cold, exposed tissue.
• Keep an eye on wind chill index (Air temperature/
wind velocity).
• Wear adequate protective clothing - well fitting and build on layer principle - neck and wrist opening recommended so water vapour from sweat can escape.
• Well fitting socks and boots.
• Remember that socks worn for too long may:
(a) become wet with condensed sweat and possibly lead to chilling.
(b) develop holes and hence lose their insulation value.
(c) shrink and thus, blood supply to feet and toes are impeded.

By the way, the only similarity between the video above and this post is the word FrostBite, were you like thinking..what the heck?haha

Travel from Singapore to Bangkok by Train

Taking the train is the safe, comfortable, cheap and traditional way to travel independently between Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Penang & Bangkok. It's environmentally-friendly, too, compared to unnecessary short haul flights. Singapore-Kuala Lumpur takes 6 hours on one of two modern daytime trains or 8 hours on a time-effective overnight sleeper train, from just approximately $9 one-way. Singapore to Bangkok is a wonderful 1,249 mile overland journey, it takes about 48 hours including an afternoon free in KL and a morning spent in Penang, departures are daily, and it costs a bargain of approximately $50 one-way including comfortable sleeping-berths with fresh clean sheets. You change trains at Kuala Lumpur and Butterworth (Penang), and of course you can stop off to see Kuala Lumpur or Penang as long as you like, or catch the ferry to Ko Samui or the bus to Phuket or Krabi. See train schedule below:
Footnotes:
L = Deluxe sleeper(Premier Night Deluxe), 1 or 2-bed compartments with private shower & toilet, air-conditioned.
F = 1st class sleepers(Premier Night Standard), 2-bed compartments with washbasin.
S = 2nd class sleepers(Superior Night), upper & lower berths with curtains for privacy, air-conditioned.
1 = 1st class seats (Premier). Quite luxurious, reclining, air-conditioned.
2 = 2nd class seats (Superior). Comfortable, air-conditioned.
3 = 3rd class seats (Economy). Modern & fairly comfortable, but basic.
* = Only one 2nd class sleeper & seats car runs to/from Hat Yai. The 1st class sleepers only run between Kuala Lumpur, Butterworth & Padang Besar.
** = Trains 3 & 4 have been suspended from 17 March 2008 until further notice, so please use other trains until or unless they reinstate this one.
All times shown in local time (remember that Thailand is 1 hour behind Malaysian time!).
Please check times before you travel at www.ktmb.com.my, as they change from time to time. See notes by train number below.

Explanation of the schedule

Each column is a separate train, and you read downwards. You can buy tickets for any train, between any two stations. So for example, in the second column you see that train number 2, with 1st & 2nd class seats, running daily, leaves Singapore at 07:40, stops at Johor Bahru, Gemas, Tampin, calls at Kuala Lumpur at 14:19, stops at Ipoh and finally arrives at Butterworth (for the Penang Ferry) at 21:35. You could change trains at KL onto train 8. Or you could stay on board till Butterworth, stay overnight and catch train 36 to Bangkok next day. It's up to you...

Fares:

Here are some pics of the train interiors:

The above are summarised from http://www.seat61.com/. They have a comprehensive list of international train rides, including the trans-siberian railway!

Southeast Asia - Plan Your Travels According to Festivals

Vietnam

January/February

Tet

Vietnamese and Chinese Lunar New Year, is the most important Festival of Vietnamese people. This sacred Festival sometime between late January or early February (depend on Lunar Calendar ) and Tet has become so familiar to the Vietnamese that when Spring arrives, the Vietnamese, wherever they may be, are all thrilled and excited with the advent of Tet, and they feel an immense nostalgia, wishing to come back to their homeland for a family reunion and a taste of the particular flavours of the Vietnamese festivities.. Although officially a three-day affair, festivities may continue for a week or more with every effort made to indulge in eating, drinking, and enjoyable social activities. It is also a time for family reunions, and for paying respect to ancestors and the elders. Gifts of food are made to friends, neighbors and relatives in the days before Tet.

Lim Festival
The Lim Festival takes place every year on 13th day of the 1st lunar month. Visitors come to enjoy the festival and see the performances of "lien anh" and "lien chi". These are male and female farmers who sing different types of songs in the pagodas, on the hills, and in the boats. Besides this, visitors can come to the Lim Festival to enjoy the weaving competition of the Noi Due girls. They weave and sing Quan Ho songs at the same time. Like other religious festivals, the Lim Festival goes through all the ritual stages, from the procession to the worshipping ceremony, and includes other activities.

Yen Tu Pagoda festival
Yen Tu Festival commences annually on the 10th day of the first lunar month and lasts three months. Tens of thousands of pilgrims begin their journey after a solemn ritual held at the base of Yen Tu Mountain. After the three-hour trekking along winding path, going through forests of pines or bamboos, tourists reach the Bronze Pagoda atop the mountain. Upon getting up there all visitors feel like entering Nirvana.

Dong Da hillock festival

Dong Da hillock festival takes place annually on the 5th (20 February 2008) of Lunar New Year. This is a victorious festival, organized in memory of the King Quang Trung's great merit - the hero in national history of anti - invaders. Two centuries ago, Dong Da was a battlefield where Quang Trung (Nguyen Hue), a Tay Son farmer who later became a National Hero defeated more than 200,000 soldiers of the Qing invading army. Dong Da Hill became a glorious historical site of the Vietnamese nation.

March
Phu Giay festival
Phu Giay festival, one of the most popular festivals in Vietnam, takes place annually from the 1st to the 10th of the third lunar month in Kim Thai commune, Vu Ban district, Nam Dinh province.Every year thousands of followers join the yearly Phu Giay Festival, Vietnam. 20 to 30 young men from every village join the festival carrying two meter long decorated bamboo sticks.

They stand in ranks to forge four Chinese characters “Mau Nghi Thien Ha”.

3rd March is the death anniversary of “The Mother”. Mother Lieu Hanh is escorted from the Van Cat Temple to Dan pagoda on 5th March and from Tien Huong Temple to Goi Pagoda on 6th March. The young men have an important role in these processions. It involves lacquered and gilded palanquins to be carried by eight people on each trip. Old women carry a long piece of cloth on their head forming “The Bridge” for geniuses and spirits to travel. Colorfully dressed young men and women holding burning incense sticks follow them dancing and chanting loudly. These processions stretch for more than two to three kilometers.

Nui Ba Festival

During this annual celebration, thousands of Buddhists and tourists flock to the Ba Mountain to worship and sightsee. The festival is celebrated during spring till the 30th day of the 1st lunar month. The festival reaches its peak on the day of the full moon of the first month when people from the Ho Chi Minh City and the provinces of the south gather in crowds at the mountain. Pilgrims start at the bottom of the mountain and climb one half of the mountain to Saint Linh Son's communal house. Then, they follow a path that leads to a pagoda.

April

Hung Temple Festival
Hung Temple Festival in Hanoi is one of the most royal of the national festivals that celebrate the Hung Kings, whose contribution to the foundation of the nation is revered at. As you witness this festival, you will be impressed by the tangible show of emotive natives of the land, who celebrate their love and heritage of the country almost with the passionate zeal of religious faith. It lasts for 3 days.

Dong nhan Village Festival
The Trung Sisters, two Vietnamese heroines who led a rebellion against the Han invaders (40-43 AD) are not only worshipped in Hanoi, but also in Dong Nhan village (Hai Ba Trung district, Hanoi). Dong Nhan village holds its festival from the third to the sixth day of the second lunar month, date when villagers recovered the statues of the two sisters in the Red River.

June
Giong festival
The Giong Festival in Hanoi is the northern festival which is celebrated annually in the Phu Dong Village, Gia Lam District in Hanoi. The widely popular Giong Festival in Hanoi is celebrated on the ninth day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar. Giong Festival in Hanoi is commemorated to honor the hero of the village, saint Giong who saved the village by defeating the An invaders. To express their honor for the hero of the village who made a sacrifice of his life to defeat the invaders, the villagers proclaimed him as Saint Giong.

August

Honchen Temple Festival

The Hon Chen Temple Festival is organized twice every year in the 3rd and the 7th lunar months. The festival takes place at the Hon Chen temple, 10 km west of Hue. It starts with a procession referred to as the God Welcoming ceremony, said to bring all the worshipped Gods from the village temples and shrines to the communal house where various rituals are performed, including the procession in honour of Saint Mother Thien Y A Na. The procession takes place at night on the Perfume River, which shines with a myriad of lights. The procession ivolves a long line of boats bound together into bigger rafts.

September
Mid-autumn Festival

For a long time, Vietnam and some other Asian countries who follow the rite of worshipping the Moon Genie, welcome the Mid-Autumn Festival on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month. This is the time when the moon is full, the farm work is at rest, and the weather is cool and fresh. Apart from the Lunar New Year, the Mid-Autumn Festival is the most impressive event for the Vietnamese, particularly the children. There is no other event in the year other than this festival that provides them with as much entertainment, toys, cakes, candies, and fruit.

Doson Buffalo Fighting Competition

The Buffalo Fight in Do Son (Haiphong City) is officially held every year on the 9th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. There are, in fact, two rounds of elimination before the middle of the 5th month and 8th day of the 6th lunar month.
The preparation for this festival is very elaborate. Fighting buffaloes must be carefully selected, well fed, and trained. These buffaloes must be between 4 and 5 years old, with a good appearance, a wide chest, a big groin, a long neck, an acute bottom, and bow shaped horns. The fighting buffaloes are fed in separate cages to keep them from contact with common buffaloes.

Kiep Bac Festival
The Kiep Bac Temple, where people come to worship Tran Quoc Tuan, the main general of the Tran Dynasty, is located in Hung Dao Commune, Chi Linh District, Hai Duong Province. Tran Quoc Tuan was the general who defeated the Chinese Nguyen-Mong invaders three times. Because of his merits to the nation, he was proclaimed a saint.

October
Keo Pagoda Festival

Keo Pagoda is located in Vu Nhat commune, Thai Binh province. This great pagoda was built as early as 17th century in honour of a monk whose name has been recorded in books: Duong Khong Lo. This man was originally a fisherman, then entered religion and attained Nirvana. He knew magic and once came to the capital to cure King Ly Thanh Tong so he was honored as the teacher of princes. He had Nghiem Quang Pagoda built and later renamed it Than Quang (Keo Pagoda). The Keo Pagoda festival is annually held for three days, from 13th to 15th of the 9th lunar month to worship Buddhist Duong Khong Lo.

Oc Om Boc Festival
The Oc Om Boc Festival is a religious service to worship the moon god of the Kho Me minority group. The festival is usually held on December 15th of the Buddhist Calendar, or in October following the Gregorian Calendar. At this religious festival, people thank the moon god who brings about good crops, provides abundant fish in the rivers, and maintains the health of human beings.
During the night of the full moon, as the moon appears, people prepare a feast in the front yard of the pagoda or in their houses. A plate of green rice flakes, ripe bananas, fresh peeled coconuts, mangoes and other dishes are served to the moon god.

November/December
Kate Festival
The Kate Festival is held annually by the Cham ethnic group who inhabit the An Phuoc District of Ninh Thuan Province. The Kate Festival ia held on the first ten days of the seventh month of the Cham Calendar (this cooresponds with September or October). The Kate Festival is an occasion for the Cham people to express their venerability to their god. This god is considered the creator of the universe and is thought of as a national hero. During this festival, people go on a pilgrimage to the holy land of My Son and visit their friends and family.

Ghe Ngo Festival
According to the Khmer people, the 15th day of the tenth lunar month marks the end of their year. Khmer people in Vietnam's southern Mekong Delta celebrate this event with ceremonies, feasts and Ngo boat races. On the Khmer New Year's Eve, villagers gather in the grounds of their local pagoda, in a treeless area. The moon is invited to watch the ceremonies, which begin with the construction of a bamboo archway, decorated with leaves and flowers. Beneath this arch stands a table on which villagers place offerings of bananas, coconuts, sweet potatoes, cassava and, most importantly, new sticky rice. When the moon appears, an old man lights incense and candles and prays to the Moon Deity. Following this prayer, children kneel and raise their clasped hands to the moon. The host of the ceremony places chunks of sticky rice in the children's mouths, pats them on the back and tells them to make a wish. These wishes are said to foreshadow the fate of the community in the coming year.

Cool Travelling Gadgets - The Eco friendly Way

Wind Powered charger - A windmill made small to power up your handphones, mini radios e.t.c. If there is no wind, you can still blow at it! And best of all, wind is free..

Solar Powered bag - There is a socket in the bag to plug the things you need to recharge. You can hold it over your head to shield yourself from the sun and get the maximum sun exposure for the best effect.

Water Powered Alarm Clock - Do away with the need to find batteries or dispose of them. Use water, the readily available source of power...unless of cause you are in the desert!

Handpower charger - This gadget will work day and night, without wind, water or sun. Helps give you lean arms too...

Confused about Adapters for Travelling?

An adapter will allow you only to plug your appliance into another type of outlet. It will not change the electrical voltage. Here are the most common kinds of adapters used worldwide?

Used in North America ( including Canada), Mexico, Guatemala, Jamaica and Venezuala, Vietnam