Mummy Flu From The Land Of Pharoes

The picture shows Noorali on the camel at the Giza pyramids with Sabiya, Alia and Hussein in the foreground.
The picture shows Noorali on the camel at the Giza pyramids with Sabiya, Alia and Hussein in the foreground.

Christmas on the River Nile, New Year’s eve party in the land of the pyramids in Cairo and a dance with a belly dancer (with two belly buttons – just kidding) in the Dubai desert on our last day summarizes (in a simple way) our holiday in the Middle East.

International travel has its dangers. We had taken all the precautions to prevent mummy’s tummy and we had our flu vaccination and other vaccinations up-to-date. But the flu virus was every where. Almost every other tourist I met had flu. So, my wife and I fell victim to the devious virus.

Canadians returning from Hawaii and Paris have been down with flu and pneumonia as well. I guess the changing weather conditions, jet lag, cramped airplane seats, poor hygienic conditions of the public washrooms, long days sightseeing, late nights and fatigue contribute to low immunity and susceptibility to flu virus. This is my second bout of flu since I had my flu vaccine. Does it say something about the flu vaccine or my immunity?

Politically, the Israeli assault on Gaza was generating big headlines and street demonstrations but it did not affect us. Security is intense to protect the tourists.

In spite of all the hassles of travel, it is worth taking a holiday. Few days away from the daily grind of work and stress does help our mind and body to recover and get energized. It does not matter what you do, camping, fishing, golfing, skiing or just getting away with a nice book to read in the rocky mountains or to a cottage helps recharge your batteries.

The land of the Pharoes is something out of this world. Most of Egypt’s estimated 82 million people live near the banks of the Nile River, in an area of about 40,000 square kilometers (15,000 sq mi), where the only arable agricultural land is found. Eighty per cent of Egypt is Sahara Desert which is sparsely inhabited.

Cairo has 20 million people. And who knows how many million cars on the road. Driving in the city of Cairo is scary. There is continuous honking and sort of organized chaos in the streets where almost five cars drive side by side in a 3-lane road. Passing each other and changing lanes is like watching a video game except this is real and looks very dangerous. For our taxi driver (30 years’ experience driving in Cairo) it was fun. We used the same guy for four days. He kept on saying, “Drivers in Cairo are crazy.”

We started our holiday from Aswan and Abu Simbel. Then we took a four-night (five days) Nile Cruise which covered Kom Ombo Edfu, and Luxor, the old capital of Egypt. From Luxor we took an overnight train to Cairo (some people prefer to fly). After few days in Cairo we went to Dubai.

Egyptian history goes back over 5000 years BC. In Dubai, the history of development is pretty new. You see how money can conquer desert and water to create a miracle metropolis. Your eyes will not believe what you see. It is like a mirage. This has happened in the last 10 to 20 years. Egypt and Dubai are two different worlds.

People in Egypt and Dubai go out of their way to be nice to tourists. Tourists bring in lot of dollars. Vendors are little aggressive in their sale but you need to learn how to bargain. Tourist guides are all well educated in the history of Egypt. Tourist guides have to go through four years of college and should know at least two to three international languages to be certified as a tourist guide.

We could not see everything in Egypt. There is so much to see. But we visited some of the world’s most famous monuments, including the Giza pyramid complex and its Great Sphinx. We also saw the mummies in Cairo Museum.

Now that 2008 is over with, let us see what is in store for us in 2009. I pray for good health and happiness for all.

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An Island for Good Health and Happiness

Spring is here and it is time to take stock of our health. During Christmas and New Year, most of us make resolutions or think of things to do in the next 365 days. We are all in search of good health and happiness. And I am no different. Everything I do is in some ways related to my search for that elusive nirvana.

Like most people, I found last winter to be severe. An empty nest at home does not help. And my frequent trips to Calgary to see my terminally ill mother added extra pressure on my mental and physical well being. Now I understand and appreciate why some people go south to warm weather for three to six months. It is good for sanity. Currently, I am in no situation to take that amount of time off. So I tried to take frequent breaks during the winter months.

I had a good holiday with my family in Disneyland. I also went to Antigua with my son Hussein to check out his university (American University of Antigua College of Medicine), play some golf with him and relax on the beach. They have 365 beaches – one for each day of the year! Since our house is an equal opportunity residence, it was fair to visit my daughter, Alia, at the University of Victoria and take her to Seattle for the long weekend in Easter. This is good for keeping the sibling rivalry at bay – so to speak.

My wife was not to be left out. So I took her to Las Vegas for our 25th wedding anniversary on April Fools Day. After 25 years, she still thinks our marriage is real! It is hard to convince people that we got married on April Fool’s day. On April first, as part of our celebration, we attended a show in Las Vegas (Cirque du Soleil’s Zumanity). We were called on to the stage as we were the only couple in the packed theatre who was married on April Fool’s day and was still together after 25 years! That was our 15 minutes of fame.

Antigua (pronounced an-TEE-gah) is a beautiful island in the West Indies. It has a circumference of 87 kilometers. It has a population of about 70,000. According to Wikipedia, it is the largest of the Leeward Islands, and the most developed and prosperous due to its upscale tourism industry, offshore banking, internet gambling services and education services, including two medical schools.

The capital city is St. John with a population of 30,000. The island has an international airport (VC Bird International Airport) which is serviced by many major airlines including Air Canada. It has deep harbour to accommodate large cruise ships. It has 365 beautiful beaches (one for each day of the year) and tropical marine weather to go with it. The island is internationally famous for yachting and sailing. It has two 18-hole golf courses and they charge US$40 for green fees and US$30 for power cart. The Antiguan currency is the Eastern Caribbean Dollar. Suggested exchange rate is EC $2.60 to U.S. $1.00

Antigua is a beautiful island where you can find excellent bars, music, beaches and food with peace and tranquility. It is a slow paced island requiring patience for pleasure and happiness. I am glad I went there. Now I have to work on getting 20 lbs. off my bulging belly so I can find my golf balls! You get the point. Cheers.

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Enchanting New York and Meaning of Friendship

Noorali Bharwani and Family at the Empire State Building

August 2006 picture shows Noorali, Alia, Sabiya and Hussein Bharwani in front of the Empire State Building, New York City on a cloudy and rainy day.

I never thought New York City would be a place where I would feel at home, be happy and feel healthy, especially after the events of September 11, 2001. I had booked my holidays with some trepidation. Now I can say I have no regrets.

In New York City, besides sightseeing and some shopping I was hopping to see my friend, Bhagwan. We were in college together 42 years ago. We went to different medical schools and lost touch. Couple of years ago, I Googled his name and discovered that he was a general surgeon like me working in New York City. I phoned him and we decided to meet sometime in the future. So I thought I will meet him and his family briefly for coffee, talk about old times and then do my own stuff.

I discovered the true meaning of friendship and New York City hospitality when Bhagwan and his lovely wife showed up at JFK airport to receive us. From then on Bhagwan, his wife and their wonderful three children took care of us and made this a real memorable holiday. The people of New York City are extremely nice and friendly. I felt totally safe and at home.

Few months before our departure from Medicine Hat , I had been in touch with the New York City’s official tourism office through their website (www.nycvisit.com). They were very helpful and supplied me with a press pass and information which helped me plan my stay in the Big Apple.

Our hotel was close to the Grand Central Station. We were within walking distance to the United Nations building, 5th Avenue, Times Square, Broadway and Empire State Building. So we walked a lot. We used the subway to take a ferry trip to see the Statue of Liberty. We used hop-on and hop-off tour bus to visit other tourist areas including the Central Park and Ground Zero, the site of World Trade Centre.

We were scared to go to Harlem but Bhagwan took us there to see the historic Capitol Theatre. Thanks to Bhagwan and his family we saw more than what we had planned. It was wonderful to walk around the Broadway and Times Square at midnight after a show and see streets full of happy people. No wonder New York City has been praised for courage and fortitude. In spite of the tragedy of 9/11, people are extremely nice and helpful.

Ethel Barrymore said, “The best time to make friends is before you need them.” To have good health one has to have good friends and a good social circle. I can say I have been very lucky to have friends like Bhagwan (which means God) and his family. That makes me very happy. And New York City has a new friend, me!

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Dr. B Goes to Washington

Noorali in front of the White House
Noorali in front of the White House

Alia, Hussein, Sabiya, and Noorali at Lincoln Memorial
Alia, Hussein, Sabiya and Noorali at Lincoln Memorial

I am back.

I feel good and refreshed after two weeks of a healthy holiday in Washington, DC, New York City, New York and Calgary, Alberta.

So what is so healthy about taking a holiday especially in those three busy cities? Isn’t traveling itself stressful these days?

Regular readers of my column may recall Leonardo da Vinci’s (1452-1519) quote which I often use in my holiday articles. It says, “Every now and then go away, have little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgement will be surer; since to remain constantly at work will cause you to lose power of judgement.”

We all have a busy lifestyle. We forget that we need time off for ourselves and for our families. As the Eddie Bauer ad says: Never confuse having a career with having a life. I always come back from holidays tired but relaxed, richer in experience and ready to go back to work with a fresh mind and a healthy attitude.

Traveling these days is stressful. But the price is worth paying for security and peace of mind. Only one segment of our trip was stressful. There is no direct flight from Calgary to Washington, DC. We flew by Air Canada to Toronto where we had to take another Air Canada connecting flight. We had to change planes, terminals and go through US immigration, customs and several security checks within one hour and 10 minutes.

We were lucky the plane did not leave without us. It took off several minutes late so we did not miss the connection. But our luggage did not make it. It arrived the next day. We felt very rushed, stressed and tired during the change over time.

Rest of the time in Washington was wonderful. The weather was nice and hot like Medicine Hat. People are very nice and friendly. We extensively used the Metro subway system and walked a lot. We do lot of walking on our holidays more than what we do in Medicine Hat. Our hotel was located in the Foggy Bottom Metro station area close to Georgetown and George Washington University.

There are several ways to see Washington. We used three methods: walking, Metro subway system and Tourmobile Sightseeing’s shuttle system (hop-on and hop-off). We had done some home work before leaving Medicine Hat. We had received maps and suggestion for three days/two nights ‘what to see’ itinerary from Washington, DC Convention and Tourism Corporation (www.washington.org).

The city is well organized and we were able to see a lot. We made stops at the White House, US Capitol, Union Station, Arlington National Cemetery, Lincoln Memorial (my favourite) and International Spy Museum. Smithsonian Institution has 15 fascinating museums. They are all free! We had time to see only two. There isn’t enough room to mention all the places we visited and every thing we did. But I was happy to visit Washington, DC and would like to go there and spend more time. I would not have said this a month ago.

Happiness is good for health and next week I will tell you about the enchanting New York City and the meaning of friendship which brought me so much happiness. Ciao.

Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!