I haven't forgotten about Bird Flu

A couple of years ago, there was no such thing as H1N1 or Swine Flu. Instead, Bird Flu was all "the rage". In fact, at the time that we moved to Palembang, Indonesia had the highest number of cases of Bird Flu (H5N1) and did not seem to have the situation under control.

I was so paranoid at that time that we did not eat any chicken (AT ALL) in Palembang. I realize that you can't get it from cooked chicken but what about the raw chicken that needs to be prepared. And even if I went to a restaurant to have it, the people in there would have handled the raw chicken, and all the other food.

With around 95,000 cases of Swine Flu about these days, the Bird Flu, with a total of 436 cases since 2003, seems to be forgotten. What shouldn't be forgotten is that the total number of deaths from Bird Flu is 262 or a 60% fatality rate. So you've got one that spreads so easily, and another that is so deadly....I hope they don't meet up somewhere!

I have always shopped for fish at one particular market that is farther away from my usual one because the chicken section wasn't anywhere near the fish. Unfortunately, during my visit yesterday, I noticed that the perimeter of the fish section was now mostly filled with chicken vendors. My paranoia has returned!

The guy on the bike rang his bell to tell me to move aside. I got the shock of my life when I turned around and saw what he had.



Maybe its time I looked at shopping elsewhere....