Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
AIDS/HIV
Bali has the fifth-highest rate of HIV/AIDS cases in Indonesia behind West and East Java,
Jakarta and Papua; bear in mind, as well, that other travellers may also be infected. Many
people with HIV are also infected with hepatitis.
Condoms
can be bought on both islands,
but it's advisable to bring your own too.
General precautions
Precautions
while you are travelling can reduce your chances of getting ill. Personal hygiene
is vital and it pays to use some discretion about choosing where to eat - if the bits you can
see are filthy, imagine the state of the kitchen. Avoid
food
that has sat around in the heat
in favour of freshly cooked meals; food prepared in fancy tourist places is just as likely to
be suspect as that from simple streetside stalls.
Ice
is supposedly prepared under regulated
conditions in Indonesia, but it's impossible to be sure how it has been transported or stored
once leaving the factory. If you're being really careful, avoid ice in your drinks - a lot easier
said than done in the heat. Treat even small cuts or scrapes with antiseptic. Wear flip-flops or
thongs in the bathroom rather than walk around barefoot.
Water hygiene
Do not drink untreated tap
water
on Bali or Lombok, as it is likely to contain disease-causing
microorganisms.
Bottled water
is available everywhere and there are several methods of
treating either tap water or natural ground water to make it safe for drinking (and this also
avoids creating mountains of waste with your empty plastic water bottles); the most tradi-
tional method is boiling, although this isn't practical when you're travelling. However,
water
purifying tablets
,
water filters
and
water purifiers
are all available in
travel clinics
and
specialist outdoor-equipment retailers.
Heat and skin problems
Travellers are at risk of
sunburn
and
dehydration
. Limit exposure to the sun in the hours
around noon, use high-factor sunscreen and wear sunglasses and a hat. Make sure that you
drink enough as you'll be sweating mightily in the heat. If you're urinating very little or your
urine turns dark (this can also indicate hepatitis), increase your fluid intake. When you sweat
you lose salt, so add some extra to your food or take
oral rehydration salts
.
A more serious result of the heat is
heatstroke
, indicated by high temperature, dry skin and
a fast, erratic pulse. As an emergency measure, try to cool the patient off by covering them
in sheets or sarongs soaked in cold water and turn the fan on them; they may need to go to
hospital, though.
Heat rashes,
prickly heat
and fungal infections are also common; wear loose cotton cloth-
ing, dry yourself carefully after bathing and use medicated talcum powder or antifungal
powder if you fall victim.
