Is this to reduce vibration from the vehicle (when its on) since the stated lens doesn't seem to be one of the heavier ones?

JBPhotog wrote:
Get the Kinesis Safari Sack, buckled strap to loop around the rail on your Toyota LC so it doesn't fall off and two side straps to keep the 'A' shape for support. Without the bag you won't get sharp images.

Celbrett wrote:
Is this to reduce vibration from the vehicle (when its on) since the stated lens doesn't seem to be one of the heavier ones?

JBPhotog wrote:
Get the Kinesis Safari Sack, buckled strap to loop around the rail on your Toyota LC so it doesn't fall off and two side straps to keep the 'A' shape for support. Without the bag you won't get sharp images.



No, the drivers pretty much always turn the engine off, and since you are the customer, you can always ask them to if they just come to a stop. The bean bag is to rest the lens so you can shoot at slower shutter speeds however this is especially important with long lenses. Remember to shoot from the window too, this perspective is closer to the ground and will yield a background that is further away and out of focus, more 3D.

The windows will more than likely be the sliding variety so when it is open you have a ledge to prop the bean bag on. Be careful it doesn't fall out though so always plop it on the seat when the LC starts to roll.

redbarn wrote:
I have to admit after I looked at the link that Naranek sent me I changed my mind from going DIY to getting one already made by professionals. Also, you saw what I said about contacting the Safari operators. They will be glad to get the beans all I need to send them is the amount the need to get.

Do you think rice would be better than beans? Yes, I'm taking several microfiber cloth. I also use one of those women's make up brushes to dust off the body and lens. But I don't think I'd be taking any type of compressed air. I don't want TSA to get the benefit of a free can at my expense. Do you have any other suggestion for daily maintenance.

Now that is what I call creativity using Ziplock bags with sticky orange dots, duh..... Why didn't I think of that. Another thing, I am taking several types of SD and CF cards. How can you select the right card for the specific setting or subjects. I always take extra ziplock bags of different sizes.

I don't want to be so consumed in shooting and missing all whole experience. I'm not too much of a videographer, but wouldn't mind taking some videos and of course I have some faster cards. How did you handle it?

I also decided to add more to my arsenal even though I have been fighting not to do it. I'm packing very very light but today I decided to get a netbook with 350G. I now can use my portable HD and will be transferring my images, and will end up with double back ups, and as a token will be gaining memory without buying more memory cards.

The netbook will add another 3lbs.



I have always used rice since it is a known quantity and size, many different types of beans. 4.5 kg of rice is just right in the Kinesis, not sure which beans and weight you'll need. BTW this will cost you @ 600 KES or $6.50 USD, yep rice is about the same price or more than what you'll pay at home for a 5 kg bag. Also, in Kenya, they prefer KES rather than USD so use a credit card and it simplifies things if you go to a super market.

As far as cleaning stuff, I take everything but I also have two FX bodies and sack full of glass. In the bag are:
1. Visible Dust 7x Loupe
2. Visible Dust Arctic Butterfly
3. Visible Dust Sensor Swabs (24)
4. Visible Dust Sensor Clean fluid, VDust Plus fluid, Smear Away fluid.
5. Small static free brush to brush out inside of mirror box, hold the camera lens mount down when doing this.
6. Blower, you'll never get canned air through TSA and it should never be used inside the camera.
7. Lens tissues, Pec Pads work for this.
8. Eclipse fluid for the lens cleaning.
9. Electronic contact cleaner, dispensed into a small eyedropper bottle, to be used only on the electronic contacts should they become fouled, batteries, lens contacts, etc.
10. Small eyedropper bottle of 99.953% Isopropyl alcohol, to clean the Arctic Butterfly brush should it get contaminated with oil.
11. a few Q-Tips in a zip bag, just in case I ned them to get into a corner of a lens, wrapped in a Pec Pad of course. Also can be used to dispense electronic contact cleaner.
12. Exterior natural bristle brush, to brush off the camera exterior before I do wipe.
13. Microfiber cloth, run under a tap to get soaked then really ring it out so no water drips from it. Wipe exterior of camera and lenses, rinse and repeat. Also do the interior of the camera bag, no point in cleaning the camera and not where it is going to rest.

Card speeds for HD video should be class 10 I think, I don't shoot video. I always shoot Raw, why bake a file when you are thousands of miles from your editing suite?

Double redundancy for every file is essential so work that into your strategy. I use a portable storage device with a 500 GB drive as the backup, the card is the primary so I never erase in the field. Take enough cards to finish the safari, they are cheap these days and you don't need the fastest for shooting stills since most camera buffers will soak up any write lag of the card. Your netbook with an external drive will give you two copies of each file, make sure to test this before you go so transfers are fail safe.

Thanks great list, but not sure about the eye dropped and alcohol. I just don't want to create any red flag with TSA I already had my share with them a couple of years ago. I always try to stay under the radar

Boy now you got me. I was thinking deleting some images from the cards since I was going to make 2 copies. I have a budget to watch, and as of now I'm way over. As I said I'm not too much into video. Yes most of my SD cards are cat.10 and the CF I bought are 30MB/8G 200, but only taking 6 of those.

I might be running short but not sure I want to spend more $$$$. I ordered the bean bag from Kinesis. You would think that they would know, but apparently not. I asked the guy which one would he recommend rice or beans, the answer "I don't know". Well tell me how many lbs should I get? Ans. gee look it up, I said yeah you are only showing mass cu measurement I need content in lbs.

I just thanked him and placed the order, sheeesh

I got more questions guys. I'm debating which way to go about what I should get for protection for mosquitoes. I
ve been told that for E Africa DEET is the best;however, it can damage your clothes, wrist watch and the worst is that it can damage your photo gear because the oil can transfer to your gear. Any suggestions

Remember pounds are old money in most of the world, grams and kilograms are the international standard for weight. In Kenya and Tanzania, kilos is the weight, 4.5 kilos of rice fills the bag just right so you will be buying a 5 kg(11 lbs.) bag and have @500 grams left over.

Yep you should be taking some DEET, 30 is all you need anything stronger is not required and above 30 can damage some materials. Wear long pants and long sleeves and you'll only have to use it on exposed skin, put sunscreen on first to keep the DEET away from your skin. Apply it before your game drives while still in your tent, if it has a spray, don't spray your skin, spray your hand then rub it on, wash hands thoroughly with soap. All my clothes were the quick dry variety, including underwear and I had no issues with the DEET 30 we have used.

You should have also have some Malaria pills, your choice but doxycycline has the fewest side effects but you have to take it everyday and for 4 weeks after you get back home. Some people prefer Malarone as you have fewer to take but it can have some bad side effects. If you go this route get your doc to write a prescription for a couple of pills, take them now and see how you do. One traveller I know of didn't heed that advice and took them the day of travel, had terrible side effects and couldn't make the trip, money down the drain.

I use DEET and it is not a problem when applied properly and sparingly. Normally I have few or even no mosquito bites compared to what you see in many US locations in the summer months.

EBH

JBPhotog wrote:
Celbrett wrote:
Is this to reduce vibration from the vehicle (when its on) since the stated lens doesn't seem to be one of the heavier ones?

JBPhotog wrote:
Get the Kinesis Safari Sack, buckled strap to loop around the rail on your Toyota LC so it doesn't fall off and two side straps to keep the 'A' shape for support. Without the bag you won't get sharp images.



No, the drivers pretty much always turn the engine off, and since you are the customer, you can always ask them to if they just come to a stop. The bean bag is to rest the lens so you can shoot at slower shutter speeds however this is especially important with long lenses. Remember to shoot from the window too, this perspective is closer to the ground and will yield a background that is further away and out of focus, more 3D.

The windows will more than likely be the sliding variety so when it is open you have a ledge to prop the bean bag on. Be careful it doesn't fall out though so always plop it on the seat when the LC starts to roll.

That is what the molar-type bags are for.

EBH

You gave me a whole list of things that you usually take on your trips. However, I'm not able to carry that much gear for obvious for convenience and cost sake. So can you tell me which of the items you listed are considered "a must " to take along,

But I have to be honest I don't want to fool around with the sensors. One thing that I will be doing, is to take my camera to a local repair shop to clean the sensors, and check the camera out, just in case. I don't think the automatic sensor cleaning feature that comes with the camera does is not good enough, but I will settle for that.

I do plan to take quips, lens tissue, exterior natural bristle brush and Microfiber cloth. I will be removing the lens every night and dust off the edges but nothing beyond that.
For one thing I have no clue what to do, and secondly, I'm afraid that I might create more problem.

I don't know if you read my previous postings. I have no plans to take a camera bag, so I was looking for something to cover my camera (1 lens). At the present time, I used one of those squares that you place the camera then you folded. Its kind of cushy, but it takes time to wrap it. It was suggested to use a nylon bag the type used for stuffing stuff in a backpack.

I am going to try to keep all the images on my Mem cards, but if I see that I'll be running out of memory, then I'd have no choice but to dele some, but keeping (2) copies. One copy on 500G Ext HD, and the second copy on my netbook. I'll be very careful that during the transferring process the RAW images don't get converted into JPEG. I only shoot RAW not RAW+JPEG but you never know.

BTW, how do you ID each mem card, do you use a stick on, or just number them.

EB-1 wrote:
JBPhotog wrote:
Celbrett wrote:
Is this to reduce vibration from the vehicle (when its on) since the stated lens doesn't seem to be one of the heavier ones?

JBPhotog wrote:
Get the Kinesis Safari Sack, buckled strap to loop around the rail on your Toyota LC so it doesn't fall off and two side straps to keep the 'A' shape for support. Without the bag you won't get sharp images.



No, the drivers pretty much always turn the engine off, and since you are the customer, you can always ask them to if they just come to a stop. The bean bag is to rest the lens so you can shoot at slower shutter speeds however this is especially important with long lenses. Remember to shoot from the window too, this perspective is closer to the ground and will yield a background that is further away and out of focus, more 3D.

The windows will more than likely be the sliding variety so when it is open you have a ledge to prop the bean bag on. Be careful it doesn't fall out though so always plop it on the seat when the LC starts to roll.

That is what the molar-type bags are for.

EBH

The Kinesis SafariSack I works perfectly for vehicle window shooting, no need to haul another type of bean bag with you. I take two SafariSack I's with me.

See this video from Andy Biggs: http://www.theglobalphotographer.com/the-global-photographer/category/photo-safari-101

redbarn wrote:
You gave me a whole list of things that you usually take on your trips. However, I'm not able to carry that much gear for obvious for convenience and cost sake. So can you tell me which of the items you listed are considered "a must " to take along,

But I have to be honest I don't want to fool around with the sensors. One thing that I will be doing, is to take my camera to a local repair shop to clean the sensors, and check the camera out, just in case. I don't think the automatic sensor cleaning feature that comes with the camera does is not good enough, but I will settle for that.

I do plan to take quips, lens tissue, exterior natural bristle brush and Microfiber cloth. I will be removing the lens every night and dust off the edges but nothing beyond that.
For one thing I have no clue what to do, and secondly, I'm afraid that I might create more problem.

I don't know if you read my previous postings. I have no plans to take a camera bag, so I was looking for something to cover my camera (1 lens). At the present time, I used one of those squares that you place the camera then you folded. Its kind of cushy, but it takes time to wrap it. It was suggested to use a nylon bag the type used for stuffing stuff in a backpack.

I am going to try to keep all the images on my Mem cards, but if I see that I'll be running out of memory, then I'd have no choice but to dele some, but keeping (2) copies. One copy on 500G Ext HD, and the second copy on my netbook. I'll be very careful that during the transferring process the RAW images don't get converted into JPEG. I only shoot RAW not RAW+JPEG but you never know.

BTW, how do you ID each mem card, do you use a stick on, or just number them.


Okay if you aren't comfortable cleaning the sensor then you can leave most of that stuff out of the equation. And if it were me I would not remove the lens just for the sake of doing so, leave it on as most dust on the sensor is user generated. Actions of removing and attaching lenses discard small metal fragments into the mirror box, storing lens and body caps in your pocket transfers dust particulates into the mirror box all of which can end up on the sensor when the mirror flaps up and down and the shutter is open. So if you aren't going to change lenses then dust around the mount with your brush but leave the lens on.

So your camera is going in your backpack and you want some sort of wrap to protect it, Domke make such a thing but to be honest, with a bit of head scratching, thread, needle, fabric and velcro you can make one yourself. You may need to layer it so some thickness can be employed but that is up to you. I travel with a Gura Gear Kiboko 30L.

I number my CF cards with a permanent marker and they are big enough to accept the 3/4" removable colour coding labels. *Make sure they are the removable type, I use circular ones. I think an SD card is big enough for the 3/4" dots too.

You'll need to set up your drives with a file system for copying. My PSD is set up with folders for each numbered card and the device does incremental back ups so at the end of each day I stick the card in and it copies to the folder any new shots until that card is full. You may have to set up a numbered folder then sub folders for each incremental back up depending on your software, remember to test your strategy before you go.

Yes, I realize that the standard in the international community kilo, and quarts, and meters are the norm. I will be contacting the tour operator to get me 5kg of rice.

About DEET, when you say that all I need is 30. What do you mean by that? I went to REI and they had several products and I read the labels and they showed 98% DEET in %. The sales clerk also showed me other products that don’t contain DEET with fewer side effects, but I’m wondering if that would be strong enough.

He did say, that once I apply it, it would run off to the wristband of my watch, and it might even damage my camera gear due to any residue on my skin. Do you also apply DEET on your face?

I have read that DEET is the best mosquito repellent for Eastern Africa. I am going to get it today but still not sure about the potency. I also got some of those plastic bracelets to use to keep mosquitoes and bugs in general away from you. Historically my blood has been very appetizing to mosquitoes.

My other concern is the anti-malaria meds. I already had all my shots, except Hepatitis B; I choose not to get it based on my destinations and type of travel. However, I have some concerns about using doxycyline, because it makes your skin very sensitive to the sun.

I am not worried it during the safari trips; but my main issue is once I get to Zanzibar that is going to be very open, hot, sunny, and on top of that I might be going snorkeling. In spite of that I don’t have a fair complexion, I tan in a jiffy. I do plan taking sunblock 110. I know anything over 40 its an overkill but I feel better.

What do you think? My doctor has prescribed a few docycycline to try it out before I leave. So I will try it next week and go out to the sun and see how I would react.

As far as Malarone, the #1 negative factor is the cost. I believe they run closed to $5/each. And the side of effects they say it could be as bad as LSD, I don’t know about that.

I was also suggested to use Permathrin. Any thought about this product, how effective is it?

Great I think I'll stick to my plans not to fool around with the sensors, but still I am going to have the camera check a few weeks before just in case. I can anticipate they will recommend to have the sensors clean.

As far the bag or wrapper. What are your thoughts using a nylon bag with a draw string that are normally used to pack and squeeze them to space space. I have several of those that I got at REI.

The netbook I bought is Windows bases, which I haven't used for a long time, so not sure if I could set up a smart folder system to number each card as they are read by the netbook. But worse case scenario I wouldn't mind numbering manually.

I sill will be monitoring the prices for CF cards. I got a good deal from B and H as suggested by someone on this forum. I got 8 of 8GB 30MG/. But never its enough right

The DEET number is the percentage of it in the product, so 30 is @30% DEET. The 98% DEET you mention is WAY too much DEET and will melt just about everything you touch. 40% DEET will damage some materials. You like to shop at REI and they sell the same stuff I use, Ben's Wilderness 30:
http://www.rei.com/product/800707/bens-spray-pump-insect-repellent-30-percent-deet-4-fl-oz

As mentioned, I use sunscreen first, liberal supply of it then I spray the DEET into the palm of my hand and pat the exposed skin, including my neck and face, no need to rub it in everywhere.

As far as Malaria meds go, doxy is pretty benign, malarone can have side effects, permathrin is an insecticide applied to the surface and will have no affect on malaria. Do some research and talk with your doc, you need a malaria prophylaxis. Use sunscreen and take a hat.

No idea on the nylon bags, don't use them but they don't offer any rub protection and if in a backpack, things are going to move around.

Don't forget the plug adapter for your chargers either because they don't use the North American plug, British style pretty much everywhere in Kenya and Tanzania.

For your purpose permethrin is used to treat clothing to kill/repel mosquitoes and ticks. Applied per directions it will last a month or two and survive about half a dozen washings. Using it is basically a DIY version of the commercially available UV/bug protection clothing for hiking and camping. I’ve used it and found it effective in preventing mosquito bites. I use it in conjunction with deet if my clothing isn’t otherwise bug treated and I am going to a place with lots of them.

The label will warn against using it on bare skin. This is not because it is harmful but because the oils and moisture on bare skin neutralize it in a few minutes.

Sawyers makes a nice product for this.

The doctor I use for travel medicine and vaccination is with the tropical and infectious disease department at one of the local university teaching hospitals. Their recommendation is deet at 50%. I don’t know if they are being unduly conservative but I have followed their advice and not had problems.

Your physician is your best advisor for malaria prophylaxis so I would follow his advice. Personally, I use malarone and have had no side effects. You sure you are thinking of malarone rather than mefloquine in terms of side effects? The latter has some very freaky and potentially dangerous side effects. But again, your doctor should be the source of guidance on prophylactic medicine.

If your camera can attach comments to an image you might consider putting a comment on each morning indicating which park or location you were in to supplement whatever card marking system you use. On my camera a comment is attached to each photo until I change the comment field so, for example,in the morning of day 1 I’d input “game park a” and when I got to the next one I’d change that to “game park b.”

Good luck on your adventure and enjoy it to the fullest.

There is now supposed to be a generic for Malarone that came out at the end of last year - check out atovaquone/proguanil. I would check out the trip advisor.com kenya forum - lots of good travel posts there and a quick look should give you a lot of the non-photography information you are looking for. In Kenya last year I didn't see a mosquito in Samburu or Masai Mara, only Lake Nakuru.

In my experience in East (and West) Africa - malaria carrying mosquitoes (the genus) become active at dusk - not during the day; also, they are slow flying - easy to kill. If you cover up (especially ankles and lower parts of body - as when sitting at dinner at a table) - and use a DEET based product - you will do OK. There will always be some crazy tourist wearing just a pair of shorts...let him be the sacrificial lamb.

So I don't use malarone or mefloquine or any of the other drugs...you will have to take these drugs anyway if you get the disease...

I highly recommend studying the natural history/behavior of Culex (perhaps Anopholes; I think Culex is the genus that can transmit malaria in Africa); also, African malaria is different in kind than malaria in our hemisphere - you don't suffer recurring bouts with it. You either die or live if you get the tripansomes responsible for the disease. Anyway, do some research on the net about African malaria and specifically in the country (area) you will be traveling. Once you get to Africa talk to the guides - and ask them how they prevent getting the disease. They cannot afford to take the medication for protection - and long-term use of those drugs is not healthy either.

In your room at night, make sure the mosquito netting does not have any holes. Make sure it is taut when set up, and do not roll over and sleep against the net. You might want to bring a completely mesh enclosed tent for use in your room or hotel...they are available for less than $100...usually on safari the mesh is good. It is in your other hotels where there might be a problem at night. Examine the walls of your hotel rooms - and look for perched mosquitoes during the day - you can ID the different genera by how they hold their legs (raised above back or placed against the wall) - and colors/shapes. So there is a lot you can do to protect yourself without taking drugs: especially wear long pants and shirts and night; use Deet on skin (yucky feeling but it won't kill you), and spray clothing with Deet and/or permethrin...

Finally, travel clinics are wonderful places to get immunizations - but few of the doctors giving the shots have been to the places where they are giving advice...they often read the advisories on the CDC web site - which you can do too. So ask the person giving you the injection and advice, has he/she ever been to that place (or country)? A better reference would be the university researchers who spend extended time in the field...you can track them down via email - and ask.

Malaria (and mosquitoes) are often seasonal - tied to wet (or dry) season - so again, do research on the natural history of the little bugger - a fascinating animal that has affected humans and civilization in so many ways (one reason why many cities in South America are situated above about 5,000 feet - no malarial mosquitoes survive up there)...how this disease continues to affect the human species (and other primates - and look how introduced malaria was responsible for the elimination of several bird species in Hawaii) - anyway a fascinating disease and animal (insect). So here are two questions for you - why is malaria named (it literally means bad air); and where in the world is the true habitat of malaria? That is if I wanted to find it in the wild, where would I look?

Finally, a very serious disease for which there is no treatment yet is Dengue fever - this is also a mosquito borne disease - usually house mosquitoes in urban areas. The problem is particularly serious in tropical Asia - often can be found in quite affluent areas too.

Anyway, diseases are out there but with common sense and precaution you could avoid them...malaria is (for me) one of those diseases where an ounce of prevention is so much better than the drug used to cure it. I travel the tropics a lot - I don't use malaria drugs...I behave sensibly and use the methods mentioned above.

Finally, I would recommend these vaccinations: hepatitis A (a must for everyone - you can get Hep A eating in the best restaurant in Manhattan); Hepatitis B (I see you are not going to get it - but it is inexpensive; a course of three injections in three months - and if you ever need a blood transfusion anywhere in the world, god forbid, you are protected); Tetanus!!! (make sure you have a booster)...and finally I bring (or buy locally) Ciproflaxin (generic is Ciprobay) - if you have any stomach (bacteria problems not giardia) - Cipro will cure it in three days...also great for urinary tract infections - and many other things...

Are you bringing Iodine to treat water? better look into that...about $5 at REI.

Robert DeCandido PhD
NYC and Thailand

rdcny wrote:
I highly recommend studying the natural history/behavior of Culex (perhaps Anopholes; I think Culex is the genus that can transmit malaria in Africa); also, African malaria is different in kind than malaria in our hemisphere - you don't suffer recurring bouts with it. You either die or live if you get the tripansomes responsible for the disease. Anyway, do some research on the net about African malaria and specifically in the country (area) you will be traveling. Once you get to Africa talk to the guides - and ask them how they prevent getting the disease. They cannot afford to take the medication for protection - and long-term use of those drugs is not healthy either.


Not sure where you read that but this is from Global Malaria Foundation:
Normally, 10 to 15 days go by between being infected and the onset of the disease, but it may be longer if the patient has taken a preventive medicine. On a purely practical level, the most malignant (P. falciparum) cases develop within three months of leaving the malaria region, while the forms transmitted by P. vivax and P. ovale may not appear until three years later. Malaria malariae (a rare, benign form) can survive in man for up to 30 years, luckily without causing much discomfort. This form can also be treated, provided you get the right medication. The actual attacks of malaria develop when the red blood corpuscles burst, releasing a mass of parasites into the blood. The attacks do not begin until a sufficient number of blood corpuscles have been infected with parasites.

So since we as visitors enter a known Malaria region and can afford protection, I would recommend it. Also, my guide who lives in Tanzania had a recurrence of Malaria on one of my trips there. If I lived there, drugs wouldn't be practical but for a few weeks, there is no question and the CDC recommend a prophylaxis.
http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/tanzania.htm

The CDC will recommend a lot of things...often times it is a bit much. I don't want to make a blanket statement but I think you can find better info about what diseases to worry about and when from other sources. The Bradt Guide to travel in African countries, The Rough Guide series, Lonely Planet...these are better sources of info - as well as the net.

There are several types of malaria in Africa yes...I am going on memory of the most severe one - that one of my colleagues contracted during her studies of Mountain Gorillas in Uganda. She survived and has not had any re-current bouts.

Personally, for a short-term visit, I myself would not take the drug(s). There are side effects to the drugs - you seem to worry about what DEET does to clothing (and by extension once it gets into your system) - the drugs for malaria are no fun...I have taken them and I did not like what they did to my body. And if you get malaria, you will have to take those same drugs anyway...

Prevention, for me, is the best way to go. Some might consider drugs part of the prevention plan. I don't for several reasons that I have outlined above - including dressing properly and mosquito repellent. (Heck I think salt marsh mosquitoes here on the east coast are much more common and aggressive than malarial mosquitoes in east africa...). But mostly it is good to post different sets of info so the people who are curious about this topic can make an informed decision about how to proceed...there are many ways to avoid getting malaria. Using drugs is one way - but it is not the only way...I believe (for me) that not taking drugs and using the other methods I outline are safer and better for my body. One makes choices in this world...

Naranek

Yes, I’m aware of the main purpose of the use of Permethrin is to treat clothes. I went back to REI and got the one made by 3M same content Sawyer but ended up with extra 4oz.

I am too concerned about getting in my hands. Although, its completely different than applying DEET. I will be spraying all my clothes, and including my Cocoon sack a shoes etc.

Believe me I’m not trying to jeopardize the chances to get malaria or any of the typical diseases of the region, but I don’t want to fall into the trap of just going to the doctor, and let him ring the cash register.

I researched to find out all the vaccines that I should take before traveling to Eastern Africa. I even checked the CDC’s website. I am didn’t go to the doctor because my insurance coverage would not pay for attending a travel clinic without a diagnosis.

Instead, I contacted one of the many local pharmacies that are licensed to administer all the vaccines as required by CDC. However, in order to get anti-malaria medication I would need a prescription. I contacted my doctor by phone in order to have him write a prescription for ciprofloxacin, and docycyline.

He asked why I needed the prescriptions. I told him I was traveling to Eastern Africa. There was a long pregnant pause. I guess he couldn’t process that a patient knew exactly what I wanted without surrendering to the cash machine cycle.

He told me that I should make an appointment in order to have a consultation for my trip. I told him that I didn’t wan to make an appointment because my insurance company would not pay for an office visit to a travel clinic, unless he would write a diagnosis. He agreed with me.

I told him that I had done extensive research, and based on my findings, I went ahead and got all the vaccines at the pharmacy, but in order to get anti-malaria I would need a prescription, and that was the purpose that I contacted him.

I told my doctor that I’d prefer docycline because it was the least expensive (my insurance doesn’t pay for Malarone). But I was a bit worried about the side effects that docyclyine could cause including extreme sunburn. Again, he agreed with me, so he suggested trying cocyclyne for a few days, and seeing how I’d react.

I just got them but I haven’t taken them yet.

Regarding what you suggested to attach comments to an image. I need to check it out, it sounds like a great idea.

Sperraglia

Thanks but no interest in adding more anti-malaria options. I hope I would be as luck as you, not having an encounter with any mosquito.