Swine Flu in Mexico . . . & California & Elsewhere

It’s nice to know that the new and sometimes deadly swine flu — which is a combo of swine, avian and human flu — that started in Mexico was nice enough to not get going until the cruising season in Mexico pretty much ended. Since this flu strain only has an incubation period of 48 hours, if you were down in Mexico but have been back for more than two days, you won’t get it from having been south of the border.

Just how serious is this flu? Experts don’t seem to have any idea at this early stage. It could be over very quickly, or it could develop into something really terrible.

What would we do if we needed to go to our boat in Mexico? It turns out that we do need to go to our boat, which is currently in La Paz, to get her home before that June 1 start of hurricane season. Having planned on flying to the boat later this week, we’re going to hold off until there is more clarity about what’s happening. What would we do if we were on our boat in Mexico? We’d head out to an anchorage and stay there until more is known.

As no doubt everyone has heard, the best ways to prevent swine flu are to keep away from groups of people, wash your hands often, don’t shake hands, and remember that this stuff happily lives on money, keyboards, doorknobs and other common areas. You can, however, eat pork and not worry about getting the swine flu.

Above all, don’t freak out — at least not until instructed to.