#Welcome to #Cambodia! Bring your wallet wit you

If you’re thinking about planning a trip to Cambodia soon, reconsider, unless you’re willing to put down US$3,000, a fortune for a backpacker in Southeast Asia. The country wants foreigners to make the deposit at a local bank upon entering to make sure any potential medical or quarantine costs can be met. And that’s just the start.

Even if you have the money, it’s still tricky to get in. Travelers need to have a medical insurance valued over US$50,000 and a health certificate deeming them free of the coronavirus, issued 72 hours before entering the country. Then, they start deducting from the deposit.

Local media say testing may need to be done before a traveler can enter which would be US$100 for a swab test, US$30 for overnight accommodation while results sent to the lab, $30 for food and extra expenses for transportation. This would be taken out of the deposit made at the bank.

Once the travellers has gone through all that rigmarole, then they must self isolate for 14 days at their hotel, reporting to medical officers each day. Another swab test would be done on the 13th day of isolation. In another scenario, where a passenger on the flight tests positive for the coronavirus, then everyone on the flight would need to go into quarantine, with costs involved taken out of the bank deposit. Worse case, those who get sick need to pay all costs involved.

Even death has costs. US$1,500 would used for cremation and funeral costs.

Have a great time in Cambodia!

SOURCE: TTR Weekly

Beijing Zoo reopened on Monday after being closed since Jan 24 as part of efforts to control the novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak.

The 5,000 animals have been fed well, are housed in sanitized areas and are enjoying the spring sunshine.

Zhang Chenglin, the zoo's deputy director, said, "Some of the animals, such as the pandas, preferred to have more exercise when the zoo was empty."

Veterinarians checked the animals' health. A pregnant Malayan tapir received the most attention, with regular ultrasound examinations.

Ma Tao, who looks after pandas at the zoo, starts his working day at 7 am by taking a fixed route on a delivery truck to feed the animals in their enclosure.

Workers such as Ma help prepare 2,000 kilograms of food for animals at the zoo every day, including chopped carrots, fresh cucumbers and raw meat.

"My happiest time of the day is to see the animals eating, even if sometimes they take a bite out of my arm," Ma, who is in his 40s, said jokingly. He added that it usually takes about three hours to distribute food to all the animals.

Occasionally, they need "afternoon tea", with grapes being the red pandas' favorite. Ma often feeds these animals by hand.

With snow falling in Beijing in the middle of last month, keepers spent more time checking on the animals. Some of the inhabitants preferred to keep warm in their enclosures, while others enjoyed being outdoors.

Zhang said: "Tufted deer prefer to be outside and can resist the cold even in extreme wintry conditions. They jump and run around frequently in the snow."

In the past month, zookeepers have been engaging with these animals to win their trust.

Zhang said he is most concerned about baby tufted deer, as they are extremely timid. He added that the term of a pregnant tufted deer is between three and seven months, during which time the animals must be provided with a quiet and stable environment to ensure they have adequate rest.

In the wild, tufted deer, which are listed as a national first-class protected wild animal, usually inhabit forests at an altitude of about 1,000 meters.

"Keepers need to be patient so that these creatures can get to know them after the first contact," Zhang said. "In the case of a newborn tufted deer, a keeper has to come to the animal at least four times before it will trust him and eat from his hand."

Zhang said disinfection measures at the zoo have been strengthened.

"We completely disinfect and sterilize the zoo once a week," he said, adding that the animals' food is carefully checked and purchased from Xinfadi, a wholesale market for agricultural products about 20 kilometers south of the zoo.

"We have sufficient food stored at the zoo to feed the animals for six months," he said, adding that designated suppliers have to be contacted in advance for deliveries of some food, such as bamboo for the pandas.

Zhang said online trips to the zoo are available, where visitors can see enclosures being disinfected and the animals fed.

Beijing resident Wang Shengru and her 6-year-old daughter are eagerly waiting to revisit the zoo. The chimpanzees are the young girl's favorite, as the animals make her laugh when they eat bananas.

Due to the outbreak, both mother and daughter have remained at home for more than one month. "She misses her animal friends terribly," Wang said.

Since Feb 22, Hongshan Forest Zoo in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, has been livestreaming footage of animals being fed. In the mornings during weekends, two "hosts" use a phone camera to take online visitors on a sightseeing tour of the zoological park.

Many people have voiced concern about food supplies for animals at the zoo, with online donation campaigns being launched to provide them with fresh vegetables, fruit and meat. The livestreaming sessions show that the animals are being fed well.

Source - TheJakartaPost

Schengen countries extend suspension of visa issuance in China in wake of coronavirus

China

Following the suspension of all visa issuance in China, due to the coronavirus outbreak, the visa centers of the seven Schengen member countries that were supposed to re-open on Feb. 3, have remained closed.

The member countries have instead announced that the suspension period will be extended until Feb. 9 at the earliest.

A notice published by the Slovak visa center in China indicated that the re-opening of the centers may change, dependent on advice from authorities.

“In light of the current coronavirus alert, please note that the Slovakia Visa Application Centers across China will remain closed until Feb. 9 (included). However, the re-opening of the centers may change, subject to further notifications from central, provincial and city authorities. We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your understanding and kind co-operation. Please return to this page for further updates,” the notice reads as reported by schengenvisainfo.com.

As there is no improvement in the coronavirus epidemic, with the death toll rising to 497 as of Wednesday, authorities for the Schengen member countries extended their closure for at least a week more than intended.

The Schengen members involved are:

    Austria – Feb. 9
    Belgium – Feb. 9
    Estonia – Feb. 10
    Liechtenstein – Feb. 10
    Norway – Feb. 10
    Slovakia – Feb. 9
    Switzerland – Feb. 10

France remains the only Schengen country that has announced the closure of the Wuhan Visa Application Center, while the European Union prepares to tighten entry conditions for Chinese nationals who have traveled to China in recent months.

Cautionary action has been taken by numerous countries as the coronavirus has infected more than 20,000 people in China since emerging in December and has now spread to more than 20 countries. 

Source - TheJakartaPost

#China virus sends shockwaves through Asia tourist industry

A deadly virus that has prompted travel restrictions in China is sending shockwaves through Asia's tourism industry, which has become increasingly reliant on growing numbers of Chinese visitors.

At least 81 people have died since the new strain of coronavirus emerged in China's Wuhan, and millions are now under an effective quarantine, with all flights in and out of the city grounded and a ban on Chinese tour groups domestically and abroad.

The measures come amid a boom in Chinese foreign travel, with the number of tourists from the country increasing nearly tenfold since 2003, according to a report by research firm Capital Economics.

But businesses in destinations that rely on the huge numbers of Chinese tourists are already feeling the heat, with complaints of "deserted" beaches and shops, and concerns about the future.

There will be a less immediate impact in Europe, which is currently off peak season for visitors from China.

The outbreak carries echoes of the SARS crisis, which paralyzed regional travel and battered local economies from late 2002. Chinese tourist numbers then fell by around a third.

"If they fell by a similar amount again, it would knock around 1.5-2.0 percentage points from (gross domestic product) in the most vulnerable countries," Capital Economics said.

In Japan, the fall in Chinese visitors was already being felt in Asakusa, a popular tourist destination near the Sensoji temple.

"We've definitely been seeing less people this year," said Yoshie Yoneyama, 31, manager of a shop selling traditional Japanese sweets and a rice-based drink called amazake.

Beaches 'deserted'

"I think there are less than half the numbers of last year or the year before," she told AFP.

The number of Chinese holidaying in Japan has exploded from around 450,000 in 2003 to 8.4 million in 2018, accounting for 27 percent of all inbound tourists as Tokyo works to expand the sector.

But it will now be "very difficult" for Japan to achieve its target of 40 million tourists in 2020, Yuki Takashima, an economist at Nomura Securities, told AFP.

And the effects will be felt beyond hotels, restaurants and tourist sites, because many Chinese tourists visit Japan specifically to shop.

The crisis has already sent Japan's key Nikkei index plunging, with stock in Shiseido -- a cosmetics brand popular with Chinese tourists -- falling more than five percent on Monday.

"We can expect those stocks to continue to fall like dominoes," said Stephen Innes, chief market strategist at AxiCorp.

But he said Japan would be better placed to weather the storm than another top destination for Chinese tourists: Thailand.

Tourism accounts for 18 percent of the nation's GDP, with Chinese holidaymakers making up more than a quarter of total arrivals.

The country's tourism minister has already warned a crisis on the scale of SARS could cost an estimated $1.6 billion, and the effects are already clear in Phuket.

'Really serious'

"For two days, the streets, the shops and the beaches have been deserted," said Claude de Crissey, who owns a 40-room hotel and a restaurant on the island.

"Phuket has focused almost exclusively on Chinese tourism... if the situation continues, we will all be impacted," he told AFP.

Australia too, already reeling from the effects of the bushfire crisis, is likely to feel the impact.

Chinese visitor numbers doubled in the six years to June 2019, with mainlanders now accounting for 15 percent of Australia's inbound tourists.

Mario Hardy, CEO of the Pacific Asia Travel Association said it was hard to gauge how long the crisis would last.

"I would suspect the impact would be between three to six months, but it will really depend on how the situation evolves in the coming few weeks," he told AFP.

Source - TheJakartaPost

#China - Beijing to close section of Great Wall, other tourist sites

China announced Friday it will close a section of the Great Wall and other famous Beijing landmarks to control the spread of a deadly virus that has infected hundreds of people across the country.

A range of Lunar New Year festivities have been cancelled to try to contain the virus, and Beijing's Forbidden City and Shanghai's Disneyland have also been closed temporarily.

The Ming Tombs and Yinshan Pagoda will also be closed from Saturday, the authority that oversees the sites said, while the Bird's Nest stadium -- the site of the 2008 Olympic Games -- was shuttered from Friday.

The Great Wall attracts around 10 million tourists a year and is a popular destination for visitors during the New Year holiday.

The Juyongguan section will close, while the Great Wall temple fair was cancelled at the Simatai section of the famous landmark.

Tourists at the Gubei water town by the Simatai section will have their temperature tested, the authority said in a statement on the WeChat social media app.

The Bird's Nest will be closed until January 30 in order to "prevent and control" the spread of the virus, authorities said. An ice and snow show taking place on the pitch will be closed.

The measures in the capital are the latest to try and control the outbreak of the new coronavirus, after authorities rapidly expanded a mammoth quarantine effort that affected 41 million people in central Hubei province.

The previously unknown virus has caused alarm because of its similarity to SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), which killed hundreds across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003.

Although there have only been 29 confirmed cases in Beijing, city authorities have cancelled large-scaled Lunar New Year events this week.

The city government said it would call off events including two popular temple fairs, which have attracted massive crowds of tourists in past years.

Beijing's Forbidden City -- which saw 19 million visitors last year -- is usually packed with tourists during the Lunar New Year festival, when hundreds of millions of people travel across China.

Source - TheJakartaPost

5 marathons off the beaten path for 2019

Whether you're a seasoned runner looking for something a little different this year, or trying to find the motivation for your first ever marathon, these five unusual marathons should help get you running in 2019.

Marathon du Medoc, France

If you like to train hard as well as play hard, then the Marathon du Medoc might be for you. As well as ticking a marathon off your bucket list you'll also get to enjoy the 26.2 miles with a glass of wine in hand, thanks to the many points along the circuits handing out glasses of French wine.

Takes place September 7, 2019. Registration opens in March.

Big Five Marathon, South Africa

Running in the African Savannah is the chance of a lifetime, although the location is as challenging as it is impressive. But, with the chance to run with zebras, giraffes, antelopes and even lions, and enjoy a mini holiday after your marathon is done, the training will all be worth it.

Takes place June 22, 2019. Registration open now.

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 3 Laender Marathon

  If you want to take in three countries with just one run, then try the 3 Laender, or 3 Country Marathon. Runners will start on Lindau Island, Germany, pass through Austria and Switzerland before heading back to Austria to finish at Casino Stadium in Bregenz. The route also provides a beautiful backdrop plus a flat ground for those who might be aiming for a personal best.

Takes place October 6, 2019. Registration open now.

Great Wall Marathon, China

Those looking for a real challenge can not only run a marathon, but run it alongside one of the most famous monuments in the world. Be prepared for plenty of uphill climbs and steps, but the payoff is a fantastic view, the chance to run through local villages, and of course to say that you've completed the Wall's 5,164 historic steps.

Takes place May 18, 2019. Registration open now.

Run Disneyland Paris Weekend, France

Unleash your inner child by running through the most magical place on Earth, Disneyland. Like its American counterpart, Disneyland Paris organizes a weekend of running events to get the whole family involved, from kids' races and a 5k right through to a marathon. The course will take you through the Disneyland parks, with Disney entertainment provided throughout the course to put some extra fun into the run.

Takes place September 19 to 22, 2019. Registration open now.

Source - TheJakartaPost 

 

Airports most prone to viruses

In public places such as airports, viruses inevitably lurk in every corner. Countless people make contact in planes, waiting areas and bathrooms every day.

“Flying probably accelerated the spread of the H1N1 virus in 2009,” said Dr. Alison Galdy from the University of Minnesota Infection Prevention as quoted by Travel+Leisure.

Fox 9 reported several “virus hot zones” in airports that should be avoided, such as toilet handles, armrests on chairs, kiosk screens and handrails. However, the riskiest item is the plastic bins used during security screenings. 

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It is said that travelers dump everything from toothbrushes to children’s diaper bags into them on a regular basis. The trays are also rarely cleaned.

According to healthcare company the Mayo Clinic, the flu virus can survive on stainless steel, plastic and similar hard surfaces for more than 48 hours. This increases the chances of viral transmissions to humans through contact.

Travelers should also avoid touching their faces too often because it spreads germs quickly. Fox 9 reported that people touch their faces subconsciously as often as three to five times an hour.

 

Source - TheJakartaPost 

Dutch scientists say human lifespan has limits

Dutch researchers claimed Thursday to have discovered the maximum age "ceiling" for human lifespan, despite growing life expectancy because of better nutrition, living conditions and medical care.

Mining data from some 75,000 Dutch people whose exact ages were recorded at the time of death, statisticians at Tilburg and Rotterdam's Erasmus universities pinned the maximum ceiling for female lifespan at 115.7 years.

Men came in slightly lower at 114.1 years in the samples taken from the data which spans the last 30 years, said Professor John Einmahl, one of three scientists conducting the study.

"On average, people live longer, but the very oldest among us have not gotten older over the last thirty years," Einmahl told AFP.

"There is certainly some kind of a wall here. Of course the average life expectancy has increased," he said, pointing out the number of people turning 95 in The Netherlands had almost tripled.

"Nevertheless, the maximum ceiling itself hasn't changed," he said.

Lifespan is the term used to describe how long an individual lives, while life expectancy is the average duration of life that individuals in an age group can expect to have -- a measure of societal wellbeing. 

The Dutch findings come in the wake of those by US-based researchers who last year claimed a similar age ceiling, but who added that exceptionally long-lived individuals were not getting as old as before.

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Einmahl and his researchers disputed the latter finding, saying their conclusions deduced by using a statistical brand called "Extreme Value Theory", showed almost no fluctuation in maximum lifespan.

Einmahl said however there were still some people who had bent the norm, like Frenchwomen Jeanne Calment who died at the ripe old age of 122 years and 164 days.

Calment remains the oldest verified woman to date.

Extreme Value Theory is a brand of statistics that measures data and answers questions at extreme ends of events such as lifespan or disasters.

Einmahl said his group's findings will be submitted for publication in a peer review magazine "within the next month or so."

Source - TheJakartaPost

PS. #Facebook not fuck me again to block my postings an pointed as spam.