Noisiest places in the world

by Jamie Rhein on

The noisiest city I have been to is Athens–at least what I remember. I’m basing this on a fuzzy memory of an experience crammed onto a bus thinking that the people around me were angry, bit finally decided that they were having a chat and had to raise their voices to be heard above the din of the traffic. That was one bustling place, and I’ve lived in New Delhi.

There’s an article in the New York Times about how noisy Cairo is these days. It’s so noisy with horn honking and teaming people, as a matter of fact, that it’s like living in a factory. If you know anyone who has worked around machinery for a lifetime, think about how often the word “WHAT?!” comes up. Just a tad.

Where else has noise? I found a Web site, “hear-it ” that cites Spain as the country with the most noise and the second loudest country is Japan.

According to The Hearing Journal, San Francisco is the loudest city in the United States beating out New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. The quietest city is Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

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The 10 World’s Dirtiest Cities!

How fat is your state?

by Anna Brones on

When passengers are too large to fit into airplane seats, maybe it’s time we had a little chat about the size of the average American. Mexico may be catching up, but — rest assured — we Americans are only getting larger. According to Calorie Lab, Mississippi is the fattest state in the Union, with West Virginia coming in at a close second. What are the skinniest states? Colorado and Massachusetts, but even there almost 20% of the population is obese. Looks like we need to start asking ourselves if we should really order a large burger and fries. Or maybe read a book on how other cultures stay svelte and attractive.

What impact does this have on travel? Just ask the woman who was given half a seat on Delta when her neighboring passenger was too large to fit into one seat.

Now you know the fattest states … but do you know the world’s 10 dirtiest cities? Here they are:


Now you can buy drugs at the airport

by Catherine Bodry on

We know that airports are attempting to become destinations in themselves, implementing museum and shopping attractions. Now we can add one more “service” to the list: walk-in clinics with pharmacies.

Although it’s common to have pharmacies and clinics in foreign airports, the idea is just taking off in the US. Entrepreneurs believe that airport employees and travelers on layovers provide a big enough market to support such an industry. Airport employees often work odd hours that aren’t conducive to going to primary care providers, and travelers either have a lot of downtime or are looking to fill a last-minute prescription.

The company that operates walk-in clinics in Wal-mart, Solantic, will open at Orlando International Airport this year, joining several other health care providers opening in airports throughout the US (AirportMD is one new chain). Solantic offers menu-based pricing, so patients can choose a basic exam and prescription ($59), all the way on up to stitches and x-rays ($189).

What do you think? Do you see yourself visiting an airport clinic or filling a prescription there?

Doc, I have malaria…why are you looking down there?

by Erik McLaughlin on

Medical News Today ran an interesting article covering the efficacy of rectally given anti-malarial medications. The purpose of using a suppository to deliver the medicine, Artemisinins, is a fairly new concept and can prove useful to prevent a life-threatening delay of intra-venous medications to combat severe forms of malaria.

The study looked at over 1000 patients and compared rectal administrations of several different medical compounds, all artemisinin derivatives. Interestingly, the article also compared these medicines with a standard treatment of quinine.

Ease of administration, portability and lack of special training for use are benefits of rectally administered medications. Delays in treatment of severe forms of malaria can result in death and travelers who are in remote locations and suffering from malaria might benefit from beginning this form of treatment, while seeking definitive medical care.

This might also serve as a reminder that the person trying to treat you for malaria in a remote area actually knows what they are doing when they are “checking down there”.

New York cigarettes to cost 9 dollars a pack. In Kazkhstan, the price increases to 32 cents.

by Aaron Hotfelder on

Smokers in New York already face some of the highest prices for cigarettes in the country. But last Wednesday, the New York legislature approved a $1.25 tax hike on cigarettes, meaning that taxes alone on a pack in New York are a whopping $4.25, not including a roughly 8% sales tax. Add it all up and a pack of smokes in New York is likely to cost around $9.00. Ouch!

This all got me thinking: Where in the world are cigarettes the cheapest? And more importantly, how can I smuggle a couple hundred thousand packs into New York and sell them for a handsome profit? I think I’ve more or less discovered the answer to the first question, but I’m still working on the second.

A table produced by the World Health Organization (maybe a couple years old) shows that one pack of Marlboros or an “equivalent international brand” costs about $1.70 in Argentina. As much as I’d love to spend some time in Buenos Aires, I have a feeling I can track down a cheaper pack.

In China, an international brand costs about $1.57, which is sneaking down into my price range. The same thing in Ghana will run about a buck-forty. Cigs in Egypt look to be about $1.17, and those in Georgia are a dollar even. But we can do better than that.

The cheapest “international brand” smokes are to be found in Indonesia, where even fetuses are known to light up every now and then. A pack in the steamy Southeast Asian nation will run you a cool $.62. I probably have enough in my couch cushions for at least a couple.

But enough of this hoity-toity “name brand” crap. Let’s look at some prices for the hard stuff– the kind of violent cigarettes that leave open sores in the mouths and throats of all those who dare to inhale.

A pack of the local brand in Brazil runs about $.88, and in Colombia you can pick one up for about $.64. But don’t pay those exorbitant prices– head to Azerbaijan and pick up a pack of what I’m sure are the smoothest, tastiest cigarettes you’ve ever had… for a whopping $.33.

Meanwhile, Reuters reports that Kazakhstan‘s government recently raised the price of a pack of off-brand smokes to a minimum of $.32. At that price, you almost can’t afford not to smoke.

But don’t say I didn’t warn you about the open sores.