travel tip #411

BUY TRAVEL HEALTH INSURANCE.
i repeat, BUY TRAVEL HEALTH INSURANCE.
sorry for yelling, but after paying a $5300 bill on my visa card for my mt. everest debacle last month, i am excited to say that my travel insurance company world nomads, just sent me a check and paid for all of it. every penny from the $5k, 90 minute helicopter rescue ride, $258 emergency telephone calls to the usa from deep in the himalayas, to the emergency medical trip to the hospital (which ironically was the smallest part of the bill at a measly 19 bucks) and prescriptions.
we all know that the health care system in the usa is a big sham. overpriced and undercoveraged that it's no wonder more than half the country is without it. but the cost for insurance for travelling in any country outside the united states is quite a bargain. for 6 months of international travel, insurance with world nomads costs a total of $240, a mere $40 per month. that's about the same price for one month of coverage in the states. can you imagine if health care at home cost this little? i might never go home now with prices this low. i can't recommend world nomads enough. there's no fine print to deal with, they cover all the crazy sport activities that your mother doesn't want to know about, they have prompt service, and they even dhl'd my check to make sure it wasn't lost in the mail.
so if you happen to be travelling overseas, don't be stupid, buy health insurance. nobody likes stupid people. other than possibly, other stupid people, but that's a topic for a different day. speaking from experience, anything can happen out there, and emergency medical helicopters are far from cheap.

speaking of world nomads, Dónde está Ché Pelotas?