publishing for little people

has finally hit Mongolia. the first case was discovered shortly after i arrived here, and now there are 7 people dead to date. not an understatement to say that this country, with a population of just 2.9M with ~1M in the capital (Ulaanbaatar) is in paranoia about it.

measures taken so far:

• all bars, restaurants and public places are to close at 9pm. i have heard the wry comment more than once – “what, swine flu only starts spreading after 9pm?”
• handles of doors are being wrapped with damp pieces of cloth soaked in bleach
• xacbank is providing 5 masks to each employee, with the masks to be replaced every 2 hours
• xacbank is also providing two very traditional drinks a day to boost immune systems – a sour-smelling, sour-tasting, starch-like drink which i believe is Kourmiss, and seabuckthorn juice.  i have drank both.