One of my colleagues has swine flu...

OK, we don't actually know for sure, because as I've explained before, having the shits can be part of the experience of living in Turkey.

His return to school this morning prompted a conversation, and then some internet research, to see if swine flu (domuz gribi in Turkish) has come to Turkey.

On May 4th, in the southern city of Antalya, a panic broke out following the announcement that a patient of Akdeniz University Medical Center had died from swine flu. The Health Department was quick to issue statements to calm the populace. The kinds of statements you would expect from the government were issued: "The deceased had not traveled abroad, and preliminary tests on the body have yielded no evidence of the H1N1 virus. An autopsy will be performed, but as yet there has been no death due to swine flu."

Turns out, they were wrong. Start panicking.

People in Istanbul began panicking about swine flu two days ago. I need to catch up! An American traveler brought the disease through the Ataturk Airport sometime last week, and separately, a Korean traveler did as well. While yesterday, two cases were reported in Kadikoy, a busy ferry stop on the Asian side of Istanbul. One can only assume that it is now everywhere.

Special thanks to Mr. MacDaniel for bringing this pandemic to the desk abutting my own.