Welcome aboard and thank you for joining HTH as we circle the globe.
Our travels include visits to some of the most exciting destinations on the planet. We'll be sharing with you some fun facts and highlighting local sights and customs, including how to stay safe and healthy abroad.
To see where we've been, click on the postcards on the map above, or just click on one of these:HTH fun fact #1
Did you know that at the equator, there are just over 1,000 miles per time zone?
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Guardian statue at the temple Wat Phra Kaew in the Grand palace area in Bangkok, Thailand.
Greetings from Bangkok!
When in Bangkok's Wat Phra Kaew temple, you'll come face-to-face with demon guardians of the Emerald Buddha. Spirited from India to Cambodia, Burma, Laos and Thailand over the past 600 years, this priceless statue has wandered like Siddhartha himself. Nearly all Thais practice Theravada Buddhism and follow the Noble Eightfold Path that leads one's spirit to the "end of suffering". The trip of a lifetime, you might say.
Taking a holistic view, it's no coincidence that Bangkok is a top destination for those seeking relief from serious afflictions of the flesh. It is a major hub of state-of-the-art medicine delivered in places like Bumrungrad Hospital, which rivals the best in the U.S. What better place to confront your physical and spiritual demons?
We may be wandering, but we're not lost.
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #10
Nurses enjoy tremendous prestige in Thailand - the King's mother is a nurse.
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Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain
Greetings from Barcelona!
Barcelona reveals the surreal yet reverential architecture by Antoni Gaudi who sought to turn stone into living form. La Sagrada Familia cathedral, under construction since 1882, is scheduled for completion in 2026. Gaudi's explanation? "My client is not in a hurry."
When visiting the Catalan capital, you can get quality medical care in a hurry at USP Institut Universitari Dexeus. It's a private hospital with 24/7 emergency services and support staff for international patients, giving its bricks and mortar a human face. Gaudi would approve.
We're off to our next stop!
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #5
One in ten matadors needs medical care after a bullfight.
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La Boca in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Greetings from Buenos Aires !
It's quiet now, but the Boca barrio in Buenos Aires explodes with color and life thanks to the immigrants, tango artists, and free-thinkers living here. There's an unconventional, even rebellious spirit in this neighborhood-in fact, the Boca barrio once seceded from Argentina.
Today if you turn your ankle doing a tango step, you would be wise to seek care at the British Hospital, which has been serving immigrants and expatriates since the 19th century and is contracted to HTH Worldwide to provide prompt, top-notch care.
Look for our next card soon!
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #3
Many Buenos Aires residents subscribe to a private emergency ambulance service rather than relying on the city to respond.
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Ireland, small farm houses at the sea
Greetings from Ireland!
Whether you're passing through Connemara, Dingle or Dublin, the Irish landscape is full of indelible, dramatic prospects where nature holds the upper hand and humans struggle to leave their mark. Amid this forbidding beauty, hospitality is a way of life. As Irish poet William Butler Yeats put it: "There are no strangers here; only friends you haven't met."
As you ramble across the Emerald Isle, you'll find the care at six Vhi Swiftcare facilities -- walk-in primary care, dental services and extended hours -- to be more than hospitable. No strangers, no struggles to spoil your trip.
Look for our next card soon!
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #6
Rock star Bono of U2 was born May 10, 1960 in Dublin at Rotunda Hospital, founded in 1745 and contracted with HTH Worldwide.
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Elephants bordering the Kruger National Park, South Africa
Greetings from Johannesburg!
Just outside Johannesburg, families on day trips get a close look at the residents of Kruger National Park-32,000 zebras, 9,000 giraffes, 3,000 hippopotami, and 12,000 elephants-sometimes at play and roughing it up. Treating a baby elephant's nosebleed is no doubt a tall order.
Finding the best pediatric care amoung the 600 hospitals in South Africa is easy when you rely on HTH Worldwide. In Johannesburg, Morningside Medi-Clinic is known for treating problem pregnancies and premature infants, and Netcare Sunninghill hospital is the top choice for children with heart conditions.
We're off to our next stop!
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #4
The first human heart transplant was performed in South Africa in 1967 by Dr. Christiaan Barnard.
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Olive Grove in Galilee Israel
Greetings from Galilee
Among the vast fields of wildflowers in Galilee grow olive trees many centuries old. The olive belongs in this land of miracles: some trees over 3,000 years old still bear fruit. They thrive in poor soil, and now Israelis are turning them into a renewable energy source-when burned they produce 150% more energy than ordinary wood. This resilient, abundant, healthy, natural resource supports the peoples of Galilee-Jew and Arab alike-who still wrest their livelihood from the ancient hills.
Ninety minutes to the south, visitors have access to the abundant medical resources of Herzliya Medical Center, a world-class facility in Tel Aviv where doctors have produced some miracles of their own in 30 different fields of medicine.
Always seeking a cure,
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #8
The olive is the most extensively cultivated food crop in the world.
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Royal Bengal tiger in an Indian national park.
Greetings from New Delhi
Rajasthan and Ranthambore Tiger Reserve in India is the best place in the world to see wild Bengal tigers. Inside a 280 square mile ecological island, 100,000 visitors every year search out no more than 50 tigers, finding them in cool moist gorges, known as khohs, where predators and their prey retreat when summer temperatures reach 115ยบ F.
Should you fall prey inside the park to India's heat or a cranky tiger, a call to HTH can arrange an air ambulance trip to the Privat Clinic outside New Delhi which delivers top notch intensive care - just the refuge you need from misadventures of any stripe.
Always one step ahead,
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #9
Ayurvedic medicine-a holistic approach to body, mind and spirit-originated in India in the second millennium BC.
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Trajinera boats at the floating gardens of Xochimilco
Greetings from the floating gardens of Mexico City!
The Aztecs created miles of canals dotted with islands used to grow flowers and vegetables. Today the remnants - engulfed by a city of 20 million - are an oasis for tourists and residents alike. Two thousand colorful boats ply the waters offering food, drink and music. The Mexican version of a gondola is called a trajinera.
When it comes to finding an oasis for medical care in Mexico City, HTH members can visit Clinica Lomas Altas, a premier multi-specialty group practice affiliated with the Mayo Clinic. No, you can't hire a trajinera to take you there.
Be on the lookout for our next postcard as we circle the world.
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #2
Did you know that Mexico City is home to over 3,500 "hospitals" or 1 for every 5,000 residents?
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Air balloons above Prague streets
Greetings from Prague!
Prague's beauty has survived centuries of religious, ethnic and political conflict. Inhabitants have shown a genius for rising above mass destruction, instead unifying behind creative protest movements called the Prague Spring, the Velvet Revolution and Defenestration (throwing councilors out the windows of city hall). Floating over the housetops captures this buoyant spirit and gives visitors a serene 360º view of the city's wonders.
Balloonists suffering from vertigo (or a crash landing) can seek treatment on either side of Vltava river at Unicare Clinics, which offer both pediatric and adult primary care. There's no need to fight for an appointment. Onward and upward,
Your friends at HTH Worldwide.
Would you like to receive postcards from exciting destinations, as we travel the world? Click here to sign up.HTH fun fact #7
Saint Vitus is the patron saint of the Czech people, as well as dancers, comedians, and oversleepers.