Key words: Tropical African diseases, tourism, security As a traveler, I have traveled to more than 130 countries and, of course, I have read a lot about the dangers that lie in wait for people in the tropics. Venomous snakes, spiders, crocodiles and lions frighten many. But the most dangerous of all are microscopic, almost invisible creatures, united by a common name-parasites. They live and reproduce thanks to the humid warm climate typical of the tropics of Asia, Africa and South America. I remember that in 1998, five of us tourists went on a trip through several Latin American countries, and throughout the trip we were literally tortured by mosquitoes. We traveled thousands of kilometers on foot, on boats, riverboats, and buses, but the ferocious insects did not leave us alone anywhere. From constant bites, all of us did not stop itching day or night. The scabies had caused sores, and we were only partially relieved when we had a chance to rest on a steamer sailing down the broad Rio Madeira, a tributary of the Amazon. The sores went away pretty quickly, and we didn't stop scratching until a week later. However, it soon started all over again. I especially remember the night at the foot of Raraima, a plateau in the Guiana Highlands. The temperature during the day and at night was completely unchanged-plus 24 degrees. It didn't seem to be very hot, but with absolute humidity in the rainy season, my body was constantly sweating. It rained intermittently; the inside of the tents was always stuffy, and you couldn't open the curtains a crack - swarms of mosquitoes were waiting in the wings... However, they were already getting in by unknown means, and we woke up from the stuffiness and scabies every two hours and scratched desperately until we fell back into oblivion. In the neighboring tents, just like us, everyone was suffering from mosquitoes. Despite the mosquito nets that the tents were equipped with, it was almost impossible to protect yourself from these insec ... Read more