january | team soell | Mission Accomplished

Friday, 20 February 2009

Yesterday was the big day! Despite some very scary hospital accommodations, all seems to have gone well and she is recovering normally. Apparently the meniscus rupture was larger than the doctor had anticipated so the surgery took a little extra time to complete but at the end of the day she was sewn back up with some very fancy artificial tendon from France and all seems well. I took some very bad photos of the experience with my point-and-shoot…most taken without actually looking through viewfinder so as to avoid appearing completely insane. I’m almost positive I was unsuccessful in my endeavor, but hey! People are already staring at the white girls, might as well give them something to talk about. So far, only one nurse speaks any English so it’s been a real adventure figuring out how to communicate needs and concerns. My little lonely planet phrase book is really falling short. Did you know that there is no listing for, “My sister is trying to scratch her face off. Can you give her something for the itching?” Crazy.

Apparently, staying in a Taiwanese hospital is somewhat akin to a youth hostel. That is true both in appearance as well as function. For the most part, there are 3-4 patients to a tiny little room that looks like something you might see in a slasher movie. You have to order everything you want including sanitized bedding. That seems like a no brainer to me, really. At least in the states they just go ahead and charge that $25 Advil dosage to your bill and ask questions later. Here, nothing is a given. They may not even HAVE Advil. You want a pillow? Some toilet paper? Water? Just hop on down to the Seven Eleven and get it yourself. The folks at Seven Eleven and I have become great friends. So far, 90% of my meals have been the cold noodles I can buy for a little over a dollar in the little refrigerated section of the convenience store.

So far, Julenna is still feeling pretty nauseated so food isn’t really an option, but apparently she asked the hospital to provide a meal last night so they brought it anyway. I’m not entirely sure what it was, but I can tell you the smell was horrendous. I’m fairly certain it came from the restaurant next door to the hospital where I witnessed a dish washing ritual consisting of a bucket, a hose, and the sidewalk. Ah, good times.

It’s time for me to head back for another day of F-U-N!

Talking with the anesthesiologist about his recomendation for a spinal injection. Miss Newbanks was beside herself after his...um, colorful description of the process.