Little Medical Adventure

Evacuate. Flames. Burning bus. Burned buses. Overnight military patrol. It's been an exciting week in Bangkok, but rest assured that what you saw on television, well... I did see it, too. In person. But despite that peak in protesting violence, Sangkron, the celebration for the Thai New Year, did NOT end. After evacuating Khason Road (aka backpacker village) earlier this week, I only returned once. It sort of feels as though I barely left the hostel the rest of the week...

Instead of fighting the humidity, the majority of my hostel-mates and I swapped sunny days for long nights, enjoying dinner and lounges in the Sukhumvit area and Patpong night market. Er, I enjoyed the Sukhumvit area just fine, but was not so down with the Patpong night market (not that I expected to be). After spending one night out with my new friends, Sarah and Adam, we invited my roommates Andrew and George, and two new-comers, divers from Germany, and we set sail for Patpong. For kicks and giggles, the 7 of us piled in to a SINGLE Tuk Tuk - we might possible get an award for this: 5 guys, 2 girls, 1 Tuk Tuk. (http://www.thaiswed.com/Thai/040504xd_tuk-tuk.JPG).

We found the bar Sarah had visited before, sat and ordered drinks, and not 30 minutes later, I was out the door, refusing to pay 300 baht for the "show" the girls would soon put on. For me, ping pong balls serve two purposes: beer pong and ping pong. Anything else, I'll head for the door!

It was a great night, though. Unfortunately, it slipped my mind that the country-wide waterfight was still on, so I ruined my leggings when my green dress bled dye... Luckily the dress survived the evening! I headed to Khaoson and had an absolute blast at a club. I honestly had no idea a club like this would exist on Khaoson; it was very much something you would find in Ybor City or 4th Stree Live. Only on a backpacking trip would I freely enter a bar like this in a cotton dress and Rainbow sandals! It was a great night. At about 3 AM, and 2 Smirnoff Ice's later, I called it a night and sat in the hostel lobby with May, my favorite Thai resident, and hostel staffmember.

I completely left out the most absured part of the night! As the group and I walked towards Patpong, I could swear I was hallucinating: an elephant was walking towards me! Have you ever been face-to-face with an elephant?? It's eyes were GORGEOUS, looked straight out of a cartoon! I could not believe my eyes. Everyone thought I was terrified, but I had to explain that yes, I was in complete shock, but that I could NOT be any happier. After I realized that this was real, I immediately looked at its feet and lower legs; after I established that no, this elephant was not put on chains by its owner, I allowed someone - I wasn't even looking to see who - to pay the owner for food so that I could feed the elephant! It was amazing. Did you know that elephants have hairs on their head? Haha... I was beyond amused! Obviously.

So my great animal experiences so far were being literally right in front of the Giant Panda, on the exact opposite side of the glass, in China; and hand-feeding an elephant on the street in Thailand. I'm a happy girl that I saw this, but still wish animals were kept (safely) in the wild.

I clearly need to update more often, because I have not even gotten to the events of the last 24 hours.

FLEAS.
In my hostel lobby.
I am allergic to fleas. And I've already HAD fleas once. And, I'm human. Gross.
But yes, I was a complete flea magnet. My lower right leg is a disaster, my left leg must not taste as sweet?
Yesterday I moved across town to Lumphini Park area, and am staying at a family friend's maginificient condo. I am on the 26th floor, where the balcony overlooks the park and city surroundings. The pool, which is on the 9th floor, kept me cool last night as I flipped through pages of Eclipse.

I noticed last night before bed, that around my right eye were little bumps. When I awoke this morning, there were lots of little bumps, raised, and a few around my left eye. Well I naturally was a little concerned, fearing that when my right eye swells shut, I'll be all but blind, so I took out my map and walked to a hospital nearby. Great day, let me tell you. I was a bit stubborn because I decided to save myself only about 15 minutes by avoiding the English-speaking clinic at another hospital; instead, I went for convenience. Luckily, several staffmembers spoke English, and came to the rescue.

It was ironic that one of the male assistants began asking if I could see okay, etc etc. AfterI answered "yes", I next explained my "regular" vision: I have a lazy eye, so I really needed my right eye to stop swelling, and that I also have double-vision. He, too, was born with a lazy eye, only I couldn't tell because unlike myself, he wasn't a stubborn 5 year old, and WORE his patch. I explained that I didn't wear the patch because I was a competitive gymnast and "didn't make time" - he got a good laugh in when I told him that no, gymnastics did not get me far in life. That was a good point, Doc.

Anyway, I had to leave the hospital to retrieve my passport, and saw an Ophthamologist when I returned (they wanted to make sure they were treating me correctly so I did not loose my vision in my good eye. I was very thankful!).

All is well, and I am currently taking an antibiotic to fight infection and an antihistime; also, eye drops and a strong steroid cream. YAY. If you are ever on vacation and get sick, make sure you are in Thailand. I got all of these medicines straight from the hospital for about 50 Baht. With the fantastic exchange rate, I paid less than $2. Is that even possible? I'm still confused.

But just as with the lost luggage, car wreck, lost ticket, etc etc., I am not surprised one bit. Another minor flaw in a perfect trip!

Mom comes tonight. Tomorrow we will take a boat ride, see two Wat (Temples), and walk around Lumphini Park. We'll head South to Hua Hin beach on Saturday! Hellooo Thai beaches!

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