Yesterday started out well... I woke up to fruit salad, yes, finally the homestay family is realising when I said I didn´t eat bread, that I didn´t!
It was about 6 minutes after breakfast that wasn´t all that good. Seeing the time, I raced out the house and started my long but quick walk to my Spanish courses here in Sucre. I was making good time, and just passing a slow walking Bolivian, I´ve noticed they all kinda walk slow, maybe that is why I was the one who then got attacked by a rather cute, small woolly dreadlocked doggy. The little freak jumped out from nowhere and caught my right arm with his sharp teeth and strong mouth, the little shit stayed there hung on until I finally was able to fling him off. It was now I noticed that he looked a little crazy, and not like a healthy house dog. The man I was passing, made a weird half smile, half grimace face at me. He then started rambling a very quick little passage of Spanish at me, but what I got from it was the words `Vacuna´ and `Rabia´ while pointing at the demonic barking creature... Yeah, well lucky the dog didn´t break my skin I was thinking, as the man started his super slow walk again. I crossed the road, not wanting to pass him with my rude hurried rush, as I looked down at my arm to inspect the wound... Oh Shit! Two fang marks, one deciding it would take awhile to bleed, but when it did come, it came with a little gush, while the other was a good inch of ripped off layers of skin, with the blood looking ready to pop through. Oh well, I´ll just get to school, wash it off, the teachers will know what to do. When I get there, I report that I´m a little late because I got bit by a dog, and would like something to clean the wound with. Instantly the questions come flying. Was the `perro´ on the `Calle´or from a`Casa´(street or house dog)? What did it look like? Big or small? `Have you had your RABIES shot? Rabies is extremely common in Sucre in street dogs. Especially if they bite, it means they´re crazy!´ Okay, so I´ll have to get a shot, how bad could it be? I get my arm cleaned up with something that stings, end up doing my class as I haven´t got anything to worry about for a while. It´s not til my breaktime where a dutch girl gets out her Guidebook and shows me that the first 12-24hours of a bite is the most crucial, that I begin to get a little thought of maybe getting the vaccine as soon as I finish class.
The teacher gives me a map to the hospital, which is only a couple of blocks away, and tells me that the vaccine is free, so not to worry. I walk upto where I was directed, its not there. Redirected another few blocks away. I cant find it. My own fault, it was behind me all along, so eventually found it. It was only sign posted in huge red writing `HOSPITAL URGENCIA´ I can understand how I missed it. Walking in, I get escorted by the security guy, he seemed friendly so I don´t think it was that he thought I´d pocket expensive hospital drugs and equipment, maybe just a novelty to have someone walk in with no apparent `urgencia´. The place looked deserted. Other than doctors and nurses in white coats, there was no one there. It was literally the first time I´d ever been to a hospital and not had to wait for hours. A doctor came out, shook her head at the bite wound, put some gloves on, then started stinging the shit outta me with her so called cleaning. She then told me in Spanish, that there was no vaccine in this hospital, that I had to go somewhere else, and that the visit to the `urgencia´ wasn´t free. Seems the nurse didn´t feel charging me was appropriate, thankfully, and gave me directions to the Vaccine place. Banco de Vacuna, had to walk another million miles away, OK not that far, but it was hot, and I was hungry, my food at the homestay would be waiting for me right now on the kitchen table. Get to my destination after a few wrong turns, and an extra hill to climb, to find that the place is on siesta, great gotta wait another hour until 2pm, I can do that. Wait, wait, 2.03pm where is anybody? wait, wait, wait, 2.47pm a lady shows up, with a baby! Manager to work out the place doesn´t open until 3pm, well my day so far has been so fantastic, I don´t know why I´m surprised. After sticking it out, letting the woman and baby go first, oh and another woman and her puppy go second, I get inside the dark little room, with a man that looks like a safari hunter, and he gives me the paperwork for the vaccine to read over. It all looks okay, its in English, seems to be Internationally recognised, Yep, I´m getting it! Only 1,120.50Bolivianos! What? What happened to free? Oh there is a free one, its just not recognised anywhere outside of Bolivia, which one would I like?? Oh shit, I´m terrible at descision making... Where´s my girlfriend when I need her? She´d tell me which one I should get. I ask for as much details about the free one, which obviously I´d prefer, and ask to come back after consulting Australia... it was easier to say a whole Country, than continue explaining what an Insurance Company was. I get in hold of my guys in Oz, after 7, yes seven break ups in my call that I was paying for, the nurse I spoke to said the local drug was not a good substitute, and just pay for it and keep the receipts... Like I have always said, cant afford insurance -cant afford to travel... So thank you Allianz! (If you let me down.....)
Go back, ask for the vaccine VERORAB that was recommended, the safari suit man then gives me a perscription, what now? I have to go to the pharmacy, buy the drug, come back and get my needle, oh yeah, and I´ll need five of them. One for straight away, another on day 3, then 7, then day 14 and finally 28. I race to the pharmacy, ask to get my 5 doses, get told to sit down and wait, only thirty minutes while they get the drug sent in from somewhere else. By now its 5.18pm, the Vaccine place closes at 6pm, but if I run, and it only does take 30minutes I should make it. Thirty minutes later... where is it? I ask the lady, she says only 10 more minutes, I explain that I don´t have that long, that I need one right now, she says she has three, that she was waiting on the other two. I give her my passport and ask to take just one now and I´ll come straight back for the others. After a bit of stuffing around, with putting things in bags, and another bag with ice so it doesn´t get warm... its almost 6pm, people are wearing jumpers and long pants, and she knows I´ve got a 6-8minute run ahead of me... I dunno! Anyways, I run my guts outs, and make it as the safari man is cracking open a can of beer with a mate and yelling at the football his watching on a tiny black and white TV. He reluctantly pulls himself away, to wipe a little alcohol on my arm and stick a needle in me. JOB DONE!!! I walk back to the pharmacy, where I´m made to wait another 35minutes for the delivery, I´m relieved I have some spanish now and could leave with one earlier. I am getting the worse headache of my life, and to add to it my cards don´t want to work. I now have to run a few more blocks away to find an ATM, find one, no problems... Hallujah! Return to pay an incredible amount of money for here especially, and head for home medication in hand. Of course that too didn´t go smoothly, with my taxi driver getting lost going a shortcut that I didn´t know, taking a detour, to me getting out that taxi to walk aimlessly for about 20minutes before catching another taxi to somewhere I knew and could direct him by myself... All in all, my lunch didn´t taste too bad at 9pm!!
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