So this past week has blown by without me realizing it and without me finishing any amount of work… After last weekend in Jodhpur, I caught something terrible and was laid up in bed sick for 3 days. I don’t know whether it was the something in some food that I had during the weekend or a stomach bug or possibly the terrible “Delhi Belly” that is so famous for travelers to get while in India. All I know is that I couldn’t eat or keep anything down and I hardly got out of bed. My poor grandmother, Dadisa, well host grandmother; she kept trying to get me to eat anything and I would try just to appease her but then feel worse than I did before. But finally I have gotten better, only for my host father to become very ill with a cold and I hope I don’t catch it from my immune system being susceptible to sickness right now.

I did go to the doctor in Jodhpur on the third day of my sickness with recommendation from the director of my organization. Once I walked into the doctors office, I immediately wished I had sucked it up and stayed curled in a ball on my comfortable bed in the village. The car ride into town was enough punishment for one day; that was until I went to the doctor. After asking me what symptoms I had been experiencing (in more or less words…) he did not give me a diagnosis, but told me what he was giving me: two injections and prescriptions for 6 medications to be taken over 3 days. Um, WHAT? He explained they were to stop the nausea and me from vomiting since I might throw up the medicine otherwise. I reluctantly gave myself over to the nurse who came in with the needle and made me lie on the table next to the wall while there were four Indian men, besides the doctor, all in the room trying to sell him some contraption. After giving me one shot in the ass, she made me turn over for a second one, which felt like hell in a needle while she injected what I could only hope, was helpful, into my blood stream.

After paying the doctor the equivalent of $4, I left with the driver who brought me and went to fill the prescription at the corner pharmacy/ chemist. After giving me the 6 medicines that the doctor ordered… I paid the man another $6.5. So after going to a doctor, getting two shots, and filling 6 prescriptions for drugs, I only had to pay about $10. Why is that and what is up the health care system in the U.S. if I can get this so cheap here? Well, that we all know is a totally different discussion and something that is somewhat touchy in the U.S. to talk about. About the medicine though, I don’t even take medicine in the U.S. so there was no way I was going to take all the medicine that the doctor told me to take… especially since I couldn’t remember which medicine was for what symptom. I wrote down what I remembered about them after getting back to my village and waited to see if I needed them. Turned out I didn’t need to take them, and the next time another intern or I have bad stomach problems, I already have the medicine.

So needless to say, I didn’t get any work done this past week. Then the women took the day off today for holiday so I have yet to do work still… Well, I did get some work done, but nothing at the center. I will have a lot to do before I leave for Christmas vacation in 10 days. It is unbelievable that Christmas is SO soon.