La Consulta del Médico

Yesterday I took a trip to the "médico." My stomach sickness had not gotten any better. I was still very cold, had a fever, chills, and many other symptoms that I choose not to discuss at this moment. One of the most important chapters that I teach to my high school students is the medical chapter. I always tell them that they may be sick in a Spanish-speaking country, and all of those phrases will come in handy. Now it seemed as though I was taking my own advice. My appointment was at 7pm, which was the first thing that surprised me. I am used to going to the doctor at 8am and being the first appointment if I was really sick. I took the bus across town with another girl from my residence who was also very sick with a serious head cold. We walked down to the doctor's office, which seemed to be more of an apartment than an office. Forty euros and two hours later of waiting in the waiting room and telling the doctor our symptoms, we received our prescriptions. We were lucky because a "farmacia" was located next door, and it was still open. I had no idea what type of medications that the doctor had prescribed for me, but I trusted him. They only cost me 5 euros, which was relatively cheap in comparison to some of the prescriptions in the United States. The pharmacist gave me two full boxes of medicine, much more than I needed, and I was on my way. I was told not to eat anything for 24 hours but to drink 2 liters of "aquarius" every day. Aquarius is a drink that is similar to Gatorade, and it tastes pretty good. So, here I am today, still alive, and trying my best to get better. :) I guess it wouldn't have been a true trip to Spain if I didn't experience every single aspect of this country.