Blood Test

I don't know about anyone else but I have always been phobic of needles. It has taken me years to be able to have a vacination without passing out or throwing up. I've finally cracked it though and can quite happily go for travel vacs on my own - as long as I close my eyes of course and don't see any needles. I always tell the nurse not to let me see anything and then Bob's your uncle. However, I have never given blood. Not for a blood test nor, obviously given my fears, for the good of the great. Well yesterday I did!

They seem to give blood samples left right and centre here in spain. I remember going with Jose to see our sister in law (a doctor) when Jose had a really sore throat - and she offered to tale a blood sample to get to the bottom of it. Can you believe it ?? For a sore throat! I brought this up at a dinner party here one night and it turns out to be quite normal and all spaniards seem to have given blood samples loads of times. Strange country.

Well, not having any records of the state of my blood, my bloody Doctor (excuse the pun) decided he wanted me to give a sample. Argh!

My Mum happened to be here for the appointment (she has just left this morning after a week here) so she was able to escort me / drag me there. I must admit that I was worried about it. Seeing it as a level above the travel vacs that I had bravely conquered. However, I tried to put it out of my mind as much as possible and tackle it like a brave girl.

I went into the room with my usual spiel about not letting my see anything, excusing me for talking with my eyes closed etc etc. The nurse went ahead and extracted my precious blood and I actually though - how easy was that. I was quite happy thinking " nice one - I've conquered this fear now, there's nothing to it, it doesn't hurt and its over in a matter of seconds!". However, all of a sudden I cam over all funny and thought i was going to be sick. The nurse and my Mum got my onto a bed in the room and gave me some thing to sniff (some kind of spirit) so that I wouldn't be sick. After a minute or two I seemed better, got off the bed and waited in the waiting room, hangin around for the nurse to give me a container to give a urine sample in (why not - whilst they are taking your blood thay may as well take your number one too hey).

As soon as the nurse gave me the little container I rushed to the toilet, followed me Mum, to be sick - I thought. Well, all I can say is Thank God that my Mum was there and that the toilet was a large room because I ended up going into some kind of convulsions, comically throwing the sample container into the loo whilst shaking (which we laughed about afterwards quite a lot!). I think my body was trying to black out and I was fighting it and so I was kind of semi conscious and shaking. Mum managed to catch me and bring me round, then I took a few minutes to gather myself and then threw up! What a palava!

Its amazing what your body can decide to do. Throught the deed of giving the blood sample I had ben thinking that it was nothing and was happy to have realised that - so why the complete breakdown of my body afterwards. Phobias are weird things. I thought it was in my conscious mind - ie I worried myself into such reactions when I was small. I'm not sure now though as I had totally mind over mattered it this time and along came an uncontrolable freak out!

If the eager beaver Doctor tells me I am anemic or anything else which involves wacthing changes in my blood over time .......I'll, well I'll, well I don't know what I'll do. Mum!

S xx

Colombia

Here we both are chilling out in Cartagena de India in Colombia. My week was a complete chill out - I did little more than laze around by the amazing pool or sprawl out on the enormous bed watching MTV and various american house make over shows and documentaries. It was heaven. I love seeing English or American tv now that I live in Spain.

Jose did manage a decent amount of chilling out, as you can see from the photo, but he also had to do quite a bit of work. We were actually there because he was speaking at a conference - an international summit on concrete (Hmm thrilling). I went with him on the day that he was speaking and sat at the back of the auditorium taking notes on his speaking style in order to give him constructive criticism afterwards (whcih he asked for). He did very well indeed. He was speaking for 2 hours in an auditorium that seats about 3000 people (although it wasn't half full).

The conference inolved various meals and parties at night, which we both attended. Jose seemed to be some kind of VIP for the concrete association of Colombia so we were very well looked after by the amazing friendly and sociable Colombians. Some students even asked if they could have their photo taken with Jose at one of the parties. They had attended his session and obviously felt he was some one for their geeky scrap book of all things concrete. The topic of Jose's session was the Torre Agbar - which is the bullet shaped, very modern tower in Barcelona which Jose acted as Structural Consultant on (ie he calculated how to build it).

Other than concrete related activities, we took a city tour with a guide, visited a fort, many churches, bought a linen suit (for Jose), took horse and carriage rides through the streets, took a boat ride to an island for a day, sunbathed and swam in very warm water. The Hotel was an old converted covent. The concrete association had put us in the most architecturally interesting hotel in the city - for which we were very appreciative as it was absolutely charming. Toucans flapped around in the cloisters!

The old centre of Cartagena is enchanting. Very much like Cusco in peru actually - with lots and lots of wooden balconies and coloured buidings. The people of Colombia are very mixed in terms of appearance, especially skin colour, but they seem to be amazingly polite and friendly. I'm sure this is not the case if you find yourself in the middle of the jungle facing a guerilla war bandit / drugs baron. However, the "normal folk", which probably describes 90% of the population, are lovely people.

The flight back from Colombia was probably one of the worst I have ever suffered. We were flying Cartagena - Bogota - Madrid - Barcelona. With waiting times between flights, 4 hours on a run way in the Dominican Republic for a refuel and a sudden part change, missed conections due to un planned part change ............it took us 24 hours to get home. Grr. All this with no veggie meal. Shit airline. The whole subject of planes and Colombia is a sore subject because it took me about two weeks of constant phone calls and trips to the airport to actually get the tickets in the first place. The various airlines were not communicating well between each other, or passing money between each other or God knows what but Span air were not willing to give me the tickets in BCN until the Colombian counterparts had jumped various hurdles - which were seemingly too high for them for a while. After a lot of perseverance and then a complete bomb of an email in which I slated the agency in Colombia ......we finally got some action and I got the tickets. Worth it in the end though, if only for the warm water of both the sea and the pool. Food was great too. Coconut rice is a kind of staple there and it is heavenly. Must try and make it at home actually. I will get details from Maria, my Colombian friend.

S xx