I don’t think I have ever seen any hot nurses in real life… there’s talk of them on TV and in bad (or really good, depends on your perspective I guess) movies. But there were no hot nurses here in Kilembe Miner Hospital. What a shame!
It did have squat toilets; and with a severely bruised leg and injured knee, these were not fun at all. F-in’ hell, I won’t even tell you how I negotiated these, as it is too nasty, but yeah.. the art of traveling… or whatever..
I was discharged from hospital yesterday. Whoohoow! My knee is still quite painful, my leg all black&blue, my wrist can barely handle a shake of hands and when I tilt my head the wrong angle, I go all woozy. But yeah, I walked away.. and I guess I should be happy with that.
The first couple of days, Gerald (the UWA ranger who brought me to hospital) stopped by daily, buying me a shirt, shorts, slippers and some food. He showed me some local eateries, as the hospital doesn’t provide any meals. I guess, here you’re depending on your family and friends.
Mr. Januariu, head of hospital security, also stopped by daily to see how I was doing. He was the sweetest man, although I sometimes wished he would come by at a later hour than 7AM.
Thankfully, my buddy Carlos stopped by the day after the accident. I could definitely do with some support, but most of all, I needed to tell my story to someone I knew. To someone who knows what African roads are like. Even though there was no story, I had to tell it.
There still is no story. I have no recollection of what happened. Yesterday we picked up the bike from the police quarters in Katunguru. One of the officers claimed it was he who had saved my life, for while I was unconcious he had removed my helmet, since the strap was suffocating me. Maybe it’s true, maybe it isn’t. I vaguely remember some other guy who, minutes after the accident, told me he had taken me out of the grassy shoulder. And later on, a third guy stepped forward claiming to have saved my life as well.
The tale of the accident remains vague and hard to believe. It is said that I tried to overtake a small car, as it slowed down for speed bumps. The location of the speed bumps varies from 20, to 50, to 80mtrs from the junction. Within days, I predict, the accident will have happened before the junction.
We checked my gps-readings and all there is to be found is that it stopped recording some 150mtrs after the junction. We went to see it yesterday, and this is actually the location where I had my go at setting the world record for most what the hell??’s in one minute.
Last recorded speed of the gps is 71kmph.. and increasing.. then it stops suddenly. I must have hit it hard…
So I celebrated my birthday in hospital as well. Happy dayzzz…
It could’ve been drama, and stuff, but basically I snuck out off the hospital ward to play pool with Carlos and some locals in a bar across the road. I still managed to go to bed at a descent hour, although I was slightly intoxicated. Needless to say, the next morning I was woozier than ever!! No regrets though!!
As far as the Ugandan hospital experience goes, it wasn’t that bad. Obviously, my injuries weren’t that severe, which made things easier I guess. It was a busy hospital though, with approx. 200 cases of malaria each month. Number of patients dying each month was approx. 50, most of them on the pediatric ward… During my stay there were two occasions that I heard crying; man.. it was so heartbreaking, so gut-wrenching.. afterward, I was afraid to ask..
Total cost of a six day stay: 108.000 Ugandan shillings + 120.000 USh for the X-rays. This translates to 27 and 30euros respectively. For me, the wealthy mzungu covered by extensive health insurance, almost a joke. For most Ugandans, however, with an average income of just over a dollar a day, this would have been a struggle. It’s hard to imagine.
So you won’t hear me complaining. The nurses, even when they weren’t that hot, were lovely and caring; the doctors were professional and well-trained. And again, I walked away.. What more could I have asked for??
Well then, for the bike. I may have to go through some investigative procedures since the blame of the accident has been put on me. We’ll see how that develops. Seeing the bike again, for the first time since the accident, was kinda emotional. I usually don’t get that attached to physical things, but I guess the bike represents more than just a thing.
One of the fuel tanks is cracked (I cannot imagine the force that was needed to do that); the radiator took a big blow and is unlikely to be repaired. Apart from that it’s damage to plastic and indicator lights and things like that. On the plus-side, the forks & wheels seem to be okay and guess what: the engine still runs and purrs like a little kitten!!
So we’ll see how things proceed from here. I guess, if I ever get to write a book about my trip, this only makes it more exciting to read. And then again, it’s starting to have all the ingredients for a great movie too, although I wouldn’t know which famous actor could possibly be the charismatic, handsome main character… DeNiro, Clooney, Pitt… hmm, I don’t know whether they could pull it off…
In the meantime I’ll be working on the bike a bit (as long as my wrist remains as it is, this is not a priority) and luckily for you, I once again have plenty of time to update the blog. Some awesome stories coming your way, I can tell you that!!
The Long Solo Down 