March 14, 2009

came home from the hospital today! I started feeling sick Saturday night while still in Berlin, had a miserable day of traveling home on Sunday, continued to feel miserable Monday and Tuesday, and by Wednesday morning I was still feeling so bad that I went to the hospital (in one of the ambulances whose insistent wailing I daily curse). After spending all day in the emergency room, wheeled from one room to another or sometimes just left out in the hall for hours, hooked up to IV after IV, I was taken to an overnight room where it was finally explained to me in English that I had pneumonia and would have to stay in the hospital for two to three days. Those next few days were not a whole lot of fun. The only person who spoke more than a few words of English was the doctor, who only saw me for about five minutes each day, so I didn't talk much during those days. Thursday morning my roommates came to visit me and bring me a few things like a toothbrush and some books but were quickly kicked out since visiting hours hadn't technically started yet. Izzy, Nikul, and Kelly came by later that night during actual visiting hours and stayed for a little while, giving me the opportunity to actually speak in English. No one could come visit me after Thursday because everyone left for Rome on a class trip (that I was supposed to be on) early Friday morning. On Thursday the doctor said that I could leave Friday, but I had another dangerously high fever Thursday night and wasn't allowed to leave. Luckily Friday night, I finally slept the whole night without a high fever so I was allowed to leave this afternoon.