The past 24 hours are a blur. With a migraine headache that made for a lucid reality, I spent those hours between my bed and crawling to the loo to get sick. To be fair, the past day has been nothing short of awful.
I don´t know where I picked the bug up from, but I do know that I have never (in my 27 years of existance) felt so rotten. In between the bouts of cold sweats and pounding head, nothing I consumed vowed to stay inside. I slept the entire day (only getting up to make my way to the bathroom somehow).
Elzi was an absolute angel, sacrificing an entire day´s worth of carnival time to spend it with me in the flat and check that I was ok. She was very worried about me and kept on begging me to eat something. I tried to convince her that this was the very last thing I wanted to do, but eventually coaxed me into eating a mashed banana at 6pm. Needless to say it didn´t stay inside very long.
She had a point though, I had to eat something to be able to take the general antibiotics (part of my DIY medical kit from home). Was hoping that that would bring the fever down, as well as the nausea. Well my body is a little miracle and managed to work through the bug on its own. Just after midnight I managed half an apple which stayed down. This morning I had some papaya - and it remains in my stomach. Wooohooo!!!
I felt so rotten that I seriously considered boarding the next aeroplane home. It is no fun being on your own in a foreign country and not knowing what the heck is wrong with you. I just wanted to hear a familiar voice or know my mom is a phone call away. Giving up is not an option and with this new day my health returns.
A few days ago Mark bought tickets for me to attend tonight´s BIG Sambadrome. This is by far THE BIGGEST AND BEST part of carnival and consists of a massive parade down the main street at the stadium - float upon float making their way down. It is the first league Sambadrome, which means that the floats, outfits and entertainment is of the first degree. It doesnt get better than this. I payed R$100 for the ticket (+-R400). It is pricey, but this experience is what carnival is all about. The blocos are the street parties which carry on forever, but the Sambadrome is the penultimate experience. It´s the stuff we have all seen on TV, the bright costumes, the incredible show.
It only starts at 10pm tonight and will carry on until breakfast time. Luckily I´m feeling heaps stronger. Mark is also going, Elzi not though as it is expensive even in Brazilian terms.
On another note - I´m convinced that my bug is the direct result of a poor diet (generally only having eaten once a day) and the high level of toxidity after consuming something alcoholic four days in a row. Back home I´m very healthy and hardly drink, so I think it was my body´s way of shutting down and purging itself of all the toxins with a 24hour fast. That and the fact that I was drenched to the nth degree every single night we were out. Me thinks a combination of these factors gave birth to the dreaded bug.
Needless to say, I´ve learnt my lesson. I don´t have a Brazilian constitution and can not drink as often or as much as they can. Nor can I subside on french fries and pizza staples. When travelling you have to listen to your body and do what is right for you. So another life lesson learnt right there.
To health and happiness
xxx
VIDEO CLIP
Saturday night´s escapades (my last night out before I got sick)
This video gives you an idea what a typical street corner bar in Rio looks like. This one was in Tijuca, the area Elzi lives in (and where I´m staying). I went there with Elzi and her friend Marisia (whom I met last time I was here). There are thousands of these lining street corners all over the city. Each suburb has enough bars to entertain you for months on end.
1 comment:
As long as you are better now.
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