“Glo min”… I’ve heard this word at least 10 times that day when I got to the hospital. I was a little bit scared hoping that someone will look after me properly. I live in China now so I need to take a good care of my health and be extra careful about any disease, illness or viruses. 2 days before I woke up in the morning and I noticed some red small spots on my neck. At first, it really itched me. In the afternoon I noticed that the wound was getting bigger and bigger. I had no clue what it could be: the weather change, spicy food or a water allergy? I checked it on the Internet but I couldn’t find anything. That night I couldn’t sleep as I was in pain. The wound looked much bigger than before and it looked bad as well. I felt like my neck was burning and pulsing at the same time. I couldn’t stand it. Next day when I got up I went to the school clinic (a small room equipped with some basic medicines and a first aid kit). I will never forget the expression of nurse’s face, like she was thinking “What the hell is this!?” I was getting nervous and scared. The nurse called Mr S. and asked him to take me to the hospital immediately. In the hospital I was told that it might be a water infection. I was prescribed an ointment and sent home. It was Friday so I went to Xiushan in the afternoon. I fell asleep in the car and when I woke up I felt a horrible pain on my face. I looked in the mirror and I saw big pus bubbles on my face. My whole face was very dry and I couldn’t open my eyes properly because of the pain. Within 10 minutes I was taken to a private clinic and given some pain killers not to feel this horrible pain. The doctor was looking at me for about 10 minutes and then he disappeared. When he came back, he told me not to worry and explained I was bitten by a spider and my skin got infected. He gave me thousands of different tablets and ointments.
To be honest, the local clinics and hospitals, in Huayuan and Xiushan (the onces I was taken to), looked poor and didn’t differ from pharmaceutical stores or other small shops. When I saw the hospital I would never have guessed that this is the place where people are cured. The doctor was sitting at the reception desk waiting for his patients. There were no queues as every visit lasted no longer than 5 minutes, mine as well. Everything went smoothly. Nevertheless, the methods of treatment (Chinese herbs and pills) are very effective. I must admit that the pain has gone after a few minutes and my skin looked much better. The prices for medical consultations are not very high, I would even say they are super cheap. For my 10-minute visit I paid 25 Yuan (the price included prescriptions and vaccines). Moreover, the hospitals lack professional equipment so this time I was lucky not to be in a more serious condition. Of course, I was told to have a rest but I didn’t want to let my students down so as soon as I got back to Huayuan I started teaching my little monsters (what a sacrifice and commitment)! Since that day, I always drink some Chinese herbs in the morning to make my body stronger and more resistant. It works! :-)
A.
