mistress of no spices

I had been feeling just a little 'off' for quite a while..... I can't really describe it. Just 'something in me blood' .... and it came and went. But over the last week it seemed to get worse. Several friends had colds and I thought that's what I had as I started to get a fever and a slightly sore throat. After a couple of days of it though, and not much sleep to speak of, I realised it was time to see the doctor. It's a slightly different process here in India.... no calling and hoping you can get an appointment in the next day or two. Ruchi, our wonderful R&H guest coordinator, just hopped in an auto with me and took me to the doctor's 'office' when it opened at 6:30pm. It was not far from work... near the Pop Tates in Malad. I wasn't sure what to expect... but it was a bit of a surprise! I had previously been to see an orthopaedic surgeon about a stretched nerve. He had a real office with several rooms and a doorway. This was simply a 3-sided hallway open onto the street, with chairs along the walls and a table at the end where the kindly and attractive female doctor waited for patients. I sat down, she asked what was wrong... and the consultation was conducted right there, for all the world to see as they walked by. It was certainly very different to any doctor visit I've had before. All for the bargain basement price of 50 rupees... you heard it folks... that's just over 1 US dollar.

She was very nice, looked at my throat and said it was very very red. Listened to my chest which was clear... and took my pulse. She said I had a throat infection.... which seemed to make a lot of sense and explain the fever and the 'bad blood' feeling. I was a bit alarmed when I told her of my fibromyalgia and she didn't know of the condition, plus she didn't seem too worried about the drugs I was taking and whether they would play nicely with the ones she was prescribing. I made sure I researched them later. I got her to explain what she was writing out for me - antibiotics, a decongestant and something else I didn't quite catch. She was very caring and reassuring though... a lot of the advice was that I needed to not eat fruit, not drink anything cold and not eat ANYTHING SPICY... hehehe. A bit of a challenge here in India.... not hard but requires a bit of effort when you're not feeling at the top of your game.

No worries.... at home it's easy (even though I can't cook)..... lots of toast and cereal and the delicious pate and crackers I have discovered. But my cupboards were pretty bare and I wasn't sure what to do for dinner tonight. So... what do you do when you just don't know what to eat, can't have anything Indian (which includes Chinese as that has its own indian masala added to it), and just need a little TLC when you're sick? You go to the J W Marriott for a buffett, of course! ;) It's a feast of kings, and the atmosphere and people-watching is worth the price of admission alone. Walking past the elegant bar from the fancy loos, I had a great celebrity sighting as well! At a table of four listening to what *must* have been an industry conversation, was Soha Ali Khan.... the beautiful sister of Saif Ali Khan and an actress in 2006's outstanding hit movie 'Rang De Basanti'. Wow.... she looked gorgeous... I was so excited!

It wasn't the only Bollywood moment.... at the table right behind me sat the director Madhur Bhandarkar. I've really liked his films 'Corporate' and 'Page 3' and can't wait to see the recently released 'Traffic Signal'. You could almost say we were rubbing shoulders ;)

So now... time to take #2 antibiotic. My throat is raging and the fever hasn't broken yet, but the night was fun and I am lucky enough to be having a long weekend. Lots of hindi dvd's to watch and a great book to read (Shantaram). All is well with the world.