We’d stopped at Thames for a couple of hours on the way up to the Coromandel and had pre-booked into a hostel for two nights on the way back, arriving on Sunday night and leaving on Tuesday morning. We’d read up on what there was to do there and it looked quite interesting. How wrong can you get. The hostel was a real dive or “twll o le”. The advertised laundry facilities had broken down "earlier in the week" – early last year more like, and the whole place looked tired and threadbare. The rooms were also a little chilly in the evening but as a matter or principle, I was not going to pay $4 to hire a heater for a couple of hours. The only redeeming feature was that you almost stumbled into their back door straight off the bus. Finding $3 and a cigarette lighter down the back of the sofa which was upholstered with dog-hair gave me a smug feeling for a while. Having said all that, I was fascinated by the kitchen. The utensils were probably at the cutting edge of technology when Mrs Beeton was a girl, but still in remarkable condition and the crockery was a mix of seventies style patterns and colours. We could have been in a time warp.
What had really caught our eye in the guide book was the Thames Gold Mining Museum just out of town where we could take an underground tour then see rock crushing and gold processing as it would have been done yesteryear. We went along to the town tourist site in the evening shortly after arriving to ask about opening times. Very sorry, it was closed on Mondays. Oh. What about the Museum of Mining History then? Sorry, that was open on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays only. Oh. What was there to do then? Well there was an excellent bird hide at the end of a boardwalk when two hours either side of high tide you could observe hundreds of wading seabirds in the Firth of Thames but high tide was very early morning and after dark! Great …
We did find a little cinema that was warm and free of dog-hair where made up two thirds of the audience to watch a classic piece of kiwiana and we paid a couple of visits to the town swimming pool that looked like a space capsule. Nice big cold drops of water dripping from the ceiling plopped steadily on the heads of swimmers below.
As we waited for the bus out of town the following morning, I was browsing the dusty souvenirs at the station when I spotted a little kiwi toy all alone at the back of a shelf. The stitching on his bottom had frayed and his beak was a little wonky but he seemed to have an imploring look in his eyes. I got him for a knockdown price and as I boarded the bus I’m sure I heard a whispered “thank you” and a little chuckle.
Saturday, 30 August 2008
Thursday, 21 August 2008
COROMANDEL PENINSULA – THE EAST COAST
We stayed at Whitianga for five days. Our room at the hostel on the seafront was great – comfy bed, fluffy duvet, dressing table and mirror, wardrobe, reading lamps and a heater! By the time Marc had carried up the last bag, the room was as warm as toast, my few reminders of home were arranged on my bedside table and I was catching up with ancient celebrity gossip and with a dog-eared copy of Hello. I was well and truly settled in for the night.
We were up early next day to explore the bays and headlands of Mercury Bay on foot. Armed with a bag of sarnies and sketchy map we took the passenger ferry all 50 yards across the estuary at Whitianga and started out by climbing up to the site of an old Maori pa – a fortified lookout , high on the rocks overlooking the harbour and town. After slipping and sliding our way down the muddy track to Back Bay we walked across the shoreline of the sheltered little cove full of swanky yachts and scrambled up the other side through the bush and out onto the creamy coloured sands of Flaxmill Bay, fringed with pohutukawa trees. It was beautiful as it was – it must look stunning when the trees are ablaze with colour at Christmas. We walked the length of Flaxmill Bay towards the next cross on our map - Shakespeare’s Point, a headland high above the water on bush-cloaked cliffs. James Cook woz 'ere too and he named Shakespeare’s Point after he spent a week sat at the top observing the transit of Mercury across the face of the sun. As I sat there munching my cheese and tomato sandwich, fantails flitting around us, I couldn't help wondering what he he’d enjoyed for lunch all those years ago and about the poor souls who had to carry it all up to the cliff top as he gazed into the sky from the comfort of his deckchair. We took a steep cliff track down to Lonely Bay – a small cove hemmed in by rocks that felt a million miles from anywhere as the only views were straight out towards the horizon. Marc seems to have a compulsion that makes him want to know what’s around every corner so he disappeared over the rocks whilst I walked the shore soaking up the late afternoon sun. The last ferry of the day was the school-run and the post-run and we joined a dozen children and a pile of brown paper parcels for the journey back across the strong currents of the estuary. No sooner had we had supper than we were out again. We had reserved tickets for the Whitianga premiere of the new Indiana Jones film. Marc judged the film as disappointing and predictable but I’d had low expectations to begin with so didn’t feel let down, only that I’d wasted precious time.
Next day, we picked up a nice, shiny, white hire car to go exploring more of the east coast of the peninsula. Otama Beach and Opito Bay are said to be two of the finest stretches of sand on the Coromandel. Off the beaten track in the middle of nowhere these were deserted and windswept, made even more beautiful by the dark skies on the horizon and a silvery sun on the crashing waves. Behind the dunes of Opito Bay, a small community of boarded-up baches huddled together against the wind awaiting the return of their owners and calmer weather.
We took the ‘309 Road’ inland to look for a small grove of Kauri trees that had escaped the saws of the loggers many years ago, probably because they were in a gold mining field. An unsealed road, the 309 was being resurfaced in what can only be described as grit in thick mud. In about two minutes flat, the car was covered in it and when we stopped at the Kauri Grove, huge lumps just dropped off making a perfect outline of the car. Young Kauris, known as Rickers, grow very tall and fast in a race for the forest canopy. Once they reach the light the shape of their leaves change and they shed all but the top few branches, maturing over hundreds and sometimes thousands of years into kings of the forest. The trees were magnificent – a small group protected and viewed from a boardwalk that had survived against all odds. A little further down the 309 we took a walk down to the picturesque Waiau Falls – not very high or dramatic but a beautiful setting with a deep round pool at the base.
Two popular features of this area are Hot Water Beach and Cathedral Cove. We’d taken our swimming togs and a shovel from the hostel to Hot Water Beach as two hours either side of low tide it is possible (apparently) to dig a big hole in the sand and wait a few minutes for it to fill with hot water for your own private spa. One problem – the sea was crashing over the rocks in a howling easterly and it was impossible to dig anywhere. A busload of backpackers were up to their knees in the surf, burrowing their toes into the seabed where they could feel a little warmth but it was all a hilarious waste of time. Never before have I seen people standing shivering in the sea – bare legs below, fleeces hats and scarves on top, and I was one of them! Marc, of course, braced himself and went for a swim.
Cathedral Cove was a different story. An hour’s walk along the coastline led to a beach with a giant limestone arch above it. It was ‘side-on’ to the sea and as it was low tide we were able to walk through without getting our feet wet. Not far down the beach a tall limestone island with trees growing on the top sat in the water a stone’s throw from the shore. Many years ago this would have been another arch before its erosion and collapse into the sea. On the walk back we wandered down to the gorgeous rocky shores of Stingray Bay and Diamond Bay and daylight was fading fast as we made it up the last pull to the top of the cliffs. Our car was a forlorn sight as it sat all alone in the middle of an otherwise deserted car park, caked in mud. Fantastic!
The Coromandel really is somewhere special.
We were up early next day to explore the bays and headlands of Mercury Bay on foot. Armed with a bag of sarnies and sketchy map we took the passenger ferry all 50 yards across the estuary at Whitianga and started out by climbing up to the site of an old Maori pa – a fortified lookout , high on the rocks overlooking the harbour and town. After slipping and sliding our way down the muddy track to Back Bay we walked across the shoreline of the sheltered little cove full of swanky yachts and scrambled up the other side through the bush and out onto the creamy coloured sands of Flaxmill Bay, fringed with pohutukawa trees. It was beautiful as it was – it must look stunning when the trees are ablaze with colour at Christmas. We walked the length of Flaxmill Bay towards the next cross on our map - Shakespeare’s Point, a headland high above the water on bush-cloaked cliffs. James Cook woz 'ere too and he named Shakespeare’s Point after he spent a week sat at the top observing the transit of Mercury across the face of the sun. As I sat there munching my cheese and tomato sandwich, fantails flitting around us, I couldn't help wondering what he he’d enjoyed for lunch all those years ago and about the poor souls who had to carry it all up to the cliff top as he gazed into the sky from the comfort of his deckchair. We took a steep cliff track down to Lonely Bay – a small cove hemmed in by rocks that felt a million miles from anywhere as the only views were straight out towards the horizon. Marc seems to have a compulsion that makes him want to know what’s around every corner so he disappeared over the rocks whilst I walked the shore soaking up the late afternoon sun. The last ferry of the day was the school-run and the post-run and we joined a dozen children and a pile of brown paper parcels for the journey back across the strong currents of the estuary. No sooner had we had supper than we were out again. We had reserved tickets for the Whitianga premiere of the new Indiana Jones film. Marc judged the film as disappointing and predictable but I’d had low expectations to begin with so didn’t feel let down, only that I’d wasted precious time.
Next day, we picked up a nice, shiny, white hire car to go exploring more of the east coast of the peninsula. Otama Beach and Opito Bay are said to be two of the finest stretches of sand on the Coromandel. Off the beaten track in the middle of nowhere these were deserted and windswept, made even more beautiful by the dark skies on the horizon and a silvery sun on the crashing waves. Behind the dunes of Opito Bay, a small community of boarded-up baches huddled together against the wind awaiting the return of their owners and calmer weather.
We took the ‘309 Road’ inland to look for a small grove of Kauri trees that had escaped the saws of the loggers many years ago, probably because they were in a gold mining field. An unsealed road, the 309 was being resurfaced in what can only be described as grit in thick mud. In about two minutes flat, the car was covered in it and when we stopped at the Kauri Grove, huge lumps just dropped off making a perfect outline of the car. Young Kauris, known as Rickers, grow very tall and fast in a race for the forest canopy. Once they reach the light the shape of their leaves change and they shed all but the top few branches, maturing over hundreds and sometimes thousands of years into kings of the forest. The trees were magnificent – a small group protected and viewed from a boardwalk that had survived against all odds. A little further down the 309 we took a walk down to the picturesque Waiau Falls – not very high or dramatic but a beautiful setting with a deep round pool at the base.
Two popular features of this area are Hot Water Beach and Cathedral Cove. We’d taken our swimming togs and a shovel from the hostel to Hot Water Beach as two hours either side of low tide it is possible (apparently) to dig a big hole in the sand and wait a few minutes for it to fill with hot water for your own private spa. One problem – the sea was crashing over the rocks in a howling easterly and it was impossible to dig anywhere. A busload of backpackers were up to their knees in the surf, burrowing their toes into the seabed where they could feel a little warmth but it was all a hilarious waste of time. Never before have I seen people standing shivering in the sea – bare legs below, fleeces hats and scarves on top, and I was one of them! Marc, of course, braced himself and went for a swim.
Cathedral Cove was a different story. An hour’s walk along the coastline led to a beach with a giant limestone arch above it. It was ‘side-on’ to the sea and as it was low tide we were able to walk through without getting our feet wet. Not far down the beach a tall limestone island with trees growing on the top sat in the water a stone’s throw from the shore. Many years ago this would have been another arch before its erosion and collapse into the sea. On the walk back we wandered down to the gorgeous rocky shores of Stingray Bay and Diamond Bay and daylight was fading fast as we made it up the last pull to the top of the cliffs. Our car was a forlorn sight as it sat all alone in the middle of an otherwise deserted car park, caked in mud. Fantastic!
The Coromandel really is somewhere special.
WE’RE BACK ON THE ROAD …
Marc went out at midnight wearing a stripey jumper and eye mask and carrying a bag marked SWAG and came home with a laptop so that we could get this blog back on the road. I’m still waiting for the appointment to see the specialist but I’m comfortable at home, being waited on hand and foot so I’ll carry on from where the wheels came off, on the beautiful Coromandel Peninsula in fabulous New Zealand.
Friday, 15 August 2008
OLA AMIGOS !
Gweler isod am y fersiwn Saesneg / SEE BELOW FOR THE ENGLISH VERSION
Helo Bobl - rwyf adref yn ddiogel ar ol taith a hanner a spelen fach ym Mronglais. Cefais ddisgrifiad da o'r broblem gan y ffisio yn Aber - mae disciau cefn fel jam donuts - yn feddal yn y canol - ac mae na rywbeth wedi gwasgu'r jam allan o ganol fy donut ac mae hwn yn gwasgu ar nerfau fy nhgefn ac i lawr fy nghoes dde. Mae arbennigwr o Dreforus wedi astudio lluniau y scan MRI eisoes ac mae am fy ngweld i benderfynnu'r cam nesaf. Rwyf yn aros am apwyntiad ar hyn o bryd. Yn y cyfamser mi fyddaf yn bachu ar y cyfle i ddiweddaru'r blog gan ein bod wedi bod ar y Coromandel yn Seland Newydd ers dau fis bellach!
Cofiwch bod croeso i chi alw yn Ysgubor Lon unrhyw amser gan fy mod ddim yn bwriadu mynd yn bell am dipyn bach! Efallai bydd rhaid i chi wneud cwpaned eich hunan os yw Marc yn digwydd bod allan! Diolch i bawb am y dymuniadau gorau a phopeth arall.
____________________________________________________
Hello Folks - I'm back, safe and sound at home after the longest journey ever and a stint at Bronglais Hospital at Aberystwyth. The physio at Aber gave me an excellent description of the problem - spinal discs are just like jam donuts - squidgy in the middle, and something has squashed the jam from one of my donuts which is pressing on my spinal nerves and down my right leg. The MRI scan images turned up as promised and have been viewed by a neurosurgeon at Morriston in Swansea who wants to see me to decide on the next step. So that's where we're at - waiting for an appointment at Swansea, but I shall keep you posted.
I don't intend going very far in the near future so visitors are more than welcome. You may have to make your own cuppa if Marc is not home, but if this is the case there is an increased likelihood of there being something in the cake tin! I will also be taking advantage of the chance to update the blog as we have been on the Coromandel in New Zealand for about two months now.
Thanks to everyone for the good wishes and everything else but not for eating my Maltesers when I was helpless in hospital (you know who you are ...)
Helo Bobl - rwyf adref yn ddiogel ar ol taith a hanner a spelen fach ym Mronglais. Cefais ddisgrifiad da o'r broblem gan y ffisio yn Aber - mae disciau cefn fel jam donuts - yn feddal yn y canol - ac mae na rywbeth wedi gwasgu'r jam allan o ganol fy donut ac mae hwn yn gwasgu ar nerfau fy nhgefn ac i lawr fy nghoes dde. Mae arbennigwr o Dreforus wedi astudio lluniau y scan MRI eisoes ac mae am fy ngweld i benderfynnu'r cam nesaf. Rwyf yn aros am apwyntiad ar hyn o bryd. Yn y cyfamser mi fyddaf yn bachu ar y cyfle i ddiweddaru'r blog gan ein bod wedi bod ar y Coromandel yn Seland Newydd ers dau fis bellach!
Cofiwch bod croeso i chi alw yn Ysgubor Lon unrhyw amser gan fy mod ddim yn bwriadu mynd yn bell am dipyn bach! Efallai bydd rhaid i chi wneud cwpaned eich hunan os yw Marc yn digwydd bod allan! Diolch i bawb am y dymuniadau gorau a phopeth arall.
____________________________________________________
Hello Folks - I'm back, safe and sound at home after the longest journey ever and a stint at Bronglais Hospital at Aberystwyth. The physio at Aber gave me an excellent description of the problem - spinal discs are just like jam donuts - squidgy in the middle, and something has squashed the jam from one of my donuts which is pressing on my spinal nerves and down my right leg. The MRI scan images turned up as promised and have been viewed by a neurosurgeon at Morriston in Swansea who wants to see me to decide on the next step. So that's where we're at - waiting for an appointment at Swansea, but I shall keep you posted.
I don't intend going very far in the near future so visitors are more than welcome. You may have to make your own cuppa if Marc is not home, but if this is the case there is an increased likelihood of there being something in the cake tin! I will also be taking advantage of the chance to update the blog as we have been on the Coromandel in New Zealand for about two months now.
Thanks to everyone for the good wishes and everything else but not for eating my Maltesers when I was helpless in hospital (you know who you are ...)
Wednesday, 13 August 2008
Nôl yn Aber / BACK IN ABER
Gweler isod am y fersiwn Saesneg / SEE BELOW FOR THE ENGLISH VERSION
Adre’n ddiogel
Rydym ni’n dau yn ôl yn Aber. Wedi siwrne cyffroes i ddweud y lleiaf, a barodd 28 awr, cyrrhaeddom Ysbyty Bronglais mewn Ambiwlans ar nos Wener am ddeg y nos. Mi’r oedd y siwrne yn brofiad a rhaid oedd i Nia druan drafaelu yr holl ffordd yn fflat ar ei chefn. Collais cownt o sawl ‘stretcher’ yr oedd rhaid iddi drafaelu arno gan iddi orfod newid o un i’r llall ar bob cam o’r daith. Oherwydd tywydd gwael mewn rhannau o Preu, nid oedd yr awyren ambiwlans yn medru ein cyrraedd yn Arequipa a rhaid oedd i ni drafaelu mewn awyren fach 9 sedd gyda Nia mewn ‘body brace’ ar ‘stretcher’ ar ben rhes o seddi wedi eu plygu ymlaen. Nid oedd y siwrne dwy awr yma yn un gyfforddus. Wedyn cawsom siwrne o dros 12 awr o Lima i Amsterdam a ninnau’n hedfan o gwmpas y stormydd mwyaf dwi erioed wedi eu brofi mewn awyren. Roedd ein taith awyr olaf o Amsterdam i Heathrow yn dipyn yn dawelach ond roedd taith o 5 awr yn ein disgwyl i’n tywys o’r maes awyr i’r ysbyty ym Mronglais. Ni wnaeth Nia fwynhau dim o’r daith adref ond dwi’n falch i adrodd erbyn bore Sadwrn roedd ysbryd Nia nôl ar ei uchel.
Rydym nôl yn Aber oherwydd mae’r driniaeth mae doctoriaid y wlad yma yn ei rhoi i berson yng nghyflwr Nia yn dra wahanol i’r driniaeth sy’n cael ei ddarparu ym Mheru. Yma, dim ond 10% o achosion tebyg sy’n gorffen lan yn derbyn llawdriniaeth. Hefyd, cafodd y sefyllfa ei chymhlethu’n bellach gyda’r doctoriaid a wnaeth ein hebrwng adref yn mynnu cymryd gofal o’r ‘MRI scans’ ac yna yn eu gadael ar un o’r awyrennau adref. Felly, ni chyrrhaeddodd y ‘scans’ Bronglais tan bore ddoe. Gorffwys a ffisiotherapi yw gorchymyn y doctor a gobeithiwn bydd Neurosurgeon yn gweld Nia’n fuan.
Diolch yn fawr i bawb a wnaeth helpu dod a Nia adref yn ddiogel. I bawb arall, fe synnech chi faint o fobl roedd ei hangen i gwbwlhau’r dasg a hefyd y nifer o seddi mewn awyren mae’n gymryd. Rhybudd i chi gyd – pan yn trafaelu dramor, peidiwch da ddim ac anghofio’r polisi yswiriant!
Bydd rhagor o newydd yn dilyn.
Home Safely
We are both back in Aber. After a long and gruelling journey that lasted 28 hours, we arrived in Bronglais Hospital in the back of an ambulance at about 10pm on Friday evening. The journey was an experience and an eye opener with poor Nia flat on her back all the way. I lost count of how many times Nia had to change stretchers at different stages of the journey. Due to bad weather in parts of Peru the air ambulance that was meant to fly us from Arequipa to Lima could not reach us and we had to fly instead in a small nine seater plane with Nia in a body brace on a stretcher lying on top of the passenger seats that were resting forward. This two hour journey was not a pleasant one to say the least. The next stage of the journey, a 12 hour flight from Lima to Amsterdam was not much better. In my experience, I have never encountered so much turbulence as the pilot tried to steer us round numerous storms. The ride was so bumpy that I’m sure at one stage that Nia’s whole body actually left the stretcher she was meant to be strapped into. Thankfully, the flight from Amsterdam to Heathrow was far less eventful but we still had a 5 hour journey from the airport to Bronglais Hospital in an ambulance. Nia certainly did not enjoy the journey home but I’m pleased to report that her spirit was much better by Saturday morning.
We have made it back to Aberystwyth as the treatment offered by doctors in this country is totally different to what we were offered in Peru. Here, only about 10% of cases where an individual has suffered a slipped disc end up on the operating theatre. Nia’s situation hasn’t been helped by the fact that the doctors that accompanied us home from Lima left Nia’s MRI scans on the plane. The scans only arrived at Bronglais yesterday morning. Rest and physiotherapy are the doctor’s orders and hopefully she’ll get to see a Neurosurgeon soon.
Many, many thanks to all those involved in helping to get Nia home safely. For everyone else, you’d be amazed as to how many people were involved in completing this task and how many seats in an aeroplane was required. A warning to all of you – when travelling abroad, do not forget that insurance policy!
Up-dates will follow.
Adre’n ddiogel
Rydym ni’n dau yn ôl yn Aber. Wedi siwrne cyffroes i ddweud y lleiaf, a barodd 28 awr, cyrrhaeddom Ysbyty Bronglais mewn Ambiwlans ar nos Wener am ddeg y nos. Mi’r oedd y siwrne yn brofiad a rhaid oedd i Nia druan drafaelu yr holl ffordd yn fflat ar ei chefn. Collais cownt o sawl ‘stretcher’ yr oedd rhaid iddi drafaelu arno gan iddi orfod newid o un i’r llall ar bob cam o’r daith. Oherwydd tywydd gwael mewn rhannau o Preu, nid oedd yr awyren ambiwlans yn medru ein cyrraedd yn Arequipa a rhaid oedd i ni drafaelu mewn awyren fach 9 sedd gyda Nia mewn ‘body brace’ ar ‘stretcher’ ar ben rhes o seddi wedi eu plygu ymlaen. Nid oedd y siwrne dwy awr yma yn un gyfforddus. Wedyn cawsom siwrne o dros 12 awr o Lima i Amsterdam a ninnau’n hedfan o gwmpas y stormydd mwyaf dwi erioed wedi eu brofi mewn awyren. Roedd ein taith awyr olaf o Amsterdam i Heathrow yn dipyn yn dawelach ond roedd taith o 5 awr yn ein disgwyl i’n tywys o’r maes awyr i’r ysbyty ym Mronglais. Ni wnaeth Nia fwynhau dim o’r daith adref ond dwi’n falch i adrodd erbyn bore Sadwrn roedd ysbryd Nia nôl ar ei uchel.
Rydym nôl yn Aber oherwydd mae’r driniaeth mae doctoriaid y wlad yma yn ei rhoi i berson yng nghyflwr Nia yn dra wahanol i’r driniaeth sy’n cael ei ddarparu ym Mheru. Yma, dim ond 10% o achosion tebyg sy’n gorffen lan yn derbyn llawdriniaeth. Hefyd, cafodd y sefyllfa ei chymhlethu’n bellach gyda’r doctoriaid a wnaeth ein hebrwng adref yn mynnu cymryd gofal o’r ‘MRI scans’ ac yna yn eu gadael ar un o’r awyrennau adref. Felly, ni chyrrhaeddodd y ‘scans’ Bronglais tan bore ddoe. Gorffwys a ffisiotherapi yw gorchymyn y doctor a gobeithiwn bydd Neurosurgeon yn gweld Nia’n fuan.
Diolch yn fawr i bawb a wnaeth helpu dod a Nia adref yn ddiogel. I bawb arall, fe synnech chi faint o fobl roedd ei hangen i gwbwlhau’r dasg a hefyd y nifer o seddi mewn awyren mae’n gymryd. Rhybudd i chi gyd – pan yn trafaelu dramor, peidiwch da ddim ac anghofio’r polisi yswiriant!
Bydd rhagor o newydd yn dilyn.
Home Safely
We are both back in Aber. After a long and gruelling journey that lasted 28 hours, we arrived in Bronglais Hospital in the back of an ambulance at about 10pm on Friday evening. The journey was an experience and an eye opener with poor Nia flat on her back all the way. I lost count of how many times Nia had to change stretchers at different stages of the journey. Due to bad weather in parts of Peru the air ambulance that was meant to fly us from Arequipa to Lima could not reach us and we had to fly instead in a small nine seater plane with Nia in a body brace on a stretcher lying on top of the passenger seats that were resting forward. This two hour journey was not a pleasant one to say the least. The next stage of the journey, a 12 hour flight from Lima to Amsterdam was not much better. In my experience, I have never encountered so much turbulence as the pilot tried to steer us round numerous storms. The ride was so bumpy that I’m sure at one stage that Nia’s whole body actually left the stretcher she was meant to be strapped into. Thankfully, the flight from Amsterdam to Heathrow was far less eventful but we still had a 5 hour journey from the airport to Bronglais Hospital in an ambulance. Nia certainly did not enjoy the journey home but I’m pleased to report that her spirit was much better by Saturday morning.
We have made it back to Aberystwyth as the treatment offered by doctors in this country is totally different to what we were offered in Peru. Here, only about 10% of cases where an individual has suffered a slipped disc end up on the operating theatre. Nia’s situation hasn’t been helped by the fact that the doctors that accompanied us home from Lima left Nia’s MRI scans on the plane. The scans only arrived at Bronglais yesterday morning. Rest and physiotherapy are the doctor’s orders and hopefully she’ll get to see a Neurosurgeon soon.
Many, many thanks to all those involved in helping to get Nia home safely. For everyone else, you’d be amazed as to how many people were involved in completing this task and how many seats in an aeroplane was required. A warning to all of you – when travelling abroad, do not forget that insurance policy!
Up-dates will follow.
Thursday, 7 August 2008
Ar Ein Ffordd / ON OUR WAY
Gweler isod am y fersiwn Saesneg / SEE BELOW FOR THE ENGLISH VERSION
Dyma ni'n dod
Nodyn bach i ddweud ein bod ar y ffordd bore 'ma. Rydym yn hedfan mewn awyren ambiwlans arbennig o Arequipa i Lima ac yna fyddwn yn hedfan o Lima i Amsterdam lle byddwn yn cymryd lle naw sedd yng nghefn yr awyren, gyda Nia ar 'stretcher' yn cael ei hebrwng gan ddoctor a nyrs. Ar ôl seibiant byr yn Amsterdam byddwn yn glanio yn Heathrow ychydig ar ôl 3yp. Ni wyddwn eto lle fydd pen y daith i Nia - nid yw'r mater wedi ei benderfynnu eto ond fe gadwn mewn cyswllt.
Diolch i bawb yn yr hostel am y gofal gorau a phob caredigrwydd dros ein cyfnod yma. Diolch hefyd am y llyfr hardd. Fe fyddwn yn ôl.
Here we come
A quick message to say that we will be on our way home this morning. We are flying in an air ambulance from Arequipa to Lima and then onto Amsterdam this evening. We will be taking up the rear nine seats in the plane and Nia will be on a stretcher accompanied by a doctor and a nurse. After a brief stop in Amsterdam we should land in Heathrow just after 3pm on Friday. As yet we are still not sure as to where Nia will end up after arriving home - this matter is yet to be decided but we'll keep in touch.
Many thanks to the hostel for the best of care and every kindness over the last 16 days. Thank you also for the beautiful book and the lovely message within. We'll be back.
Dyma ni'n dod
Nodyn bach i ddweud ein bod ar y ffordd bore 'ma. Rydym yn hedfan mewn awyren ambiwlans arbennig o Arequipa i Lima ac yna fyddwn yn hedfan o Lima i Amsterdam lle byddwn yn cymryd lle naw sedd yng nghefn yr awyren, gyda Nia ar 'stretcher' yn cael ei hebrwng gan ddoctor a nyrs. Ar ôl seibiant byr yn Amsterdam byddwn yn glanio yn Heathrow ychydig ar ôl 3yp. Ni wyddwn eto lle fydd pen y daith i Nia - nid yw'r mater wedi ei benderfynnu eto ond fe gadwn mewn cyswllt.
Diolch i bawb yn yr hostel am y gofal gorau a phob caredigrwydd dros ein cyfnod yma. Diolch hefyd am y llyfr hardd. Fe fyddwn yn ôl.
Here we come
A quick message to say that we will be on our way home this morning. We are flying in an air ambulance from Arequipa to Lima and then onto Amsterdam this evening. We will be taking up the rear nine seats in the plane and Nia will be on a stretcher accompanied by a doctor and a nurse. After a brief stop in Amsterdam we should land in Heathrow just after 3pm on Friday. As yet we are still not sure as to where Nia will end up after arriving home - this matter is yet to be decided but we'll keep in touch.
Many thanks to the hostel for the best of care and every kindness over the last 16 days. Thank you also for the beautiful book and the lovely message within. We'll be back.
Monday, 4 August 2008
Dychwelyd Gartref / COMING HOME
Gweler isod am y fersiwn Saesneg / SEE BELOW FOR THE ENGLISH VERSION
Tua Thre'
Mae'r trefniadau ar gyfer dod a ni adre' wedi eu cadarnhau bore 'ma. Mae'r tîm meddygol bydd yn ein hebrwng ni adref yn cyrraedd yma dydd Mawrth. Byddant yn rhoi asesiad olaf i Nia dydd Mercher cyn i ni adael Peru dydd Iau a chyrraedd Heathrow pnawn Gwener. Mae'r trefniadau ar ôl cyrraedd gartref yn ddibynol ar asesiad dydd Mercher gan y bydd Nia yn cael ei throsglwyddo'n syth (gobeithio) i'r ysbyty mwyaf addas, agosaf i gartref.
Diolch i bawb am y negeseuon a'r dymuniadau gorau. Gobeithio bydd yr haf ddim drosto erbyn penwythnos nesaf! Fe gadwn mewn cyswllt.
Homeward Bound
The arrangements for bringing us home have now been confirmed. The medical team that will escort us home arrive here on Tuesday. After a final assessment of Nia's condition on Wednesday we will leave Peru on Thursday and arrive at Heathrow via Amsterdam on Friday afternoon. There are no definate plans after London as Nia will (hopefully) be transferred straight to "the most appropriate hospital closest to home", to be decided after the assessment on Wednesday.
Many thanks for the messages and best wishes. We will keep you posted.
One other thing - get your orders in now for your hand-knitted alpaca hats and ponchos (ideal Christmas pressies) as Nia will have plenty of time on her hands when she'll be recuperating.
Tua Thre'
Mae'r trefniadau ar gyfer dod a ni adre' wedi eu cadarnhau bore 'ma. Mae'r tîm meddygol bydd yn ein hebrwng ni adref yn cyrraedd yma dydd Mawrth. Byddant yn rhoi asesiad olaf i Nia dydd Mercher cyn i ni adael Peru dydd Iau a chyrraedd Heathrow pnawn Gwener. Mae'r trefniadau ar ôl cyrraedd gartref yn ddibynol ar asesiad dydd Mercher gan y bydd Nia yn cael ei throsglwyddo'n syth (gobeithio) i'r ysbyty mwyaf addas, agosaf i gartref.
Diolch i bawb am y negeseuon a'r dymuniadau gorau. Gobeithio bydd yr haf ddim drosto erbyn penwythnos nesaf! Fe gadwn mewn cyswllt.
Homeward Bound
The arrangements for bringing us home have now been confirmed. The medical team that will escort us home arrive here on Tuesday. After a final assessment of Nia's condition on Wednesday we will leave Peru on Thursday and arrive at Heathrow via Amsterdam on Friday afternoon. There are no definate plans after London as Nia will (hopefully) be transferred straight to "the most appropriate hospital closest to home", to be decided after the assessment on Wednesday.
Many thanks for the messages and best wishes. We will keep you posted.
One other thing - get your orders in now for your hand-knitted alpaca hats and ponchos (ideal Christmas pressies) as Nia will have plenty of time on her hands when she'll be recuperating.
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