Winter in Moscow is known to be long, dark and dreary and
this year is no exception. Luckily, I had decided that I would need time in the
sun with friends and had planned a Caribbean cruise with Mindi and Sally out of
Miami in early March on our old friend, NCL Escape.
My flight to Miami had a short connection in Rome so, of course, we were late leaving Moscow and then we needed to de-ice pretty much assuring travel issues. The travel gods were looking out for me (at least a bit!) so I was greeted by a lovely lady as I deplaned to help me “navigate” the transfer. As luck would have it my Miami flight had been delayed and leaving from the adjacent gate so it should have been easy … but NO! In Rome, all incoming international passengers are required to take the train to another terminal, pass through security and then back on the train to the gates. Well, I am not a runner but I hustled through the terminals and made it to the gate (100 meters from where we had landed) while the flight was still open. Hurray!! The flight didn’t leave for a bit so I was even hopeful that my luggage might also make the connection. Alas, that was too much luck for one trip so my bag was still in Rome when I landed in Miami. Onward and upward…
I grabbed my carryon and jumped in a cab for a two-night
stay at Marshall and Peggy’s in Southwest Ranches (Fort Lauderdale) before the
cruise. Sadly, my cab driver didn’t have a clue despite chatting with Mindi
about directions so the ride was an adventure. Eventually (after several more
calls), we arrived at our destination.
Sally arrived from Ottawa a bit later and then we were all together
enjoying the always great Cohen hospitality until the time difference and jet
lag caught up with me.
The next day I was up early and enjoying the sunny warmth of
Florida – so welcome after months of the long Moscow winter. After breakfast,
we were off exploring Marshall’s new development and then a quick shopping
expedition to get a few things I forgot to put in my carryon in case my bag
didn’t arrive before the cruise.
Luckily, Sam and Adam were in town and able to come to Chez Cohen for
dinner. It was great to catch up and swap stories since our last get together in Fort Lauderdale a
year earlier. Dinner was from a local Italian restaurant and was almost as good
as the company. Around midnight my
suitcase arrived – sadly without the handle thanks to either Aeroflot or
Alitalia (who knows?) but I was happy to see my “steamer trunk” so I could have
a plethora of options for what to wear on the cruise.
We headed to the Miami Cruise port and checked in for our
cruise. Sally and I had an aft-suite (sweet!) and Mindi was in the adjoining
balcony room. We managed to get Mindi upgraded to “Princess Class” so we could
all enjoy the Haven restaurant and the other Haven amenities. The weather the first couple of days was less
than stellar and as they were sea days, we made some donations to the casino
with the odd small win on our side as well.
Our first port of call was in St Thomas so we headed to
Bliss to see if there were any sparkly bits that caught our eye. Sally somehow
managed to avoid temptation but Mindi and I found some things we needed! The
weather improved as the cruise went on so we were able to enjoy the Vibe Beach
Club and soak up some badly needed Vitamin D.
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| My new bling |
Monday morning, I was back in the office playing catch-up on emails and projects. I was feeling a bit weird by the end of the day but I assumed it was jet lag until I got back in my apartment. It felt like someone had hit me with an axe in the centre of my breastbone. I had had similar “attacks” that I had written off as heartburn over the past few months but Tums and Tylenol didn’t have any impact on this sharp pain. Stubbornly, I waited through the night but it was clear that I needed to seek medical attention. I called Tanya and off we went to the clinic to see what was up. With much prodding, testing and some pain meds and fluid therapy, I was sent home to await the results of the tests. The verdict came later that evening – acute pancreatitis and a “short” hospital stay would be required.
Wednesday morning, I grabbed a cab to the private hospital the Embassy folks frequent. Long story short, I was “incarcerated” in the hospital for two weeks of additional testing, fluid therapy, and antibiotics until my pancreas was back in shape. Luckily, my friends and colleagues helped me to stay sane with visits, including a card game one Saturday, cards, flowers and reading materials.
Not sure that the excesses of the cruise were the culprit but two weeks of a very restricted bland fat-free diet took care of the few pounds that I had gained on the cruise and several more as well.
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| Cruise food |
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| Hospital food 1 |
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| Hospital food 2 |
Back home, I am on a restricted diet until my gall bladder and pancreas recover. I will have several more opportunities to experience the Russian medical system for follow-ups and have gall bladder surgery scheduled here for late June. In the meantime, I am on the mend and back to work.
