Ashley Versus Korean Hospitals

I usually don't mind blissfully going about life in Korea not understanding what people say, until I actually have to do something. So begins the horribleness of today. Well actually lets back up.

Yesterday I was supposed to go to my cousin Nahun's 1st birthday party. The 1st birthday party is a very big deal in Korea. Tons of food and just everyone getting together to celebrate that the child made it without dying. I couldn't sleep that night and by 7:15 my whole body ached and my throat hurt bad. So I texted Jun Gu and told him I wasn't going to be able to make it. He asked me what was wrong and after telling him told me I should go to the emergency room. I said I'm not that sick. So I laid in bed all day freezing one minute and then getting really hot the next.

At around 6 pm I get a text from Jun Gu saying that they were coming to give me fruit and see me. So I start cleaning up my place a little bit and him, his sister Di hun and their mom and dad all come into my room. They decide I need a heating mat for my bed. So they all leave to go to E-Mart. An hour later they come back with potato soup, a chicken salad, full length mirror and the heating mat. That thing gets extremely hot.

So this morning I woke up around 3 and couldn't fall back to sleep. I got up when my alarm went off and went to school miserable all day. Eunice let me take a sick class (I'm now down to 9 that I can miss boo) and leave early. The person that had to cover my class was not a happy camper. Oh well.

The directions she gave me were horrible and after walking around for an hour I finally found the place. I'm always emotional when I'm sick so I go to the 9th floor, where Eunice tells me to go, and my mom thankfully calls. I start crying and I just give the phone to the secretary. Come to find out I am not at the health clinic but at a plastic surgeons office. Thanks Eunice. Maybe I'll get that lipo on another day.

I go down to the 2nd floor where I tell them I need to see someone about my throat. It was very quick. No appointment. I sat down, a minute later I'm seen, I go into the doctors office where he looks in my throat and tells me I have tonsillitis. I can feel the sides of my throat are swollen but he refused to touch my neck. He says, "You still have your tonsils right?" "Yes" "Then you have tonsillitis." Genius medicine. . .

I get two shots in my butt, one on each cheek and then 6 packets of 4 pills each that I must take three times a day for two days. The Doctor visit was only 5900 won and my medication was 7800. Hopefully I will never have to go again.