April 18

First a detail of  utmost importance that I forgot to include in yesterday's journal! We got the crushing call from the bicycle shop informing Janos that the part he needed was not available in all of Mérida, probably not in all of Spain. What a disappointment! That was the end of the bicycle part of the tour for Janos. We considered our options, we could either bale and drive home from Mérida, or else I could continue cycling with Rachael and Scott while Janos drove the sag wagon. I would have good company, but it wouldn't be the same. We decided on the latter plan, which wouldn't be all bad since it would give him extra time with his drone and more time to see the sights. That was the plan.

This morning the sh*t hit the fan. I got up after a night of severe diarrhea, nausea and abdomminal pain. There was to be no departure at 9:30 or group photo. I couldn't even leave the room. Janos went to the pharmacy and let them advise him on what would be best for me. The pills stopped the diarrhea and although I was still  feeling terribly nauseated and weak, we thought it would be safe to move on to our next booking in Medellín. By car, of course. I would have loved to stay in our comfortable hotel but there were no more vacancies.

We got to Medellín and Scott and Rachael had already arrived by bike. After a short time with them at the table, I retired to our room. The day didn't end well, and when I wasn't in bed, I was in the bathroom. The small room wasnt fancy, but it was adequate and we decided to cancel our next booking and stay another day.

There was nothing Janos could do for me so while I slept he went out and made a video of this large Islamic fort, built in the mid-9th century on a site already occupied by the Romans and Visigoths. The video is at the end of the page.

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April 19

After another rough night, I wanted to see a doctor. Our very kind and helpful hotel people called emergency and a team of paramedics didn't take long getting there. They hardly fit in the room with their bulky bags of equipment. They gave me a shot to relieve the nausea, told me not to take the pills Janos got from the pharmacy the day before and recommended an electrolyte solution of which I was to drink a liter every 24 hours for a week. This was all using my very basic Spanish which wasn't up to the job at all and the paramedics' English was no better. I then fell into a deep sleep.

I don't remember, maybe I tried to eat some toast. The electrolyte solution was hard to get down and my conscientous efforts to drink enough water caused more cramps and a dash for the toilet. I slept most of the day and and at times the nausea was less intense but it returned by evening in full force. I was feeling wretched and desperate. So we were off to the hospital to see a doctor in Don Benito, a ten minute ride by car. My idea was that I needed to be put on an iv to hydrate and introduce the right medication. Our doctor knew no English and we made do as well as we could with Google Translator. She recommended some probiotics, to continue with the electrolyte drink and prescribed an antibiotic. No diagnosis. That was it but I was feeling hopeful.

Here is yesterday's video.