I haven’t had too much inspiration to write any blogs this last week. Before I left for this trip, I had gotten super sick with strep throat, and after a really fun yet exhausting time in Paris…… I got it again. My mom also got a cold and having to get up and travel to Italy was rough. I was in denial at first about having strep again and just thought I needed a little recovery from not sleeping much and doing a lot of activities. We arrived in Venice last week and my mom and I did our best to stay present during that journey. Our first day in Venice was mostly spent in bed sleeping trying to recover from whatever we had. We went out slightly to get lunch and see the square where Saint Mark’s Basilica was. Another massive and beautiful church that is a work of art in and of itself. I really don’t remember the rest of the day honestly, just sick and trying my best to still be okay. My poor sister who wanted to go explore more didn’t get as much as I am sure she wanted, but was very supportive of the circumstances. This trip is teaching each of us a lot of patience and compassion for each other I think. There have been a lot of situations we’ve had to navigate thus far that have not been ideal, yet there’s a certain kind of confidence being built. There is a lot we do not know and we are learning our power in “winging it”.
On day two in Venice, my mom and I pushed through and got up for a boat ride to Burano. Burano was one of the top things my sister wanted to see on this trip so we got ready and went despite not feeling our best. It was an hour-long boat ride that I spent in and out of sleep as boats have such a relaxing vibe to them. Burano is famous for having colorful houses. The reason is historically it was the fisherman’s island and all the houses were the same. When the thick fog would come through many of the fishermen could not find their way home. So they each painted their houses in different bright colors to be able to find their way. I believe now it’s mostly just a touristy island. Nonetheless, it was really cool to see. After this, I decided I needed to see a doctor because this denial of just having a cold was no longer gonna work. I could barely talk and was in so much pain to eat and swallow. There was only one hospital in Venice that could see me and that was the emergency room. Venice is made up of a lot of small, narrow, and confusing streets. Maps did very little to help us find the hospital. We walked just about the whole island and after asking several different businesses and people and battling our extreme frustration…. we made it. I had read research in college regarding the Italian healthcare system because in some cases it can be used to persuade and sway people’s voting. I took a class where we studied the concept of clientelism, which is the concept of a client-based relationship that is reciprocal through political support. In some parts of Italy, health care was used in this way as a tool for political support. I won’t go into all the political science of it, but because of this past information, I was curious about this experience. Italian health care is ranked second in the world…. Yeah, you heard me, second in the world. Right behind France. It is a universal system meaning everyone has rights to it and it is either offered for no cost or a symbolic cost. Sure you can argue there are ups and downs to it, but when a country has that type of healthcare reputation alone with 6th highest life expectancy…. they are doing something right. I am absolutely a supporter of universal health care and I felt lucky to experience it. It being an emergency room, it was not too packed and my wait was probably around two hours. All the workers did their best to communicate with me and were honestly a lot friendlier and kinder than the ones at home. You could tell they cared and made time for you despite the chaos that comes with working in health care. Once I was able to be seen, my doctor asked what was going on, looked in my throat, and said (and I quote), “Oh you need antibiotics terribly, just terribly”. I loved that type of explanation. I got a document with a certain antibiotic to get, a steroid, and pain meds. In Europe, there are pharmacies on most streets and you just take that paper in and they give you it all then and there. My appointment was 23 dollars…. An emergency room visit….. and my medication was around $37. This is unheard of in America and it made me genuinely sad. There are so many people in crippling medical debt or that are uninsured or won’t see a doctor because of the for-profit system in America. A different system is doable and realistic if changes are willing to be made. That was my experience in Venice. A lot about learning a system of more effective care for citizens and a completely different culture. Italians have a lot more oomph to them than Parisians. There is so much more emotion when they talk and a zest for life I have only experienced here. My journey down Italy will continue in the next blog, that’s all for now.