Well I'm back from the doctor's and I'm still in one piece! I still can't believe the hospitals here. It really is like a snapshot from a movie made in the fifties or something. In order to enter the hospital grounds you have to go through these huge (scary) iron gates and then once you're in there it's like it's own functioning community. Paul called it the 'Health Fortress' which seemed strangely accurate. There are different buildings devoted to different services and all of them are equally terrifying. There are rows of the big communist flats and in the middle is a road for the ambulance and a series of courtyards which they've tried to spruce up with dead trees and empty flower boxes. And that's just the outside. You go in through the rickety door and all you see everywhere is drywal exposed, dirt in the corners, tiles pulled up on the floors, not nice. All the staff have wear white from head to toe too! I wouldn't be surprised if the nurses still have to wear the traditional dress and hat. And I took a picture of one of the trolley beds they use here! It was just sitting in the hallway and we were looking at it like 'is that an antique or do they actually still use it?' when a patient came rolling by on one. I'll put it up for you to see.
How they operate all together is just different. First we had to get our blood taken in one room (at least the nurse was really good at it. One poke and voila two viles just like that) then we had to go outside to another building to get our xrays done. Which was just a fun expereince. not. We had to go into this little room and strip from the waist up and then stand in front of this freezing cold metal contraption while it moved us sideways abruptly. Then once that was finished we waited in the hallway while they developed the proofs. They just left the door open so we could see everything they were doing. Including other patients xrays of various parts of the body. And then we had to go back to the other building to give the xrays to the lady and then we had to go to the front to pay and then baack to her to give her the reciept and then we were done. It really is an inefficient system but hey! it's done and I'm all clear so hopefully I can finally get my visa!!!! And I hope I won't have to make any more trips to the hospital so I can avoid all that sketchiness all together.

okay now I've gotta run! I'm off to VIENNA!! Have I mentioned how excited I am yet???

bye!

P