Staying put

After arriving in Ohrid I rented a small apartment in order to try and recover for a couple of days. This was the longest illness I had experienced in quite a while, but I was certain it wouldn't take a whole lot longer to feel better again. I spent my time reading and sleeping, mostly, but I also found the time to read up on the most common types of diseases that spread through food and water. I found that the ones that cause diarrhea the longest were not the bacteria or viruses, but parasites. And the recovery generally takes between 2 and 4 weeks. I wouldn't take my own armchair diagnosis as truth, but at least it allowed me to adjust my expectations.

A hospital visit

And indeed I found that I wasn't feeling any better after a couple of days. So I moved to a cheaper apartment in anticipation of the days to come, and made a little hospital visit after another two days. That visit was an experience in itself, as there were not many people who could speak English and the process of getting a diagnosis was very different than in the Netherlands. Although I can now read Cyrillic like an infant, it's still hard to find the right building if you don't know what the words mean (although quite a lot of words are obviously borrowed from English, I suppose). But luckily there were enough patient and helpful people to guide me to the correct places. Also, fun fact, if your name in latin script gets converted into cyrillic handwriting, back into cyrillic spelled out using latin characters on a computer keyboard, and then printed out, you tend to get a new name. My Macedonian name is now "Mak Hanger".

Right now I'm awaiting the results of two tests to return to the doctor. I always wait too long before going to doctors or hospitals as I generally hope that my body is capable enough of treating issues by itself. This time the disease, and the resulting malnutrition, had its way with me for so long that I got a bit concerned and headed to the hospital anyway. Ironically enough I seem to be getting better as we speak: I can eat normal foods again, in much greater portions again, and am no longer bound to within 1 kilometer of the nearest toilet. So I suppose I'll go and get my diagnosis in two days and then, barring any unexpected results, refuse treatment.

Something to look forward to

Perhaps tomorrow I'll be able to take a look around Ohrid. I'll also make sure to eat as much calories as I possibly can. I still have a bit of fat on my bones, but I certainly lost a lot of weight during the past 10 days. Apart from those bodily needs my mind is also a bit restless. Staying inside while reading and sleeping only stays fun for so long. I'll be happy to be on the bike again, continuing towards Greece. But for that I have to wait a couple more days.