A visit to the hospital

I have had this appointment for more than six weeks. Hospitals in Switzerland are just as slow as other countries I suppose. Luckily I was still alive to meet my appointment, I have a few relations in England that, well just say they had some bad luck. Not going into too many details why and what, just mention that I had my last meal yesterday lunch time and eat nothing more until this evening. I have had the examination before (once every four years) and if you are courageous you may see something of what goes on inside. I am but something funny happened. They put you to sleep at the beginning and then wake you up half way through. I started asking too many questions it seems as suddenly I woke up a second time and told the nurse I must have been sleepy as I fell asleep again. She said I was talking too much and they had to put me to sleep again.

After the examination I was given coffee and a chocolate biscuit, had a few words with the doc who showed me some nicely coloured photos. I did ask if he had made a dvd, but he said they don't do that sort of thing. With the farewell greeting like see you again in four years I left. Phoned hubby up to pick me up as I wasn't allowed to drive. Whilst waiting for my chauffeur I made a few photos, of course. The photo above is the flower bed outside the hospital.

This one is of the main entrance. I was on floor H. C is ground floor so H is on the fifth floor.

I also took a photo of the waiting room, where I read nearly all the magazines available before being beckoned to the operating table.

These days waiting rooms look more like lounges for a five star hotel. When you examine the prices you pay for just a general illness insurance in Switzerland, then I suppose you have to get your money's worth. There was naturally a very "arty" poster on the wall

which doesn't exactly calm the nerves before having the examination. Was that the doc's pet cat or should it have been on the floor as a rug. Another ornament was a snake

very colourful - was a sort of symbol for the something you might have. or perhaps it was just there to lighten the atmosphere. Eventually hubby turned up with the car. I was waiting outside for him but got a bit engrossed in taking photos so he couldn't find me at first.

At least you have a nice view from the hospital window. If it looks a bit shaky it is because there is a very fine wire mesh over the window. To stop patients from escaping or to stop someone breaking in perhaps. The beds in our local hospital cost around five thousand swiss francs per piece, and the apparatus used for various examinations probably goes into hundreds of thousands of francs. I know for a fact that the examination I had today costs over one thousand francs - but we are insured. The last time I had a stay at the hospital I was paying more than I would for a holiday in a five star hotel in the South of France, and I wasn't even getting proper food, but diet stuff.