Picture Bali and you might conjure up images of white sand beaches, cliff-top temples and jungles inhabited with monkeys. Combine that with its legendary party culture, abundance of tourist hostels, and affordable dining scene, and it presents itself as a paradise for young travellers hoping to see a far corner of the world while never straying far from home comforts.
For the first week, the experience lived up to every expectation. We hiked the famous volcano, Mount Batur, to watch a breathtaking sunrise, learned to surf, and I even felt adventurous enough to try the local food. The local food then decided to try me. My friends and I had approached the trip with the motto ‘catch flights, not feelings’, and it appears we completely forgot to add ‘or parasitic infections’ to that list. A week in, I found myself completely caught out.
There was nothing to be done. After 5 days of refusing to eat or leave my bed (with the regular exception of a visit to the porcelain throne), my friends and I decided it was high time I fought back against the war waging in my stomach. It was time to visit… Nusa Medica.
The clinic was an oasis of air conditioning and while-tiled floors in the middle of the sweltering jungle. Stepping inside removed me temporarily from my suffering as I felt overwhelmingly reminded of the SSL – with the marked difference being that everyone around me had an intact will to live; this being a hospital. I’m also not sure any Bodleian library would have approved the blasting of Bees Gees’s ’Stayin’ Alive’ over a bluetooth speaker, but my friends are nothing if not top motivators.
I spent the night there with two other sorry looking folks. Together, we resembled a collaboration between Britts on Tour and 24 hours in A&E (the Balinese version). On the right side of my privacy-curtain was an elderly Geordie named John, who appeared to be in perfectly good health, other than the fact he was in hospital. Meanwhile, on my left side, there lay the unfortunate victim of what appeared to be a werewolf attack; he didn’t speak much, bled a lot, and had an alarming chunk of human flesh (yes, really) perched ominously on his sideboard. Despite his condition, he managed to win me over by sparing the odd sympathetic glance every time I walked past to answer the call of nature, clinging to my IV drip post like Gandalf with a bad back. Owing to the fact that this was a twice-an-hour occurrence, I found myself growing fond of him and rather missed him when he perished in the night. Kidding – he was moved to the Island’s main hospital. Mysterious bleeding man, if you’re out there reading this, I wish you all the best.
My hospital stint remained only a stint as, the very next day, my two friends burst into the clinic to break me out. Our flight was to depart that night at 9pm and they were determined that I was to be on it. Haggling is a large part of Indonesian market culture, but it was rather uncomfortable to see my health treated in the very same way.. The nurses – rays of sunshine – prophesied my demise at each turn and remained bewildered as my friends spoke at length of my vibrant energy and good health. I lay there watching the drip-drip of my IV, and wishing John wasn’t spending so long in our shared bathroom. At this point, due credit must be issued to our tutorial teaching system. With not a drop of medical knowledge between them, my friends waffled their way into persuading the healthcare officers to issue my release from Nusa Medica within the half-hour. Watch out, Downing Street.
Some friends offer a shoulder to cry on, other friends make you laugh. Some friends bundle you out of hospital into a cab, through security, onto a fight, onto another flight, and then onto a train home from Heathrow. A small, mature part of me recognises that difficult experiences teach us lasting life lessons, and I can safely say I now realise the importance of travelling with good company. Other departing wisdom includes taking out solid health insurance and listening to the advice of other travellers regarding which food is safe to eat. Also avoiding werewolves in the Uluwatu area of Bali.
