I had two untethered walks today. Untethered from the IV antibiotics I have been getting since yesterday for what appears to be a bile duct infection.
Yesterday we arrived in Nanortalik, amazingly clear views of jagged peaks and brilliant white icebergs.
The night before I had been emailing with a doctor in Denmark who contacted the Join Rescue Command who had us met at the dock by the local police officer. He drove me to the clinic where they ascertained that I was under attack from a bacterium. Every 6 hours a dosage of the clearing house type of antibiotics and infection has subsided. The hope is tomorrow it will be contained enough I can get to oral dosages and get back to the boat.
It as been a study in kindness. The nurses; some here from Denmark as summer jobs, some Greenlandic are wonderful. Firm and kind. The view is amazing and as it turns out I am the only one here so they are focused on me. I have learned that Danish medicine is not American Medicine. When I told them this morning I wanted to get helicopter to the capital hospital, my insurance will pay for it. They said you can go but they may not take an image, give you anything different. In fact yesterday they requested that and were told my condition did not warrant that.
Since then I have been joking about how in America… and they laugh and sigh and say this takes time.
So I yielded to that later this morning. Took a long walk one way and another to the boat. There I found James and Larry making chowder, relaxed. Being with people who just want the best for you is good medicine. No rush says Larry we are a head of schedule. Charlie has been by between his jaunts to who knows were, Participating he says, I am not a spectator. We were reluctant to see Steve leave on a helicopter to head home to Colorado, not before sharing some great aerial shots of the boat.
When we arrived yesterday we have half a day before before being moved to another dock as a cruise ship was arriving; an enormous, misplaced infection of its own. Bringing maybe several thousand people ashore who are hard to avoid. There money brings some income, there waste brings pollution they bring noise.
Noise. When I asked one of the nurses what the effect of our nations blustering about taking over Greenland does. She said it creates fear and noise. Unnecessary noise. There has been nothing but good will towards us. We have been here about 36 hours. The boys have bought fresh cod, halibut steaks, seal blubber. Took some walks, tended to the vessel. Me, I have been ashore for that time and thankfully the rhythm of the rocking of the boat has not left making me so that when I get back on board it’ll be home.
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