Our Medical Check Up & More in Bangkok

 We arrived to Bangkok on March 13 for a 19 day stay at a very nice Airbnb. We return to Bangkok for our last 8 nights & plan to do our remaining touristy things then so this was just a place to relax. Immigration was easy & fairly quick but our car that our host sent was badly delayed so it was late when we finally arrived & the driver was not as helpful with our check in as the host implied. But we made it. A compact but well equipped condo with a separate bedroom & small balcony, use of a pool & fitness room & a much appreciated shuttle service every 30 minutes to the closest BTS station (train) & big Lotus grocery store & food court. 

Our home for 19 days

Robin’s favorite place

Not much of a view

We stocked the fridge to do a lot of our own cooking after only resturants in Sri Lanka, but we did check out the food court at the mall & the outdoor food stalls nearby. Also nice to have a TV again, just YouTube but better than nothing. We also made time to do an application for the Lloydminster Christmas Craft Fair this year. 

Food stalls

Typical hand position for a Thai greeting - on Ronald McDonald

We spent our mornings exercising, going to our gym & to the pool. Really enjoyed having a treadmill, way easier than running outside in the 30+ C heat, we’re thinking we will be needing one of those in the future.

We are not sure what got us onto the idea of doing a medical check up in Bangkok, but it’s definitely a thing here. Several large internationally recognized hospitals offer packages & there are plenty of YouTube videos outlining the process. I did a lot of research, comparing what tests were done & prices & settled on the Bangkok Hospital. There are numerous packages on offer, depending on your age bracket plus additional things that could be added. We chose the “Longevity, over 60” packages, a bit different for men & women, base cost - Women 35,000 baht = $1492 CAD, Men 31,000 baht = $1322. 

We decided that this was worth it for us, knowing full well that all this was free in Canada, but many of these tests are never ordered routinely & certainly not unless there is a problem. There is also the issue of wait times that we took into consideration. We both had some fairly minor issues plaguing us recently - I am experiencing heart palpitations on a frequent basis, more annoying than worrisome & Robin was having some swallowing problems & atypical chest pains that needed checking out. Being a male he has been reluctant to have them checked out previously, worrying that it would affect his “out of country medical insurance”. So the inclusion of full abdominal ultrasounds, checking carotid arteries for blockages, stress EKG’s & chest X-rays was something we wanted. 

The only preparation needed was a 12 hour fast, so we arrived at the hospital for our “half day” of tests. And surprisingly no one asked for any payment until the day was done! We met with a “nurse” to do a medical history & to go over the included tests, then sent to change into our attire for the day. 

The list of all that was done

Nurses in caps & nylons, mainly fitted uniforms

From then on the day became a blur, we would be taken off for blood work, then a strange “In body” scan for body fat percentages, chest X-rays, full abdominal ultrasounds, EKG, stress test, echocardiogram, hearing. & eye exams, mammogram & ultrasound (for me), carotid Doppler, tumor markers for cancer blood tests, bone density scans, ABI testing, pharmacist consult & medical exam & test explanations. Plus given a CD of all our scans & all the test results including thick pages of my stress test. We should also receive a full written report within a few weeks. 

We saw each other in passing throughout the morning, at one point Robin was whisked off to the Chest Centre in a golf cart - all indoors thru connecting walkways. Because of his years of smoking & inhaling questionable chemicals at work he wanted his lungs checked - so we requested a lung CT scan. No problem, just an additional cost of $295 & it was done. And then a consult with a chest specialist $36, & his issues were diagnosed! He has a hiatus hernia which explains the swallowing issues & most likely the chest pain as it is always “cured” with Tums & a Coke. They wanted to send him off to a surgeon right then & there to repair it, but we chose to deal with it with medication first & follow up back home. 

Golf cart transport through the buildings

We can say that they were thorough, I had my mammogram & ultrasound, then was sent for 2 more mammograms & another ultrasound, all to satisfy the doctor that all my cysts were properly identified. 

The cardiologist doing my stress test was not happy with the results, saying it was equivocal & needed follow up, so a cardiology appointment was made for 2 days away.  We had also booked a cardiology appointment for Robin when we originally booked the check up because of his atypical chest pain & it was accepted & booked for the day & time we asked for! So our first day ended after about 7 hours & we went away with thick envelopes of results & we’re happy to get back into proper clothes. As we waited for our taxi we realized that there was valet parking! At a hospital! Strange. 

Something else that we realized was that most of the people getting check ups done were Thai people, having been sent by their employers for regular, routine check ups, most likely paid for by the company. There were other “tourists” like us, plus people in robes & head wear that seemed very “Middle East”.

We returned on the Monday for our follow up, first the chest doctor to discuss the CT results so I could hear & ask questions (no additional cost), then off to cardiology. We had the initial consultation, he ordered the stress tests & we saw him again at the end for the results. Robin was unable to do the typical stress test, running on a treadmill, so they did a stress echocardiogram with medication to increase his heart rate, which he “passed” with no issues. His chest pain caused by the hiatus hernia, thankfully. 

I had to do the regular stress test, running uphill on a treadmill after having an echocardiogram done, to get my heart rate above 140, then quickly lying down for a repeat echo at a fast heart rate. I also passed with “flying colors”, my extra beats being PVC’s which won’t kill me!

We then went off to see a gastroenterologist for discussion of Robin’s hiatus hernia & follow up recommendations. 

Cost of these extra tests - cardiologist consults $78 each, my stress echo $546, Robin’s dobutamine echo $625, a Gastroenterologist consults $46 & meds for a week for the hiatus hernia $100 (a big rip off as we bought more for a quarter of that cost in a pharmacy with no prescription).

So in our opinion money well spent for peace of mind & a fast diagnosis & treatment. 

Our family doctor back home will be given copies of all our results & will hopefully send Robin off for a gastroscopy as recommended by the GI doctor.

On our taxi ride back home we were hit from behind by a motorbike, just a small dent, but added a bit of excitement to the day.

Now that we’ve been told that we will still “be kicking” for many years it was time to smarten up with our eating, so we’ve sworn off fried food, at least until we forget & pulled out the resistance band that we’ve carried around until now & actually started using it.

The rest of our time in Bangkok was spent hanging out in the pool, a trip to Chinatown & a couple of local parks.

Chinatown 

A cute little park under an elevated road

Tuk Tuks

A lovely tree that smelled amazing!

Dried mushrooms in Chinatown 

We also visited a mall - Terminal 21, each floor a different theme, London, Tokyo, Paris, Rome, Caribbean, San Francisco. The most notable features were the themed bathrooms, quite impressive! 

Tokyo bath room

London bathroom

San Francisco 

San Francisco Chinatown 

I managed to fit a massage & a pedicure into our “busy” schedule - I will definitely miss the great prices for these, Thai massage for $15, gel pedicure for $18. I also needed a haircut but it was a terrible job that will need some repair work when we get home! 

We head off to the island of Koh Samet from here, for a week.  Our original plan was Koh Chang island but it is within the 50 km of the Thai-Cambodia border & the Canadian government still has a travel warning to the area. If we chose to ignore the warning & we needed our medical insurance it would be invalid because of the warning. So we picked the closest island to Bangkok that we could travel to without a flight & we will hang out by the ocean as we eagerly await our flights home.  

Still Living the Dream!

Turtles at Unawatuna, Galle Fort & Colombo - Our Last Days in Sri Lanka

 We opted for the simple way to get to our next destination, a private driver organized thru the home stay. We actually drove on a 4 lane highway with maximum speeds of 100 km/hr! And passed at least 5 signs warning of peacocks on the highway! We left the toll road partway as I had asked if we could stop & see the famous stilt fishermen. What a surprise - the stilts are in the water close to shore but the fishermen were hanging around near a very big sign that said “Photo costs 5000 rupees” = $22! Not a chance, so I  had to be satisfied with a photo of the sign. 

Stilts (poles) for fishermen to fish from

Since we’ve been planning on the fly, we realized a bit late that we were running out of days in Sri Lanka but a short stay at a beach was better than no beach. After some research we decided on Unawatuna area, specifically Dalawella Beach because that’s were the turtles hang out, found a hotel nearby & booked 2 nights. Jayaa Beach Hotel, triple room, $102 - they advertised beach access but it wasn’t for us “old folks”  - step concrete steps ending on some sharp rocks & water depending on the tide. Free beach access was hard to find, you either had to eat or drink in a hotel or restaurant to be granted access or pay $5 US, ridiculous. Our hotel guy took us next door to a hotel & they allowed us access, but we still had to walk on sand bags on top of the rocks. Unfortunately a lot of the beach has washed away with storms, but we made it to the turtle spot where it was all sand. We couldn’t believe our eyes, here were several HUGE turtles swimming around the people who were feeding them seaweed that the local entrepreneurs had picked & bagged, for a cost of course. The turtles didn’t seem to mind all the people but I felt sorry for them as they were being touched & “manhandled”. We visited them both days, picking our own seaweed & feeding them & just enjoyed watching them up close.  They were green sea turtles - apparently they are the largest hard-shelled marine turtles in the world, growing up to 5 feet & weighing as much as 500 pounds!

Jayaa Beach Hotel

We spent the rest of our 2 days on the beach enjoying food & beer from an upper deck overlooking the beach, floating in the nice warm ocean, a bit of walking & even a movie as we have been without TV for quite some time. 

This huge dog was having fun chasing fish in this pool

More rice & curry

We left Unawatuna March 8, used Pick Me for our ride to Galle & checked into a lovely colonial hotel, Fort Thari Inn. We chose it because it was within the walls of the old fort making it convenient for exploring. Galle Fort, located on Sri Lanka’s southwest coast is a 1588 built UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the best-preserved largest Dutch built fortress in SE Asia. It was originally built by the Portuguese & expanded by the Dutch, this “living” walled city features colonial area buildings, a historic lighthouse, narrow streets & picturesque sea views. 

Lobby of Fort Thari Inn

Up on the walls of the fort

Looking from outside the walls

Our inn had only 4 rooms plus the owners living quarters & it was so charming & cozy! 

We spent our 2 days there wandering along the fort walls, admiring some of the 400 historic buildings, finding tasty food, a trip to the small beach used mainly by locals (& where I found some nice sea glass) & relaxing in our room when it got too hot (only 28C but felt much warmer). The game of cricket is big here, seeing kids running around with cricket bats was a common sight & we watched a bit of play, but have no idea how it works! Lots of tourists in Galle & so many gem shops - the price to pay for staying in the heart of the fort. While we were there I finally booked the last days of our trip, the actual last 2 weeks were booked ages ago but we needed to book our first 19 days in Thailand. Quite a relief to have it all done!

Halle Fort beach

Lighthouse, 1930’s

Kids with cricket bats

Gem shops

Dutch governor’s house, 1683

Dutch Reformed Church, 1752

Amangalla Hotel, 1684

Jewelry displays, mainly sapphires

Short Eats (Sri Lankan fast food)

A nasty looking exterior but very tasty mango, that variety looks all brown & ugly on the outside

We left Galle on the train, the SLOW train, to Colombo for our last 3 nights in Sri Lanka. Our tickets were $4.33 for both, first come first serve but the train wasn’t busy & we were there early enough to claim good seats. We took the slow train at 8:50 as the other options were too early or possibly crowded. It took 4 hours to go 130 kms but it was a good time, there were over 30 stops at small stations, nice ocean views, saw fishermen & smelled fish, passed shanty town houses between the ocean & the train tracks nearer to Colombo & we both got scolded by the ticket lady for not hanging onto our bags, all while having an open window to stick our heads out of. 

King coconuts, yellowish, Sri Lankan variety

Shanty houses

Another ride with Pick Me, we won’t miss this ride sharing app as the drivers don’t seem to know where to go or where to stop, we’ve had 2 drivers who’s car & licence didn’t match the app & they like to call to confirm the ride but usually didn’t speak English or had terrible phone reception. Annoying!

We booked the Nippon Hotel Colombo as it was well rated, looked good & included breakfast but our 3 nights there were not good ones. We paid $214 & our A/C never got the room below 25C, the wifi was unusable (even after the IT guy gave us passcodes that weren’t expired) & everything on the breakfast buffet was cold (not a concern for the staff, we complained & they offered to microwave our food!) And we complained about the A/C - had a maintenance guy in 3 times, each time promising that it would be good - but it never improved. I finally demanded a fan, which we got, but never did they offer to change rooms & the hotel was definitely not full. My first 2star review of a place which I actually feel bad about. 

Outdoor terrace

We did wander around the very large neighborhood of Pettah which is Colombo’s most vibrant & chaotic open-air bazaar of narrow streets where almost anything is being sold. It was colorful & noisy & home to a few “must see” sights. We then walked to Galle Face Green, a seaside park enjoyed by locals at sunset, but not overly impressive. A quick stop in Galle Face One mall to cool off, quite the contrast from the open air markets earlier in the day & it was time to call a tuk tuk to head back to the hot hotel room.

We also took a tuk tuk tour of the city on a day when the temperature was 32, feels like 38 so near the end it was a matter of drive by, we’ll take photos but no walking around. We did walk thru the Colombo National Museum, lots to see & read about. And of course the driver had to take us to a store, “in case we might want to buy something”. 

Red Mosque, 1909

Very green water in the river, due to pollution, leading to algae blooms

Halle Face Grren, beach

Very colorful ornate Hindu Temple 

Lotus Tower

Colombo National Museum 

Stone sculptures 

Oil lamps

Another beautiful Hindu Templa

Lotus Tower

Cargill Building, 1906

We found a nice restaurant nearby & had our dinners there, trying some new things & enjoying Lion beer. I had hoped for one more meal of rice & curry but surprisingly not available. 

Robin is really loving eating with his fingers!

Watalappan, Sri Lankan custard

Lamprais, food cooked in a banana leaf, rice, chicken, egg, spicy onions

Looked messy but it was tasty & spicy!

Nasi Goreng, Dutch influenced Indonesian fried rice

Peacock up on a roof across from our hotel

There’s the peacock, & a peahen as well, probably nesting

We left the hotel Friday March 13, used Uber this time, much better service, same price & rode in a Toyota Prius, fitting as they are everywhere! Colombo airport had so much armed security - we had to show passports & boarding pass just to enter the building and our luggage went thru 2 separate security scans. We flew with Air Asia to Kuala Lumpur & then on to Bangkok, Don Mueang airport, long day, cost $683 total including extra carry on luggage. Definitely a budget airline, no free beverage, hard seats with minimal leg room & they make no effort to seat people together. We arrived at 8:45 pm, pretty quick thru immigration, thankfully I pay attention so we had done the mandatory pre-arrival forms online, a SIM card for Robin, money exchange & out into the 30C heat to wait for our prearranged ride. 

On to the next adventure, Still Living the Dream!