Bonus: Travel to Argentina for Affordable Health Care!
Erik and I have gone on many trips, and every trip there seems to be a devastating event (or two) - from conversion rate mistakes, canceled flights, missed flights, etcetc. Every time we go on a trip I'm always a ball of stress until the first big mistake happens, then I'm in the mindset that we're likely invincible for the rest of the trip. Lol.
I was not in any type of disillusion that this trip would include many mistakes. And, a few have happened, more so emotionally than physically. But, overall this trip has been a true delight. Here's a quick example of one thing that went very right. And because the story has no pictures to go along with it, just enjoy the beautiful streets of Buenos Aires throughout!
Before we left, we went to a travel doctor. She literally gave us nothing, lol, but I did need to get my Yellow Fever vaccine at some point. The dr. had just been living in Argentina and recommended we just wait until we get there to get the vaccine because it was not covered by insurance and would save us $240. She gave us all the instructions and that is exactly what we did. Erik was already vaccinated so he didn't need it.
After a smooth flight and a bag mishap, plus a 100*F welcoming and a 30 minute wait at a bus stop, we finally arrived at our hotel. We headed up to our room and pulled another classic naptime! It seems we had been dragging our feet a little knowing how warm it was out there, because we spent a few hours just lounging around for really no reason. Eventually though, we knew we needed to get going because I needed to figure out how to get a Yellow Fever shot!!
The clinic the doctor had recommended was just a couple blocks from our hotel so off we went. We got there easy enough, and Erik was able to talk with the front desk staff to explain our situation:
(translation – not exact)”We were told we can get a yellow fever vaccine here”
“Oh, who said that?”
“Our doctor!”
“Oh, okay, who is your doctor and can you show us the order?”
“She’s in the US and no.”
“lol”
She was super helpful and eventually we got it all sorted out. We needed to find a doctor in Buenos Aires that could write us a RX to get a yellow fever shot and when we get that we need to come back to that office so we can get it. Sounded easy enough! And unlike the health care system in the US, it was actually super easy. They gave us an address of their clinic office which was just about 3 blocks away.
When we got there, Erik described the situation and they said – sure, for 8000 pesos ($22) you can see a doctor right now and they can write a Rx for you and she even speaks English! So we sat, for a much shorter time than it took to get our luggage and within 15 minutes of walking in we were walking out with a piece of paper that would let me get a shot in my arm.
We marched right back to the vaccine office – where the gentleman at the door was confused to be seeing us again so soon. We handed over the Rx and we were told to go wait in the lobby. There was a cold water dispenser in the office, so Erik and I slammed about 5 mini cups of water and I went to the bathroom quick. By the time I got out, the doctor had already called me and Erik was waving me to move along faster. I sat on the chair, Erik exchanged pleasantries for us while she prepped the needle and whoop, in the needle goes and out we walk.
In roughly an hour, we found the wrong place, found the right place, went back to the wrong place which was now the 2nd right place and got a shot for about $60. We found this very funny and cackled all the way back to the hotel.
The doctor had mentioned all of the side effects, and since we had been traveling for a month and there were so many coughs/sniffles on the boat we figured we would keep the night early and easy. We had found a place for some steaks, hoped on the bus (wow, I can’t wait to tell you about this bus system!!!), and we were on our way.
We shared a bife de chorizo with some fried cheese and arugula salad on the side. Wow. What a first meal! Erik enjoyed a glass of wine that was filled to the brim and I had some yummy pear water. We got back to the hotel relatively early and I settled in to bed to make sure I got a good nights rest to avoid any side effects.
Erik with his wine <3
