The Big, Scary, French Health Care System!

Well, today was quite eventful! I had my first experience with the medical system in a country with universal health care. It was quite a bizarre experience. So, here's how it went. Me and my friend Samantha both needed to go to the doctor so we decided to go together to make it easier on ourselves and essentially, we took one for the team. So, we found out where the doctor's office was but getting into the building it's in was rather tricky. Everywhere you go here you have to push a million buttons just to get to where you need to go in the building; it's quite frustrating.

We finally entered the building and the office we needed to go to was on the 1st floor (that's essentially the 2nd because there's a main floor that doesn't count). So we walked up these spindly, windy, narrow steps and made it to the 1st floor. But it wasn't really anything. The stairs just stopped and there was like, a 3'x3' landing (and that's being generous) and a door with more buttons to push. So we get into the actual doctor's office and there's a waiting room, a doctor's office, and a dentist's office. The waiting room houses both the doctor's patients and those of the dentist. I found that bizarre.

So, we sit there in the waiting room. There's no receptionist, no list to sign, nothing. You just sit and wait your turn. But we didn't know that. Also, there are no nurses. Just the doctor. The doctor actually comes to get you from the waiting room. How personal, right? But since Sam and I didn't know that you just stand up when it's your turn we just sat there. And sat there. And sat. For an hour. Probably 45 minutes longer than we should have. It was quite horrible. So I called our program director and she saved our lives by coming and helping us. As soon as she walked in, the doctor came to see us. And from then on it was cake! But here, they don't really have the same privacy laws as at home I don't think. It was very different. The doctor was incredibly nice though and fixed us right up with our prescriptions and sent us on our way. The visit was 22 Euros with the doctor, but 70% will be refunded because of the health insurance that is mandatory here (200 Euros for the year). Then my prescription was 14 Euros. So not a bad trip at all!

Even though the whole experience was kind of overwhelming, I'm glad I went and did it so I know how it works if I ever need to go again. Next time I won't sit in the waiting room for an hour just people watching!

Au revoir!

Solo Trip to the Market

Today, I went to the market for the first time. Also, I went alone. I wandered around for a little while because I was incredibly confused as to how it worked. I just meandered and looked for food that I wanted. Then, I decided to take the big leap and just try it out. I walked up to a vendor (a very cute old woman) and told her I was foreign and asked how it worked. She was very eager to help. She showed me what to do and helped me choose things. I bought tomatoes and onions from her. After that experience, I understood what to do. So I chose another vendor and checked out their goods. These women had all kinds of fruits and vegetables that were grown in their garden (or so the posted sign said). So, for those of you who don't know how the market works, here's how it goes: you check out the selection, make choices, put them in a little basket (or whatever they have) and then hand the whole basket to the vendor. Then, they weigh everything and tell you the price. How easy, right? I was terrified, but finally got the hang of it. So I went to a couple more vendors and at the end of my trip, I had spent 10 Euros. I purchased onions, tomatoes, a green pepper, a cantaloupe, a cucumber, a head of lettuce, two grapefruits, and some strawberries. I thought I did pretty well. I learned how the market worked and got some delicious produce. I even tapped into the strawberries on the walk home. They're delicious!

So, this was my first trip to the open-air market. I'll surely have more wonderful experiences in the future, especially since they sell specialty olives there. I need to try some of those!

Au revoir mes amis!