Tag: Traveling Single Mother

What Happens If You Get Sick in Madrid?

Being sick is never fun. If you happen to fall ill while in another country, and don’t speak the language that well, it can be a little frightening.

Typically, I am a very healthy person who hardly ever gets sick. Yes, I’m the person who rarely gets antibiotics or even goes to the doctor. Although I knew I would have health insurance coverage through BEDA, I never actually thought I would need to use it.

Getting Sick in Madrid

It happened. I could feel the tightening of my throat, and although it was uncomfortable I can generally fight through a small sniffle or cold. This occurred on a Friday, and by the end of the day I felt completely awful and barely had a voice to teach. Since I have insurance I tried to get a same day appointment to see the doctor on Friday, but was unable to get one. I was told that I could get in if I called back on Monday.

By Saturday morning, I couldn’t even make simple sounds with my voice, and on top of that I felt even worse than I had felt the day before. The idea of waiting for an appointment was something I wasn’t looking forward to.  I googled what types of medicines one should purchase from the Farmacia in Spain, and found a few options. I picked up a couple of things including Ibuprofen, and hoped for the best. By Sunday I was still feeling terrible and there was no sign of getting my speaking voice back. My landlady needed to stop by to check out something going on in the apartment next door, and I really wasn’t in the mood for visitors. However, she ended up being my angel that day!

“Oh my goodness, you sound awful,” she said. I tried to agree with her using my minimal speaking voice, and that is when she asked if I had gone to the doctor yet. She said that waiting for an appointment was ridiculous. After calling the number on the back of my insurance card and waiting a few minutes, she had gotten me a home visit for that day from a doctor. Wow!

Doctor House Calls

I have to admit that although I was feeling horrible, it was kind of cool having a doctor come to our apartment with his little black bag and stethoscope. Scarlett said it was like something out of “Downton Abbey.” He prescribed antibiotics and told me to get three more days of rest without going to work. He didn’t speak that much English, but we communicated and he understood what was going on.

Using the Insurance Card and the Price of Medicine

It was so easy to use my insurance card and I didn’t even have a co-pay! One of the best parts was that I purchased antibiotics and the Spanish version of Tylenol for about 8 Euros. Since medicine isn’t covered through insurance, I wasn’t sure what to expect. When the pharmacist or “chemist” said 8 Euros, I was astounded! I’ll take it!

Spain is known for having a good health care system but I was having doubts when I couldn’t get an appointment on Friday. It ended up working out for the best though. Hopefully I won’t need to visit with a doctor again while in Spain, but if I do at least I know I have a few options.

 

How We Get Around In Madrid

Before we left the United States to come to Madrid, I can’t tell you how many people asked me what I was going to do with my van, and if I was going to either rent or purchase a vehicle when we arrive in Spain.

The short answer to this question is that my middle son is currently driving/taking care of my van (at least I hope he is taking care of it), and we of course are not renting or purchasing a vehicle. Since Europe is notorious for their fabulous public transportation system, I knew that we would be utilizing this form of transport in Madrid.

Taxis and Uber: I have only taken a taxi once so far since our arrival in Madrid, and that was from the airport. I downloaded the Uber app (no, I had never used Uber in the states) when I wanted a slightly less expensive option of transportation after we left our AirBnb for our apartment. I didn’t want to take the Metro when we had heavy bags with us, and at this time I was still fairly green when trying to get around the city.

The Metro: We are on the Metro almost two hours a day five days a week with our commute to work and school. This has taken some getting used to, but for the most part it is the cheapest and most convenient way to travel around Madrid if you don’t have a personal vehicle.

There are mornings when I get fairly aggravated with taking the Metro everyday. The morning rush hour is typically the worst. During the morning rush hour, we are literally bumping into strangers and getting bumped into while trying to find a post to grab onto. Since I typically like my space, this caused me some slight anxiety at first. I figured I needed to just suck it up and deal, and that is what I do. 🙂 It is almost impossible to get a seat in the morning for the first seven stops. After we switch trains, we can usually find a seat because this particular train isn’t usually as crowded for some reason. You take the good with the bad, and there are times when the Metro can even be fun!

                             

Public Transport Card (Abono): Scarlett and I were able to get a public transport card or Abono, for the Metro. The process for getting the card was fairly simple. I went to the website and made an appointment at the nearest Metro station that offers this service. We had to bring a copy of our passports plus the original. They asked a few questions, and we were on our way. Scarlett’s card is only 20 Euros a month, and mine is about 54 Euros a month since I am over the age of 26. I suppose 74 Euros a month isn’t that bad for transportation fees. I usually paid more than that for gas in the United States, and that didn’t include any maintenance on the vehicle.

Buses: There is also the option to take the bus, and the public transportation card can be used for this as well. We haven’t taken the bus yet, but I have spoken to people who like the bus better. We may try the bus one of these days, but at the moment we have our route down and it is working for us.

                          

Walking: We definitely walk more here in Madrid compared to when we were in America. Personally, I think this is a wonderful thing. When we get off of a stop, we typically have to walk anywhere from five to ten minutes to reach the final destination.  Of course there are times when we opt to take the “scenic route” and skip the train altogether!

       

Do I Miss Driving?: Yes! We have been here for two and a half months, and this is the longest I have gone without driving in a very long time! I don’t miss sitting in rush hour traffic, but I do miss driving. In fact, that is one of the main things I miss about the U.S. However, I think that the Metro is a very efficient way to travel, and I think that it would be worthwhile for most metropolitan cities in the U.S. to implement such a system.