Red Flag

Tenerife. One of the first holidays with our children. They must have been like 6 and 8 back then. We had chosen a nice hotel, close to the beach, surrounded by many pools and terrific restaurants. We had a great time and were enjoying the good weather and the relaxation of being away from home.

That particular day, we went out to one of the hotel restaurants. I was pretty hungry and couldn't wait to check out the buffet. It was a sea banquet that day. I love fish and sea food, so yes, I was looking forward to it. Those grilled mussels looked so appealing to me, that I took a couple at a time. Something didn't taste right about them, but I thought it was just me, not appreciating the food. So I ate my dinner and I was fine.

Later that night, after the children had gone to bed, Hubby and I were sitting outside on the terrace, talking about that day. That's when my throat started to swell. My eyes began to sting, my nose was running and I had this scary feeling that breathing was no longer obvious. So I told hubby that I didn't feel well and that I was going to lay down. I had experienced anaphylactic shock before, in my teens, after eating snails. I was trying to remember if I had eaten snails that night, when the mussels crossed my mind. I remember they tasted kinda funny. That's when I realized an allergy was causing the swelling in my throat. I was happy to have brought antihistaminic tablets and I took a couple. But it didn't do anything..

So I told Hubby I was going to find a doctor and he should stay with the children. At the reception, I asked for a doctor. The receptionist didn't speak any English and I didn't speak Spanish. But he could tell it was serious. In just a couple of minutes, an ambulance rushed on to the court of the hotel. Two male nurses jumped out and they made me lay down on a stretcher. They wheeled me in the ambulance, turned on the siren and rushed me to the hospital. There was no time to warn Hubby. I needed to draw the attention of the nurses, because I was already a diabetic back then and I could not have cortisone shots to help me get better. But they kept yelling at me: no comprendo, no comprendo!

It took them quite a while to get me to the hospital. They opened the door, let me out and drove off, to pick up their next patient. And there I was, outside the hospital, on a Saturday night, waiting in line, amongst drunk and injured people. I tried to find someone to translate for me, but nobody was available. There was no way I was going to enter that hospital without being understood. A shot of cortisone might make me slip into a coma! So I left, to take a walk and get some fresh air. I assume the oxygen and the tablets I had taken previously, finally helped me get better. I stopped a cab to take me back to the hotel. I had no wallet on me, no money, no phone. The driver thought I had been drinking, which I hadn't and he was really getting on my nerves. But he brought me back to the hotel, where Hubby was, standing by a different receptionist, asking about his wife.. He had no idea..