Monthly Archives: September 2019

Hospital impressions

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Now for my hospital impressions.

Two hospitals: Silvestrini (S) and Casa di Cura Liotti (CCL). I had my first operation in January 2018 in Silvistrini. It is a huge University Medical center. Casa di Cura is a small, partly private hospital in downtown Perugia where I am now, September 2019. Here are my impressions of the two plus some other things I found interesting. Some are a bit mundane but it’s what I noticed!

(CCL) Is rather dark and dreary due to the lurid paint they use here. And they don’t like putting the lights on in the halls. (S) Was more the norm that you’d see in the US with light walls and neutral colors.

The colors they choose differ with each floor. What were they thinking? 🤭

(CCL) The beds are electric and I can up and down as I wish. You don’t know how empowering that is! (S) had cranks, and I was stuck in bed and couldn’t get to it.

(CCL) There are two beds. No curtain between them. Cozy. A bit hard to get used to but it is what it is. (S) DID have curtains in it’s shared rooms.

(CCL) Each room has a private bath to share by its two residents. (S) there was one very odd bathroom which was shared between two rooms by four patients.

(CCL) The food is not so bad. Palatable I’d call it. And with my little pack of additions it’s almost good. I don’t have a lot of appetite but my blood is low so I’m eating. (S) practically inedible.

A little different from my normal food pictures ha ha. I ate the pasta which was pretty good. Not the mystery meat or eggplant. I normally like eggplant but not this.

(CCL) All the staff are young and nice. They go about their work cheerfully to a person. Not one has been mean or short with me. I don’t have a nurse Rachett or a Senore huff n puff like last time. Way better here than (S).

(CCL) Provides water for patients and delivers it, and other help you need if you ask for it. (S) Did NOT provide any water and would not bring any. Nor could you drop something on the floor and ask someone to help you get it back or ask your bed get cranked up or down. They expected the family of the patients to do that. Two very different places.

My medicines caused a stir. I always wondered why they have their pills in little blister packs. Lots and lots of waste. I prefer the easy bottles we have in the US. Well, today I think I figured it out. I had brought my own blood pressure medicines which I had removed from the blister packs and placed in small jars. No, no, no they aren’t good if not fresh. An aha moment.

They have a passaggita in the hospital. Just like in a village! All the crutches and walkers come out and it seems like all able patients walk up and down the hall.

I have a room mate. She’s a small rotund Italian woman who had a fall which got her here. I’m guessing she’s 80. Her name is Francesca. She’s sweet and we’ve become friends. She’s been here over two weeks and I just heard she leaves Thursday. Happy for her. And, get this, she came with at least three family members from Puglia! 550km away. Her doctor said she wouldn’t get the good care she could get here. So I guess he got her set up here. I had heard the health care is much worse in the south, a definite consideration if a person is planning to move here. Just goes to show the huge difference people talk about may be true.
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More tomorrow.

Ginocchio intervento 2 – knee operation 2

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This will be a brief post just to update on how I’m doing.
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So the day arrived to check into the hospital. We arrived at 4pm as instructed. The orthopedic floor was full so I was put on the floor above. I had a nice quiet room to myself. I had broth for dinner.

Next morning I woke early and waited and waited for the surgery. Finally got wheeled off about 10:30am. First big surprise was they did the anesthesia differently. I had known I would get an epidural which numbs you from the waist down. The last operation they used mega tranqs to make me sleep and did the spinal in my sleep. This time it was done while I sat on a table! It was scary more than painful but it did hurt. And when they wanted to use gas to make me sleepy I said “I don’t want to hear, see, or feel what is going on!” Make me sleep. They did.

I woke on the way to my room. I guess I got there around three. The doctor came and explained the entire old prosthesis had to be replaced. The other one was defective. This was interesting news. They did give me morphine for the night. And another pain killer the next day that was different but strong. I’m afraid I was woozy and I don’t remember it well.

The next day the doctor visited and lifted my leg and bent it slowly. I was actually amazed at how far he could bend it with no pain. They put me on the bend machine which repeatedly bends the knee to a percentage of flex for an hour. Twice a day. And the flex increases daily. But I’m up to 70% with no pain. I am so happily surprised that this is so totally different from my last experience.

Next post I will give my impressions of the hospital experience and compare with the last one. It’s pretty entertaining.

Packing…

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When a person goes to the hospital in Italy they must bring everything they think they will need…and then some! In some areas of the country this even includes bringing your own toilet paper. On my last hospital stay I didn’t need to bring that, but I did need to bring my own coffee cup if I expected to have coffee in the morning, and my own cutlery. I also had to provide my own water.

Since my trip this time will be over three weeks long (!) I need to bring a lot of things. I have a little bag which I filled with things to improve the horrible food. Like olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper, and hot sauce. Maybe this will help. We’ll see. I also have soap and a wash cloth and towel. And a bowl to use as a basin. I am bringing the noise canceling headphones we have. I had some last time and they were invaluable since my roommate had the TV on from 7am to midnight, tuned to bad Italian TV of course. I’m also bringing my own pillow. Better than the hard-as-rocks hospital pillows.

For the rehab I need clothes I can wear to work out. I got some capri length pants with wide legs so my knee will be easily accessible. I need to bring gym shoes and tee shirts too. Of course, I can get Luther to bring anything I find I need in the meantime.

Here is the array of things I’m bringing.

Note the cup, spoon and cutlery!

These are the things I’m bringing to fight the horrible, bland hospital food. Olive oil, hot sauce, balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper. I should be all set I hope.
So today is the day I check into the hospital at 4PM. The surgery is tomorrow morning. I’ll try to post later on the rest of the story!

Now for something less cheerful

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As some of you know, my initial operation in January 2018 to replace my knee was less than successful. In April of this year I consulted with a new doctor, Dottore del Citerna. I had met him twice previously in consults about both my knee and hip. If I had understood the system better he would have been my initial doctor. But I did not understand. I had thought I must go to an in-system doctor. So I chose Dottore Trinchese. He practices at Silvestrini hospital, the big university medical center in Perugia. It is where my first surgery was done. When I chose him I did take time to get recommendations and looked up his reviews.

I don’t really fault Dottore Trinchese with anything. The knee was problematic before the surgery. I DO fault him with not admitting there was something wrong when I went for a checkup six months after the surgery. I knew there was something wrong! He said not. So I kept on. Eventually it got worse, not better. So that’s when I turned once again to Dottore del Citerna. He examined me and he thinks it is the ligaments and muscles which are not holding the kneecap securely. But he won’t know for sure until he does the surgery.

So that’s the back story. My surgery is scheduled for September 27. I am now lasered in on it. All this spring and summer I’ve concentrated on the 3 major trips I had planned. I had put the surgery off until after them. Now, nothing stands between me and it. 😳 There are some differences this time. First, my doctor is private. Second, the hospital is different. It is smaller and part of it is private. I am still on the Italian Health care system so it will cost nothing. I hope this means the hospital experience will be better than the big, busy University hospital. I guess we will see.

Last week I went in for my pre-op tests. It took six hours! Everyone was very nice but there were interminable waits between each procedure. The hospital is called Casa di Cura Liotti. It is rather dreary and right in the busy middle of Perugia.

I was waiting in one of the waiting areas and saw my doctor arrive. He came back through again on his phone. The next time he came over to me and asked me if I was pronta? Or are you ready? I said no, not really. But I was impressed that he recognized me after seven months and spoke to me. I don’t think that would have happened in the US.

Now I have to pack for my ordeal. Next post about what I’m taking 🙂.

Fun visit !

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Our friends couldn’t have asked for nicer weather. Autumn in Umbria is spectacular in an entirely different way from the brilliant greens of springtime.

The visit was with two friends. Eunice, one of my besties from my Book Group, and her husband Mark. Eunice was unable to come with the initial group of Book Group friends a few years ago. We had to make that right! So we experienced it again, with some new adventures thrown in so she has some experiences unique to her.

Our first outing was to Todi, one of my favorite towns in Umbria. Very high on a hill, it is fairly large and completely medieval. The heart of town is the Piazza del Popolo and here you find many gorgeous buildings to include the People’s Palace and the Captain’s Palace. The latter houses the Civic Museum and Gallery. We also found, for the first time, the funicular from a nice parking lot up to the top of town. It eliminates any arduous hill climbing.

Interesting door knob on our walk from the funicular to the Piazza.

One of the prettiest buildings and one of the only green areas is San Fortunato. Built originally by the Romans and converted to a church in the 1100s.

Also in the Piazza is the Todi Cathedral which features a rose window.

The  Captain’s Palace. Very Venetian looking I think.

We had a nice lunch in one of our favorite restaurants, Ristorante Umbria.

The view from the walls which was also enjoyed by our restaurant.

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Next up, a visit to Tom and Maximus. This will take a little explaining. Mark and Eunice are big Bernese Mountain dog fans. They have had several over the time I’ve known them. Their latest is Quinn who is 3 years old. When they heard Tom and Carol had a puppy named Max they wanted to meet him. So I asked Tom if we could come up. Well he’s a fine fellow and decided on a BBQ lunch for us all. It was a beautiful, clear day and we drove high up into the mountains to his house. Unfortunately Carol was in the UK because her father was ill so our friend , Joanne, who is Tom’s neighbor came up to join us.

We sat outside where it was breezy and much cooler than I had expected. I brought my World Famous Ribs for our contribution. Tom must have spent hours preparing all the food we had. We had an excellent time and the time flew. When I looked at my watch it was 6PM!! That’s what happens with a lunch here in Umbria with friends. Thanks Tom!

Pretty planter at Tom’s house.

Basil makes a nice arrangement on the set-up table.

The table and view.

The dessert was spectacular. And not too heavy.

Maximus (7 months old) was quite shy and took a long time to warm up to us. Everyone took time sitting on the floor with him. When we rose to leave he suddenly became very friendly! Funny pup. He also likes men more than women.

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Our last real outing was to a vineyard in Bevagna, a small town in the wine growing area of the famous Sagrantino grape. It was another spectacular day. The winery Luther chose was Villa Mongalli. We had visited it 2 times before. A family operation consisting of the semi-retired father, two brothers, and their wives and small children. The last visits we had were with one of the brothers, Pierrepaolo. This time his wife, Natasha, conducted the tasting. We tasted a spectacular Rosato, a white Grechetto, a Rosso, two Sagrantini reds and one more, super smooth Montefalco Rosso. We, of course, bought several cases, and Eunice bought one for her planned soiree on the terrace of their rented house.

Sagrantino di Montefalco

Array of our bottles in the sun.

The vines are loaded. This is Sagrantino. They said it won’t be ready to harvest until late October.

We tasted a couple of theses. They are unbelievably sweet!

View across the acreage with grapes and olive groves. Pretty patchwork. I think Bavagna and Montefalco hills are the prettiest scenery in Umbria.

Natasha sent us up the road about a kilometer to a church with picnic tables. It was a lovely place. Way up high with excellent views. And the temperature was perfect!

Our picnic tavola. Prosciutto cotto and crudo, a nice pecorino and two flat breads. We drank a bottle of the Villa Mongalli Rosato. Prefect way to have lunch and not over eat too much.

Eunice and Luther.

View from the table of the medieval town of Bevagna. One of my favorites.

We drove on down to Bevagna after our lunch and strolled the town. Pretty streets.

I loved the sparkling sun on the fountain water.

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After a two day break we joined up on their last night in Umbria at their rented house. We had a nice evening snack table outside on the spectacular terrace. It has perfect sundowners view as my British friends would say.

We really enjoyed Eunice and Mark’s visit in Umbria. It is always fun to show people around and it got us out of the house and into the beauty of our region!

Fall is upon us

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It is amazing how fast the seasons change here! It was just a little over a week ago that it was blazing hot! Now it’s cool and a few showers. It feels very autumnal 🍁. Nights cool down so much we have to wear sweaters to sit outside in the evenings. We have friends visiting right now. They are staying at a friend’s vacant house in Montone. They said it’s like the desert [edit – ha ha ha, no it’s not like dessert! Sorry!] the way it get so cool at night.

Autumn Umbrian tapestry.

It is also the end of the growing season. They are busy harvesting the grapes. They started with the white Trebbiano Spoletino. Then, surprisingly they said the Merlot was next. It will continue through September and into October/November with the Sagrantino grapes, the Cabernet, and the Grechetto.

Sagrantino

I also am harvesting my bumper crop of hot peppers. We grew Jalapeños, cayenne, and two types of habaneros- chocolate and orange. We also have a small bush-like pepper with tiny hot peppers. It’s very ornamental.

Here is just part of my crop.

Next post will be about a fun visit with one of my besties and her husband.

Enjoy the season!

This is why I moved here…

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So, we went to Tuscany, Montepulciano, with Susan and Gary for a superb lunch. Our favorite place there is La Grotta, situated at the foot of the hill town, next to the Church of San Biagio. We have been numerous times and wanted to take Susan and Gary there. Montepulciano is about 1 hour and 10 minutes from us. As we sat on their beautiful terrace in the impossibly perfect weather I reminded myself that this was why we moved here. Unforgettable.

Not to make you hungry or anything…

The table was overlooked by the magnificent church. I kind of liked the bit of blur in this focus.
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Our primi.

Secondi.

 

Fratta ‘800 2019

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Another Ottocento has come and gone. As my loyal readers know, every late August, early September we have our annual festival called Ottocento, or Fratta ‘800. It celebrates the formation of the Italian republic in the 1800s. Garibaldi and his Red Shirts beat back the Briganti who had overtaken Umbria. In the four days of the festival there are reenactments and lots of gunfire and general mayhem, along with bands and dancers, stilt-walkers, duels, and executions. Always fun. Here are some pictures.

Saturday evening. Despite the rain the bands played on.

Curtained entrance to one of the Taverne.

They dedicated this statue to, Our Hero, Garibaldi!

Entry to the Briganti Taverna.

They played into the night. At 2AM I was up and the entire square was hopping up and down. What is it with Italians?! They simply hop up and down…I guess they can’t dance.

After.

The Briganti got up to some shenanigans of course. It took a lot of effort to finally find someone who could explain the meaning of the sign. Thanks Lisa! Literally it means “cows to pasture” I knew it had another meaning, probably more vulgar. Turns out Vacche also means Loose women. And Pasco could mean a male appendage. Then taken all together it means – The woman are out getting laid. Once I got the meaning I realized this was blocking the brothel. Made more sense then.

Belatedly, I found out the Briganti had set up larger than life-sized posters of themselves in drag. The facial hair made for some butt ugly women! Wish I’d gotten pictures.

The Briganti hoisted their banner in their lair this year.

The calm after the storm. Pretty Umbertide doorway.