Cairns Holiday Story Part 1

My brother Paul and I decided to take a trip to Cairns during the April school holidays. I'm a teacher and he’s a teacher aide so we get the same holidays as the students. Cairns is located in north Queensland. It is an area known for its beaches, rainforests and the Great Barrier Reef. I wrote about some of its attractions in this post.

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There was one small hitch on the night before we were going to leave for Cairns. My brother fell ill and had to be taken to hospital. In the afternoon, Paul called me over to his room to say he wasn't feeling very well. He had an ashen face and looked tired and weak. Paul told me his legs felt very weak. I thought it might be a circulation problem since he has some problems with his legs.  So, I made an appointment for him to see a doctor.

While driving to the doctor, I notice Paul not looking so good, so I thought we should go to the hospital instead. Dad made Paul take some aspirin and his heart medication as he was having chest pains. I argued against the heart medication because you shouldn't take medicine that is not yours especially if it for something important like your heart. Dad reasoned that his angina tablets relieve chest pain and that nothing would happen to Paul if he took it. Paul decided to take the aspirin and the angina tablets. He said he felt much better afterwards.

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At hospital, Paul had to take a blood and urine sample. The doctors said that his heart was racing and he looked feverish. They also said it was amazing that he was still standing considering he took an aspirin, heart medication and a panadol (headache tablets) in a short time period.

Well, Paul had to have two IV drips and antibiotics. The doctors said that he had a viral infection and his body was trying to fight it off which was why his heart was racing and he was feverish. It was well past midnight when Paul finally went home and we had to be at the airport by 4 am.

In hospital, Paul concluded that he wasn't well enough to go on holiday. Dad was beside himself over Paul being in hospital, I deciding to go vacationing by myself and worst of all for dad was all the money wasted on the vacation! Fortunately, Paul felt a bit better when he came home and decided he could go to Cairns after all.

None of us had much sleep when we arrived at the airport. I felt a bit queasy but I couldn't decide whether it was coincidental or nerves. The flight to Cairns was pleasant which Paul and I were surprised about. We usually dislike plane travel but bear with it.

Next time: Cairns Adventure part 2