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May-26 |
Redondo, Ben+Truck=Ouch!, Fado
The morning of Monday 5/26 was gorgeous, sunny but not to hot, we packed lunches and hit the road on our bikes.
Just after lunch Ben was passing a truck on the right, it turned unexpectedly right into a driveway,
and though Ben braked he hit the truck hard with his right shoulder just behind the passenger door and rolled
into the ditch.
Ben suffered superficial scrapes and blood on both shins and his right elbow, and the only real damage
was what we later learned was a third degree separation of his left shoulder!
Ben was taken by ambulance to a clinic in Redondo, where they cleaned and dressed his wounds
and tried to "relocate" his "dislocated" shoulder -- an incorrect diagnosis,
but then they didn't speak much English and Ben didn't speak any Portugeuse!
The sent Ben in another ambulance to Evora Hospital, where an X-Ray was taken of his left shoulder,
and the orthopedist, Dr. Vitor Caine, told Ben -- via the triage doctor who apparently
spoke a bit more English -- that his left clavicle was like a "piano key": you push it down
and it springs back up. Dr. Caine said that it would either heal on its own,
or surgery could be performed to screw the bones together.
[This advice matched exactly what Ben heard later from the orthopedist in Seattle.]
While Ben was waiting to see the doctor, two Portuguese policeman approached him.
They spoke no English, but when Ben saw the "breathalyzer" in their hands, he knew they wanted
to test if he had been drinking. They apologized, but said it was the law. Ben scored a big fat 0.0% BAC.
Trip Leader Bruno, along with Lisa and our friend Henry,
waited until Ben was done at the hospital, then we drove back to the Convent.
Ben had dinner and enjoyed a bit of the Fado performance before crashing for the evening.
After dinner Lisa switched Ben's flight reservations so he could return the next morning.
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Last updated Saturday, September 8th, 2012.
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