Not so Ghan holiday now 🤒😷

Well, that wasn’t in the planned itinerary. On Thursday night, I woke up after only an hour or 2 of sleep with a massive fever, complete with those full-body shakes that, as much as you try and stop them, they keep going. Panadol and then ibuprofen and then both Panadol and ibuprofen together did nothing to improve the fever, which was then joined with muscle aches and pains and an aggressive dry cough.

With no sleep, I headed to the chemist to pick up some rapid tests to see if I had anything to worry about. And I did. Influenza A has decided to attach itself to me for this trip. I use Updoc as it’s a public holiday, and everything is closed. Given my symptoms, I get given Tamiflu to try and stop the flu early. I’m also told in no uncertain terms that going on the Ghan on Saturday morning, filled with generally an older clientele, is not an option. “Everyone will have it by the time you get to Adelaide”.

I thought of waiting to see how I felt in the morning, but I felt so unwell I made the call to cancel the Ghan. On one level, I’m really upset that I had to cancel. I’ve waited 3 years for this trip. Part of it was a gift from my late husband, Thom. So it had a fair bit of sentimentality attached to it. Despite that, I literally had no energy to feel or express any emotion towards cancelling it. In cancelling, at least the decision was made, and the anxiety over having to be well for it was gone.

So, 3 days since my last post, I’m halfway through the antivirals. My fever is lower, and I had a mostly sweat-free night. I’m still in Darwin, just resting in my hotel. I booked a different hotel that had a 1-bedroom apartment so I had more room to relax. I was starting to get cabin fever, or maybe a taste of what hotel quarantine must have been like. My new hotel has a balcony for brief visits for fresh air, although the heat and humidity are killing me. I’ve decided to fly south to Adelaide tomorrow to escape this heat and hopefully be well enough to at least recover something from this not-so-Ghan holiday. Czytaj więcej