Why Did the Knee Need a Vacation? Part 1.

Because it was feeling kneedy!!! Yes, groan.

About three weeks ago, I stepped off a ramp at a local grocery and my left knee gave way. The drop off was hardly more then a few inches but the pain told me I had done something bad to that knee.

I made an appointment at our assigned Ebais and the doctor examined it thoroughly, prescribed one shot of morphine and a round of anti-inflammatory meds. Everything was going well until one week letter I further damaged the knee. I was pulling shut a metal gate and I guess I put too much weight on my left leg. The pain this time was quite bad.

I decided to make an appointment with a MediSmart doctor.  MediSmart is a discount medical plan (not insurance) that we use in conjunction with Costa Rica’s socialized medical system. 

On line, you can search for a doctor whose practice is in the area you are looking for and you can further narrow it down to the town/city/province you want that service to be located in. I found a doctor whose qualifications were (I thought) GP - general practitioner - and made an appointment at Clinica Helenica Grecia. This is where I also see my eye doctor and my dermatologist.

The doctor (actually “doctora” in Spanish) was very nice. She took down my history and I explained my knee problem. Then she said, “Well, Diana, we have a little problem. I am a [g]eneral surgeon and a [p]roctologist!” We had a good laugh. It was really funny. So much for my “GP” interpretation. She then made an appointment for the next day with an orthopaedic surgeon so I got moved right up to a specialist. And I wasn’t charged for my visit with her.

The next day, I limped into my appointment with Dr. Baltodano. He (a “doctor” as in English) was excellent and explained everything so thoroughly. Here is the drawing he did to explain how a knee is structured and what can cause knee problems:

Recommended treatment until I had x-rays and ultrasound completed: RICE - rest, ice, compression and elevation. The compression part turned out to be a toe to thigh thick stocking! He also prescribed three courses of anti-inflammatory shots 48 hours apart and five days of pain killers.

Cost of this visit: 55,000 CRC (about $139 U.S.).

Cost of the injections and medications: 35,000 CRC (about $88 U.S.).

It’s important to mention that Dr. Baltodano is bilingual. When one’s Spanish skills are not up to medical terminology, this is very important.

Stay tuned for Part 2 - x-rays and ultrasound!

Click on images to enlarge.

Breakfast - Mas Q’Sabor, Grecia

Más Q’Sabor is a Tex-Mex restaurant in Grecia on calle 2 and very close to the correos (post office).

They are closed on Mondays. On Sundays they offer breakfast from 0830. We decided to try their breakfast menu.

The “Divorced Eggs” sounded intriguing and so I ordered it. Two poached eggs on a corn tortilla - one with a green sauce and one with a red sauce. Both were nice and spicy. Tortilla chips with refried black beans on the side. I’d definitely order this one again. 

Lance chose scrambled eggs, gallo pinto, plántanos, sausage and toast. That is natilla (sour cream) in the little cup. This too was a good choice.

Some years ago we ate lunch here with our Canadian friends, Diane and John. Now I want to return again for lunch. There are some items on their menu that I would like to try.

Click on images to enlarge.

Eyes on Costa Rica and Weather Records - April 2023

During April, visits to this blog were received from the following 9 countries:

From the time I started to keep track, the total number of countries and non-independent jurisdictions from which visits have been received remains at 135. Of this number, 13 are non-independent (e.g. Cayman Islands - - a self-governing British Overseas Territory - - from which 11 visits have been received).

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The following is a summary of weather for the month in the area where we live:

Nothing particularly remarkable except that the highest overnight low temperature (67°F, 19.4°C) was a sign of the upcoming rainy season (aka "green" season). The air is more moist. Heat gathered during the day dissipates more slowly during the night.

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Off the topic of weather, and off the coast of Panama near the border with Costa Rica, there was a sizable earthquake during the afternoon on April 4th. The following map has been annotated to show our approximate location relative to the epicenter.

As the crow flies (or maybe that should be crow + albatross flit’s), our distance from the epicenter was about 220 miles (354 km). Despite the distance, we felt the rumble for several seconds. It was magnitude 6.4 on the Richter scale.

Click on images to enlarge.