On the way back from our retreat, we made a pit-stop in Bangkok for our annual medical check-ups. You know how at home a medical check-up consists of the doctor tapping on your knees and filling out some forms?
This, dear friends, is what happens during your medical check-up in Bangkok:
(1) Arrive in grand atrium of hospital, ushered to 4th floor Check-Up Center.
(2) Enter Check-Up Center, surrounded by outdoor lawn with orchids. Have a seat on a leather couch, rather snobbily.
(3) Receive information on the 30 or so tests that will be completed during check-up, including blood tests, an EKG, chest x-rays and the actual doctor check-up itself.
(4) Blood sample requires fasting for an agonizing 10 hours amidst Bangkok street food; thus, immediately after blood is drawn, one is ushered to yet another gorgeous waiting room for juice and pastries and the morning newspaper:
(5) Wait one hour for all test results, during which time one is offered a voucher for breakfast at the hospital restaurant. Which typically means a row of silver buffet trays, right? Not in Bangkok. In Bangkok when you enter the hospital restaurant what greets you is rows and rows of CHEESECAKE. And delicious lattes with foam art. Forget the rest of the menu; here was our free breakfast:
(6) Meet with doctor. Confirm that blood pressure isn't high. Eat more pastries in waiting room.
(7) Return to the real world, with sweet memories of apple-pie-cheesecake...
