Moving Toes

Jerry received his 7th stem cell treatment Wednesday evening, which was a lumbar puncture. He seems to respond well to the lumbar injections, within 30 minutes he was able to move his toes when he tried. It takes a great deal of effort and he fatigues rather quickly however he was able to move his toes several times throughout the evening, hopefully a sign of more good things to come. It's a little disappointing and rather curious as to why the stem cells have an immediate affect but generally doesn't last much more than 24 hours. I am grateful though to have some sort of reaction, it helps keep hope alive. This never gets old for me, but I think Jerry gets a little tired of me asking him to move his toes....

The day after stem cell injections patients are supposed to have low activity and rest. Jerry had stretching and acupuncture in the morning and then had the rest of the day free, unfortunately he was supposed to rest so he couldn't venture out. I on the other hand decided I would take a little adventure. It was the first time leaving Jerry for an extended period of time, I left after lunch and returned late in the evening. The nurses were good about checking in with Jerry, feeding him dinner and keeping me posted on how things were going. There is a well known street in Bangkok called Khoasan Road, it was referenced in the book/movie The Beach. Khoasan Road is a world famous backpackers hot spot, with cheap hotels, street vendors, restaurants & pubs and much more, it has a real party atmosphere. I decided to make my trip to Khoasan Road a little more adventurous by traveling by boat. I took 2 trains and walked 2 blocks to the pier to catch the boat, it was a 30 minute boat ride and a few blocks walk before I found Khoasan Road.There are many ways to travel in Bangkok, train, bus, taxi, motorcycle, tuk tuk, boat, with the train your limited on where it goes, the bus is very confusing, the motorbike looks very scary the drivers drive crazy, but I'll have to try motorbike at least once before I go. I can't get over how economical it is to get around, the train was $1.34, the boat was .57 cents. After the day of souvenir shopping it was time to head back to the hospital, it was too late to catch the boat so I decided go get back by way of tuk tuk. I loved the ride in the tuk tuk, it could be very bumpy at times but it felt like a motorcycle ride, I loved being in the open air. The 35 minute ride back to the hospital was a little more expensive then the journey there...a whopping $5, it seems like it would be far more economical to use public transportation here than owing a vehicle. Here are a few pictures from my outing, the only thing that would have made it better is if Jerry could have enjoyed it with me.

 There are several types of boats transporting people

 

 These boats were super fast

 

 Below is the type of boat I was on

 

 Khoasan Road

The view from the back of the tuktuk

We have less than a week left, 1 more stem cell treatment and then the journey home. I'm so ready to get home, it's been a great trip but I'm getting home sick and miss my kids, I know Jerry is home sick as well. Thanks to all who have taken the time to leave comments, it's nice to feel a connection with home.