FRIDAY – MIDSUMMER EVENING
We did not know the extent of my injury as I have little feeling on my left side. However, the hand was coloured black and blue….
Fracture? Sensing that it was best to get to a Swedish hospital I tried to make an emergency change in our reservations from Riga to Stockholm by ship by departing that evening.
On our attempt to depart the hotel as quickly as possible and drive to the dock, to change our reservation to Stockholm, we moved our suitcases to the elevator and parked me, in my wheelchair, next to the lift, only to read a small note; ‘LIFT UNDER REPAIR’! We learned that they had spent hours trying to repair it. In that we could wait no longer I attempted, with help, to walk cautiously down the very narrow, circular staircase, however, the hotel staff and Glad were frightened I might fall and injure myself even further and they insisted that I be carried down in the wheelchair. So three men carried me backwards, strapped in my chair, gingerly one step at a time, to the floor level entrance area.
We located a pharmacy in Riga old Town, purchased bandages and a sling, and Glad wrapped my hand and adjusted the sling. We drove to the boarding area of Finnlineas, and a young man informed us that the change in booking would be problematic but he would see what he could do. I explained our urgency, pointing at my sling….
His efforts were nothing short of miraculous - ours was the last vehicle loaded on the ship and the crew could not have done more to assist in carrying suitcases and various equipment to our cabin.
The agent not only got us on board the ship sailing 10 miniutes later to Stockholm, but secured a disabled cabin, a sumptuous, complimentary smorgasbord, and full breakfast as we sailed through the Swedish archipelago the next morning.
On arrival in Stockholm we met up with two dear friends, Lisbeth and Solveig Lövmark for lunch, but with the intent of making a visit to the emergency department of the Karolinska hospital was postponed – It was mid summer day and most facitilites were closed so we decided to carry on to our next destination, my home town of Orebro where we checked in.
That night at 02.00 I had yet another tumble and after a wait of an hour the only help available was three female hotel staff members who assisted me from the floor to my bed. We had to spend one more night in that hotel and I asked if they were on duty the following night, to which they replied yes and I said, ‘in that case perhaps I will plan another tumble’, and we all laughed. The following morning we departed early for the former SA officers retreat in Skillingaryd!
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