Latest posts by Martin Moodie (see all)
- From Lisbon to Lon Y Coed and on to Hong Kong - January 4, 2026
- Mundo Fantástico da Sardinha Portuguesa – where “the sardine is queen” - December 18, 2025
- In memory of Roopa, a Mitti Café and travel retail heroine - November 23, 2025
From the Bangok Hilton (Bumrumgrad International Hospital), I’ve transferred to the Marsden Marriott in London.
Just one day after getting back from my hospital-dominated stay in Bangkok, I fell ill again with a similar complaint (small bowel obstruction) though this time it required surgical intervention. That explains my radio silence over the past week.
It’s been a difficult few days. I have had to come to terms with the fact that, at least in the near-term, my life has changed fundamentally and that all international travel is off the agenda. The blockages were caused by post-operative ‘adhesions’ (scar tissue), a common but nigh unpreventable side effect of surgery. I would not want the same thing recurring in a place where I did not have ready access to high-quality, affordable medical care. On financial grounds alone, my planned visit to this month’s Orlando show now looks foolhardy.
Besides the physical challenge of getting over another operation, this is a big mental battle. I had been winning the fight against cancer, I believed. Now I have a new foe, a near-permanent concern over a repeat of this complication.
I am going to have to steel myself all over again. And I can. For as events in my native Christchuch over the past week have shown, many people are worse off than me. Today is my birthday, and though I can think of many better places to be, I am going to take the opportunity to celebrate all the good things in my life.