Two chemo treatments and 14,104 km (8,815 miles) in between

This update is not as funny as the last one with the drug dealer. It was indeed a unique situation which I was able to describe only part of it. This time it is about a plan which was turned into a reality.
A week ago I was in Italy for 5 days (7 days with travel time). It all took place between Monday 11 Feb. to Monday 17 Feb.
Monday is the day of my weekly treatment. Now you can understand the title of this update.

It all started with my wish to visit the Italian company that Orbotech acquired last year. As the marketing manager of this new group, I felt that the personal interaction with the team is a must. There is a limit to what can be achieved by email and phone calls. In addition, doing one more 'business as usual' activity was important for me. Since becoming ill I haven't traveled at all, except the Nov. 2007 trip to Israel. Since travel is challenge and a risk, I have to cherry pick the important cases and get the medical team blessing for it. I consulted with my doctor, and she was favorable overall, with one condition: that I will be OK on the day of travel! A date was set and I was very excited.
A week before the trip I was hospitalized for 3 days. I thought to my self: "here goes your wonderful plan". At the same time I convinced myself that by the time of the planned trip, I will be OK! Indeed, I felt really well in the days following the hospital adventure, maybe after laughing so hard watching the drug dealer, his girls and the piles of money on his bed.
The plan was still very tricky for Monday 11 Feb.:
9-12 am: go to the hospital for my weekly chemotherapy.
12:30: drive home, pack and rest for 1 hour.
2 pm: take a taxi to the airport
4:45 pm: fly to Europe.
Crazy but doable!

Monday was a long day. Everything worked according to the plan: I got my treatment, the doctor gave me the final go-ahead, the taxi came on time and I was on my way to the airport.


As you can see in the picture, treatment time is not a lost time thanks to my laptop.






The nurses at the hospital were not sure why I tried to speed up the treatment and get out early. Usually patients stay longer after the treatment until they feel well.I promised the doctor and nurses to be back in a week and on time for my next Monday treatment. I must add at this point that the people who knew about my plan were divided into two groups:
The optimists - encouraged me, happy for me, wished me well. Special thanks for my doctor who looked at the facts and not at the theory.
The pessimists - try to talk me out of my plan. "you are totally irresponsible", "you shouldn't fly at all", "it's a BAD idea", "you'll be sick like a dog", "what if you get sick in Italy", etc.

As a disciplined patient, if my doctor says OK, I go. If the order was not to go, I would have stayed.
With my body loaded with anti-biotics, anti-virals and a face mask, I took-off to Venice via Frankfurt. I must admit that I prayed that everything will go smoothly. I had no plans to be admitted to a small Italian hospital, far away from a serious medical center. Unlike in the Far-East, where it is common to see 50% of the people with face masks, I was the only one in sight with a face mask (in two flights and 3 airports on that day). The long flight to Europe was almost full. Some people who were assigned to sit next to me (right and left), saw me and the mask and quickly found other seats, fearing that I have the Plague. I am not used to be treated as someone with Leprosy. Try to explain that the mask is to protect me and not them.
However, the outcome was very positive and I thanked all the people who ran away from me: I had empty seats all around me to relax, stretch, sleep and enjoy almost first class conditions in the economy class. Now, please don't get an idea that on your next flight you can put on an inexpensive face mask and get two empty sits next to you. The toughest part in this long journey was breathing through a mask for some 24 hours. I couldn't take any chance.

In the arrival area in Venice airport, a taxi driver waited for me with a big sign :" Guy Alon". It's funny. Throughput my many travels I have seen numerous people waiting with signs and now it was the first time that it happened to me. For a moment I felt really important...
Driving on the highway at 180 Km/h was like playing a video game of a high speed chase. Everyone was going way too fast. My Italian language quickly came back to me after a nice conversation for an hour with the taxi driver. The old guy was born in that area of Northern Italy and lived there for his entire life. He never went abroad and he visited south Italy only a few times. Some people travel and some stay put.
Finally after 3 airports, 2 flights, 2 taxi rides and 24 hours, I arrived to the company in Gorizia. It is a town on the border with Slovania where you can see the snowy peaks of the Alps. It was a great relief to take-off the mask.
The local Italian team gave me a warm welcome. Their hospitality was great throughout the week and I thank them all for that. I'll skip the professional and technical details of the visit, just to mention that it was very important for me and my job and I am glad that I did it. I arrived to the conclusion that the Italian food is the best medication. I enjoyed every bit of it. Everything was soooooo good: the tortellini, tiramisu, minestrone, to mention a few of my favorites. My plan was to work until Friday afternoon, rest on Saturday, then on Saturday afternoon take a taxi to Venice airport, check-in to a hotel nearby and fly out early on Sunday morning.
Working for a full week was quiet an effort for me. I haven't done it since becoming ill. As a result I slept for almost 14 hours (until 2 pm on Saturday). For me not eating 5 meals a day is very unusual. So, I took a short walk looking for a restaurant. Nothing was open: 2-4 pm everything is closed. I settled for a coffee place for a good latte and a croissant. The small coffee shop was full of local people. Everyone talked to everyone, quietly, with hand gestures and about everything: from work to personal matters. Two old guys flirted with the waitress. They were a bit drunk and friendly. I understood every word. The spicy language and hand waiving made me laugh hard behind a newspaper that I found on the table. For the Israelis among you who remember the movie KVALIM, the picture was similar to the scene where Shissell, Mushonov and Arik Einstein have a conversation near the bar.
When a big noise was heard from the room at the back of the coffee shop, everyone ran to help (it was the waitress boy who bumped into something). The friendliness among the people in the coffee shop was in stark difference to what we are accustomed to see in most other places. By the way, it is in that part of Italy that two famous coffee companies have their main facilities: Cafe Illy and Cafe Segafredo.Hungry but happy I waved goodbye to the crowd at the coffee shop and took a taxi to Venice airport.
The thought that I will be near Venice and not actually see it, crossed my mind. If you know me well, you can guess the next chapter of this trip.

I threw my bags in the hotel room and took a bus to see Venice. Dressed well (it was cold), I then boarded a boat-taxi that took me via the Grand Canal to the famous Piazza San Marco.It has been almost 30 years since my last visit to Venice. In the summer of 1978 Shoshy and I were there on a honey moon! We fed the pigeons, climbed up the campanile tower, had a great Italian gelato, and enjoyed a sunny day. This time, I was alone, it was cold, it was a full moon clear night, and I was very happy to close a loop. Many of the buildings were illuminated, the place was clean, no sign of past floods, there were many Asian tourists who braved the cold temperatures and most of the shops and restaurants were open. I managed to walk quiet a bit, in spite of my body not used to such a long walk and not fully cooperating with my plan. Finally at 10 pm I sat in a small restaurant for my first meal on that day (excluding the snacks of course). It was a farewell dinner in this trip to my favorite Italian cuisine. There was something funny in that restaurant that got my attention. Usually the waiters are friendly and especially in my case, because I speak Italian. My waiter was smiling but always looked in a certain direction, no matter where he walked to (like a gyro on a gimbal set). I was puzzled. He barely looked at me or the other diners. Even when he brought the hot soup, he placed it right in front of me without looking down at my table. Then, I turned my head and looked at the direction that the waiter was watching. I got it ! Behind me on the wall there was a TV showing live (but silent) a very important soccer game in the Italian league. The local team was winning (barely). Can you imagine how the hot soup would have landed on my table if the local team was losing...

On my way back to the shuttle-boat, I lost my way. I went in circles in the small allies and finally was assisted by a young fellow who showed me the way out.

The trip back to Boston was similar to the one that took me to Venice: long flight, long connection, face mask all the time, free seats around me and not so great airline food. Lucky for me I stuffed myself with a lot of real tortellini (my favorite) before the flight.
In the Boston airport I had a nice surprise: all my 3 girls came to pick me up! What a joy!
After 6 long days I was back home, tired, but in a good shape, high spirit, without viruses, flu, etc.

The morning after my arrival I went to the hospital in Boston for my weekly treatment, as I promised the medical team not to be a deserter.
This was my busiest week in a long time.

On the medical side, I continue with the experimental treatment at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and so far so good. It will take a few more months for sure. Tomorrow (Monday) will be the end of cycle-1 and I will go through a few tests to assess progress. If they find a lot of traces of tortellini in my blood tests, you know where it came from.
The marathon goes on. The Italian trip gave me a nice boost.
I am already planning my next travel adventure, but this is a secret for now.
Yours, always optimistic,
Guy