A little bump along the way....

The last couple days have been a whirlwind. I flew back to Germany on Saturday morning and was greeted by Gina. She wanted to go shopping so we went into Berlin where I found a great pair of shoes. She bought a lot of great things but the weather was horrible so we left earlier than expected.

Sylvio had some friends stay overnight so they took my room and I was in Gina's, where I put my luggage.

Sunday morning we had breakfast and were ready to head to Munich but I had a little mishap. Before leaving the house, I was to put my luggage in my room downstairs. On the way down the spiral staircase, I fell, landing on my left ankle and continued to slide down the stairs. It was painful. I sat at the bottom of the staircase in shock, shaking and pain rushing to my ankle like I have never felt. I sat for a minute and brushed it off, hoping nothing was wrong.

We piled into the car and took off to Munich and the German Alps. We took the autobahn. We went about 150 mph for you car enthusiasts.  I could feel my boot getting tighter from the injury. On the way we stopped to get gas. I checked my ankle and low and behold it was swelling. I kept my boot off, hoping to give it room to breath. We dropped his friends off in Munich and we were off to Bavaria.

The left ankle is the one I fell on. 

The drive was gorgeous. The mountains still had snow and the scenery was just amazing. We arrived at his friends house in Prien. It was lovely and so were the people. I unfortunately could hardly walk. I knew there was something wrong but tried to push through it. Sonia, Sylvio's friend, gave me crutches and cream for my foot. We took a drive to a lake that overlooked a castle and the mountains. It was beautiful.

We sat at a great little cafe where the waitresses dressed in dirndls. I got a hot chocolate and Sylvio ordered me this delicious chocolate cake. It was so good. After admiring the view, we went back to the house. There, Sonia put this yogurt stuff on my ankle that made it feel better. It was cold and she wrapped my ankle in it for about 20 minutes. 

The next morning we were supposed to go to Salzburg, where Mozart was from but Sylvio didn't think it was a good idea because of my ankle. Instead we went to the Alps. We drove through this little town with a gorgeous boarding school and paintings on the buildings. It looked like something out of a story book. 

After taking a walk through the village we went to another little town where we took a gondola up to the top of the mountain. It was just stunning. I hobbled around with my crutch up to a little cafe where we sat outside and looked out at the Alps. There we had this amazing streusel. It was peaches and whip cream with ice cream. It was wonderful. 

 

We relaxed in the sun for awhile and took it all in. It was a gorgeous, sunny day out, and "warm". It was about 40-45 degrees. The gondola ride was great. I was able to see where we were staying and a bunch of other little villages. 

We had a nice evening back at the house and I called it an early night so I could make it to the doctor in the morning before leaving for Munich. 

Tuesday morning I had to wake up early to make my doctors appointment. Miram, Sonia's daughter, took me to the doctor. She was so sweet and very helpful. After two x-rays and pulling and twisting my ankle, the doctor diagnosed the injury..... two ruptured ligaments:

"The ruptured ligament on the upper ankle joint describes a partial or complete rupture of one or several ligament structures. A painful swelling and bruise is evident on the affected joint. The treatment of ruptured ligaments is made primarily by putting the ankle at rest for 2-6 weeks or surgically by suturing or fixation of torn bone fragments."

"If a hematoma is visible, with corresponding discoloring of the skin, this is an initial indication of a ruptured ligament. The bruise is an indication that perfused structures, such as the joint capsule and ligaments, have been damaged in their structure; but it can also be an indication for the rupture of the lateral ankle bone."

I now have to wear an aircast all the time for the next four weeks. After the month is over, I only have to wear it during the day for two more weeks. I don't know how this is going to work since I am in Germany for another three weeks but hey, it makes one hell of a story!

And my nickname "broken" lives on....