Not Without our Bumps, Bruises, Blisters, and Bites

When setting out on vacation, most travelers will pack a little Immodium or Pepto for fear of the dreaded traveler's diarrhea and maybe a few bandaids and tylenol for just-in-case. Though Jeff and I have been lucky enough to suffer only minor stomach ailments during these past four months, we have fallen victim to many other injuries and inconviences that come along with traveling.
Warning: the full post contains some rather graphic pictures that may not be appropriate for those with weak stomachs.

Yet another use for duct tape!

Peyton specially requested a picture of the duct-taped toe

By now, most of you have read about my blisters on more than one occasion. Of course I did not get through Patagonia without struggling with yet another bout of them. I had to include a picture just so that everyone would know that this is not all in my head. Disgusting, no? I only took pictures of the ones on my right heel, but there were also blisters on my left heel, and on the sides of both my pinky toes, and on the top of my left middle toe . . . do you want me to continue? Amazingly, these are not the worst blisters I have gotten so far on this trip. There was only a little blood with these. Sadly, these blisters emerged even after I took preventative measures of putting on bandaids before our 18 mile hike.

Unfortunately, blisters are not the only calamity that have befallen my feet. Waiting to retrieve our backpacks following our bus ride to Valdivia, a woman with too much baggage somehow managed to mutilate my toe with one of her rolling bags. This came only days after I had injured my knee during our Villarica climb. How her rolling bag managed to shred my toe the way it did, I have no idea. Probably could have used stitches, but I settled for duct tape instead (see picture above). Worked like a charm! Jeff no longer allows me near the bus to get our bags.

Though Jeff likes to tease, calling me his "fragile flower" (boils my blood), he too has had his maladies. Following our stay in Valdivia (unlucky place, huh?), Jeff's body was covered with bites we can only conclude were inflicted by bed bugs. I have never seen a person so covered in bites! They were even on the soles of his feet. Jeff was quite the stalwart throughout the week when the bites were itching incessantly. However, he did seem to like making me apply the anti-itch cream a little too much. I mean, c'mon, I think he can handle putting it on his elbow. The one time Jeff did attempt to put the cream on himself, he accidently used his toothpaste. It didn't do much for the itching, but he did smell minty fresh!

Look at the elbows

Following his bed bug episode, Jeff has, understandably, developed a major phobia of any and all bugs. Oddly, bugs seem inordinately drawn to him. This has resulted in more than a few hilarious instances of Jeff running around and screaming like a little girl for me to get the bugs away from him. I have found that my scarf works very well for this task.(Stay tuned for a titillating post on the perks of having a scarf while traveling. I know you are all sitting on the edges of your seat for that one!)

Lucky for us, though we have had quite a few minor complications, Mike and Lee had us very well prepared for any and all possible problems. We probably have the most well-stocked medical kit of any backpackers out there. We even have a treatment for toothaches! When Mike purchased the mammoth pack of bandaids that he included in our lovingly prepared kit he probably thought there would be no way we would come close to finishing them off during our 13 months of travelling. I am sorry to say that the pack has about been exhausted. It's a good thing my mom and Lee are coming next week to restock us!