A retinal detachment as a wake up call

I am a feminist. Nearsighted. With a travel bug. There you go, my life in 3 sentences. And a lot of full stops. I love full stops.

Ever since I was little, traveling was part of my life. Every year, one or two new destinations were a fairly good reason to miss school for a week. It was okay, I have always been a good student and was able to catch up pretty quickly on the topics I had missed.

I was happy but there was something I was taking for granted: my vision. I mean I used to wear glasses, then contact lenses… but who doesn’t, right?

And suddenly one day I started seeing a black spot, dancing like ink drops in front of me. I shook my head and blinked several times but it just wouldn’t go away. And then flashes rushed in front of my eyes, as if a bunch of paparazzi were getting their best shot of me. But I was alone.

After that it all happened very fast, or at least the memories in my head are somehow fuzzy. I woke up in the OR. It was a retinal detachment. A delicate surgery had just finished and everything went right.

My surgeon told me what he had done. My eyeball was now squeezed in the middle by a silicon band, giving it an hour-glass shape and preventing further damage. Some cells of my retina had died, so the shadow I saw in the beginning would remain forever. There were some activities I could not do anymore, anything that could increase the pressure inside my head should be avoided at all costs! Roller-coasters, sky diving and delivering a baby without a C-section were extremely forbidden. It was okay, not a big deal.

The real problem came when I was told that this could happen again. And that my other eye was also at risk.

Ever since that moment I appreciate every sunset as if it was the last I would be able to see. I enjoy nature and hikes with a different spirit, and my approach to people from other cultures is much more genuine and less touristy. I understood the importance of running away from the mainstream and actually “living” every foreign land.

It is this knowledge that I want to share with like-minded travelers that might be reading this article right now. How to travel low budget, experience places to the fullest and collect good memories.

This is a travel blog, not a journal. But everything in life needs context.

Welcome to my page.

Cae