Thinking about this over the weekend, I think I am a little mixed up about whether I am brave or reckless. Just like anywhere, if you are desperate and it is an emergency, you get whatever help you can where ever you can. But if you are planning to travel to find medical help, you probably have time to compare your options. For several reasons, I took my friend Louis' recommendation very seriously in looking for a dentist. He has nice teeth. He had been to Dr. Salinas a bunch of times. His dentist in the USA had seen his crowns and thought they were very good, although maybe a tiny bit large.
I called Dr. Salinas from the US and he said just call him when I was in Granada and he would see me. This is a bit different from home where you have to make appointments and somehow feel lucky if you can get one. It was also a bit sketchy. Would he really have time for me when I got there? This was not much of a deal for me because I was staying for a long time, but it might be unsettling for someone who had a tight schedule. Turned out that this wasn't a big deal in this case because often I saw Dr. Salinas work on Sundays and late at night and early morning to get people finished before they had to fly out. Crazy for his life, convenient for people on a budget.
In Granada, there are hotels you can stay at that are plenty nice for $22 per night. People at the hotels always have a friend or a cousin or someone with whom you can make a deal for chauffeuring and other kinds of help. At the hotels you also get maid service and breakfast. I chose to rent a house for about the same amount of money because I wanted a place where guests could stay with me and a bit more privacy without having to be in my room. Hooking up maid service and people to deliver food when I needed it was very simple. There are tons of underemployed people. I found that once I made a deal with anyone, I had a loyal and honest employee who would do anything for me. I always tried to pay a step up from whatever the going rate was. It was worth it for both sides.
Until I discovered that a bra was the best place to carry money, I was pretty nervous on the days when I had to pay the dentist or the landlord. Going through the market crunch with a pocketbook seemed folly. It is a cash economy there, but the ATM machines worked very well, although most accounts will only let you take $300 or $400 out per day. I paid Dr. Salinas 50% up front and 50% on completion.
Some expats chose other dentists who had more modern offices and charged a lot more. I was happy with the personal connection I had through Louis. So my day went along a pretty simple path. I joined a fantastic swimming pool at the Hotel Granada where for $50 a month I could use the pool everyday (and I did). The pool was gigantic, surrounded with palm trees. It is near the Lake and has a nice breeze. Many guests, especially the Europeans came for a long stay so I made friends. Many Nicaraguans came there, so it was lively full of families, always something going on. I swam, I went to the dentist, I enjoyed friends, I read, I walked. Nice.
When company came, we went to the ocean or visited more of Nica. My life was comfortable, gracious, fun, active, culturally satisfying, and all the while I was getting major dental help. It all cost less than 6 crowns would have cost in the US. I include my plane tickets, rent, food, everything. I stayed for more than 6 months because that is what felt good to me. I spread out the dental work because I had to keep it at a level I could tolerate and still have fun.
I met lots of people who came for other surgeries and other conditions. I also met people who freaked out and went back to their home countries when they got ill or when they were faced with actually going through some big procedures there. It has to depend on one's needs matching ones comfort level. Duh!
I actually looked at buying a huge house with the idea of making a place where people could come and have all the help set up, with on call doctors and nursing staff and great food. Who knows? Maybe I will do some such thing. Last year I was a little too self-involved to take on any more.
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