September 2nd - Visit to Stromovka

On the day before school started, we wanted to do something fun and new with Alex so went to Stromovka (place of trees), another large park, which is relatively near us. There is a large exhibition area with large halls, theaters, and a fountain show. It is called Holesovice and was built in 1891. Just beyond the exhibition area is a small amusement parkt. It contains about a dozen or so kids' rides...the largest being a pretty big ferris wheel. Alex decided to start with the very first thing she saw...a large bouncy house with rope climbs and two slides. You pay for a certain time period and it was actually longer than most kids got - probably due to her being the only one in there for a bit until other kids were attracted to her peals of laughter! We then moved on to the ferris wheel which Pam and Alex went on together. It had a neat feature in that you could rotate the gondola so you could change your view as you went around. The view from the top was nice but not as grand as you might think. Of course, with all the trees in full blossom some of the sights get lost. Alex then went on a swing and, after an intense discussion as to why she could not go on every ride there, we headed out.

We then entered through a gate into the park proper - it is completely separated from the exhibition grounds by a large perimeter fence. The park is immense...234 acres of green space with ponds and bridges. It lays right along the river, has a duck pond, a few other small ponds, and was originally set up as a hunting ground back in 1268. We walked around and fed some ducks at the bigger of the ponds and looked around at some of the beautiful buildings around the edge of the park before heading home. Alex was quite happy and tired and we all enjoyed seeing yet another part of this amazing city. (More Pictures)

The Kids Have Medical...Finally!

I just could not stand using the same old Medical Coverage Title one more time - and this works because at least something has finally changed in the status! The kids truly and honestly have health care and it only took 5 months and about as many visits to the VZP office.

When we last left off, I had been to VZP with all the forms and received the news that I would have to go back again on the 13th...giving their own specialist time to look over the forms and approve them and to pay up. I was all set to head off first thing in the morning with only one child to deal with and get this all taken care of. However, as some of you know Alex has been sick all week and yesterday was the first day she attempted going back to school. Sometime after 11am I received a call from the school letting me know that I should plan on picking Alex up at 1pm...a full day was proving too much for her after 3 days of sitting on her butt playing video games on her computer. Thinking I would still have time to get down and take care of things before getting her, I decided to get myself and Logan ready for the excursion. Then it dawns on me what time I would actually be arriving at VZP - lunchtime. Okay, change of plans. I would now be going down with both kids in tow...both sick at this point, so maybe this would be a sign to them of how much we needed a plan!

At 1pm Logan and I arrive at Alex's school - she really does not feel all that well and missed us terribly. She then mentions that she wants a nap. Boy do I feel like the World's Worst Mom when I tell her that we have to run an errand first but then she can nap to her hearts content. Of course, with the mention of having somewhere to go, Alex is no longer tired but asking for each and every detail of what we need to do... Where are we going? Tram or Metro or walking? Why are we going to VZP? Do you have any snacks for me? So the last one was not really related but proves that she must have been feeling okay enough if she was looking for food!

Due to the fact that Alex now prefers trams to metro trains, we head over and wait a few short minutes for any of the 3 trams that will take us down to the Dejvicka rotary and Vitezne namesti where the office is located. As we walk to the building Alex asks whether or not the lift will be ready...I tell her not to hold her breath! Up the 3 flights of stairs we trek, get our number from the machine - 30 - and have a seat. A few minutes later our number appears on the LCD panel and in we go...I look like I am suffering from the Plague due to the brisk gate up the stairs with the stroller and my backpack, Logan has a lovely medley of colors pouring out of his nose, and Alex sounds like she will hack up a lung at any moment. Do we need health care or what?!?!

I get the woman from the first time there - limited English but at least she has some conversational ability - and she knows that we are expected. She asks for our last name and begins searching through the first of 5 stacks on this side desk, each about 2 feet high. Now, here is where knowing English words and knowing English in general would be a big help. Alexandria and Logan's files are the top two on a certain stack but because she does not know how to spell either of their first or last names, she starts going through each and every pile. I tell her politely that they are on the top of Stack 4...she picks up Alex's, puts it aside, grabs Logan's, and heads for her desk. One child, correct? Ahhh - No. There are 2 kids with me, 2 Hodson files, and when I entered I said I was here to finish up with the children's (plural) coverage. Oh God - back to the stacks she goes and begins the search once more...tossing Alex's aside once again. Okay, having had enough of this I assist her in finding the folder by picking it up and handing it to her. Two files, two children...looks like we are ready to get the show on the road.

We all move to her desk and start going through yet more paperwork that needs to be created and signed. As if searching for our files was not painful enough, I am now treated to a display of typing abilities that can only be compared to a blind monkey trying to enter the Gettysburg Address with someone else's toes! Hunt and peck does not even begin to describe this slow and dreadful process. After a few mistakes on my name...let's face it, Pamela is a hard one to get right, we are onto the printing out and signing of this new stack of forms. Thank God this is my last time here for the kids.

Or is it?

She tells me I now need to pay. Great, I came prepared and pull a wad of 2000 cz banknotes out of my purse. I am greeted with a startled look - "You do not pay here. No - we will give you forms and you need to go make the deposit at our bank. They will then give you a receipt showing us payment has been made, and you will return here. Only this time, you just need to knock...do not take a ticket". All I can think is that there just has to be a camera somewhere and we have been chosen as the test family for the Praha version of Funniest Videos or something. There is no way this insane process would fly in the States and I have just about had it with all this running around...especially with sick kids in tow and those stupid stairs to look forward to again! She hands me the forms and I am rewarded with seeing that they could not even make it the slightest bit easier by using the bank in the same building...oh no, we need to take a walk to the next intersection on this busy rotary. So off we go...down the stairs, out the building, across the street, and into one of the many banks that have no English speakers on staff. No problem, I wave my forms and am told to go to the one and only teller line. We are the 5th in line and patiently wait our turn. We get to the window 15 minutes later and the woman quickly processes my deposit, provides me with two receipts (one for each form), and we are on our way back to VZP all within 30 minutes.

As we enter the VZP waiting room, the woman I am dealing with is trying to leave the office but waves us in...most likely because both kids have no had it with this little adventure by now and she may be feeling sorry for me. In we go, I hand over the receipts, she attaches everything to the individual folders, prints out a few more things for me to sign, then prints out my receipts for the payment, gives me copies of their contracts (all in Czech), gives me a list of doctors from Praha 1 through Praha 10 that I am free to choose on my own accord, and then the moment we have all been waiting for occurs...she hands me two plastic-encased medical cards for the children. Oh Glory Be and Saints be Praised...the kids have Plan Cards. I almost weep because I honestly never thought I would live to see this moment!

Now that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, I am almost ready to undertake the entire process once more when my journey into obtaining coverage for myself begins next week...

Medical Coverage - It's as Easy as V.Z.P. Part III

Who would have thought that this Saga could continue as long as it has? I mean really...in the States, you or your spouse get a job, part of your benefit package is health coverage, you fill out a form, choose a Doctor, and BAM! - you are part of a plan. How I find myself longing for those easy, breezy days as I find that each and every step I complete in obtaining health care only paves the way to new and interesting steps that must be accomplished (read: tyrannical rigmarole) before anything will really occur.

We have been experiencing a taste of Winter here of late, so my plans for getting over to Na Homolce any sooner than Friday were a complete wash out - Literally! We have had rain, cold winds, and temperatures in the 50's and on Thursday morning I found that Alex's bedroom rug was wet from a dripping ceiling. However, I do not feel the need to digress from the current subject as I am sure the circumstances surrounding this problem will lend itself to one or even two blog entries of its own.

Needless to say, I had no desire to traipse out in the rain and bitter cold, dragging Logan, his stroller, and my backpack along for the two bus rides it takes to reach the hospital on Wednesday. However, in a ridiculous attempt to play a game of chance, I did try to make a run for the hospital during a clear moment in Thursday's otherwise blustery weather. I would be cutting things close in picking Alex up from daycare at the appointed time but I felt up the the challenge and really did not relish the thought of getting up at 6:30am the next morning. So, I bundle up Logan, carry the stroller down the 8 flights of stairs, foregoing the backpack because I really did not need any extra hindrances, and we head over to the bus stop. To get there, we must exit our building, take a left, walk about 50 meters (Yes, we have gone over to the dark side mathematically speaking) to the Metro entrance, go down a decent set of stairs, walk to the other side of the station's upper level (there are approx. 8 different ways to get out of the metro and to particular destinations), go up another flight of stairs, and walk to the second of 4 stops. This is no easy feat when you are dealing with lousy weather and people who inevitably stop in your path on a constant basis!

We get to the stop at 3:32...just missing the bus by 1 minute. Of course, I am know cursing the people who inevitably stopped in my path - they easily added about 90 seconds to my journey, thus causing us to miss the bus! I decide not to check out the schedule and see when the next bus is coming...this line runs every 5 minutes in the morning so why would it not be the same in the afternoon? Besides, it is now starting to drizzle and I had scored the only spot left in the covered area. 5 minutes go by and no bus. I start going through how much time I have before picking up Alex (1 hour and 8 minutes) and how much time it will take to make this journey (26 minutes each way, so 52 minutes) and how much time it will take to actually get my results (no idea where I am going for these by the way) and getting the paperwork signed, stamped, and released into my custody (hey, I have 16 minutes to work with this is still looking good). 10 minutes go by and no bus. Alright, I will be down to 11 minutes to deal with the bureaucracy at the hospital, but if I jog down the hallways I can still make it. 15 minutes go by and I, along with the 30 other people around me, are now wondering what major catastrophe has occurred. Seriously - where the heck is this stupid bus?!?!?! Well, no matter because there is no way I can make this work now...not with only 6 minutes to spare for hospital bureaucracy! So, Logan and I walk back the way we came. Thankfully, when I came back up from the Metro to the other side of the street, I was rewarded with the sight of people still waiting for this elusive bus. I now have all the time in the world before having to walk over to Alex's school so we return to the apartment and take a 25 minute break in the comfort of our living room before heading out again. Of course, this now means that I will be getting up at 6:30am Friday morning and waking up Logan right before I am ready to head out the door.

Friday morning my alarm goes off at 6:30 and I get myself ready. I am not in a happy mood because it is still cold and rainy, Alex's ceiling is still leaking, and Logan had been up most of the night so I really was not looking forward to waking him. However, one does what must be done and I really wanted to be at the hospital early...prior to any appointment times...and I still had the trip to the V.Z.P offices ahead of me.

So, I pack up my bag, wake and dress Logan, and off we go. We walk over to the bus stop and only have a 3 minute wait. We do our transfer to the other bus with a minimal wait and are entering the hospital at 7:55am. I decide to try the Best Health offices since they would surely know where I needed to go for my results. However, there is a line 5 families deep and knowing that each family takes at least 10 minutes to process I am not waiting. I decide to simply head downstairs to the Detske Reception area and see if they can pull up my results on a computer. Down we go and hit the reception area during an obvious coffee break. There are 6 women in there and even though they have all made eye contact with me, they decide to act as if I am invisible. At this moment, Logan decides to greet them with a wail and one woman turns and excitedly calls out "Mrs. Hodson...Mrs. Hodson", waves me over, hands me some forms, and tells me to go down the hall to the Doctor's office. I am not thrown off by the fact that she recognizes me - I truly believe that Alain and I are the only ones applying this week and it is pretty obvious which one was standing in front of them! Down the hall I go and park my self right outside the office door. No one seems to be in and just as I go to knock on the door, a nurse sees me and starts talking in rapid Czech. Proseem, nemluveem Czeske (rough translation: I am not getting a thing you are saying) and she says "Wait there...one moment" and flees down the hall never to be seen again. However, the nurse who works for this doctor is now coming down the hall and I am greeted in English and told that the doctor does not start until 9am on Friday morning...he is at his English Language Lesson and will not be available until 8:40. She also asks if I have my results. I let her know that I had no idea where to go but that my results should definitely be available. She steps into the office, logs on to her computer, and retrieves the information needed to finalize the children's application forms. I am then told I should go wait in the cafeteria but I just want to stay there and get Logan fed. While not happy with my decision, the nurse walks away and leaves me to enjoy the next 35 minutes in peace and quiet.

I am rewarded with my obstinate behavior when the doctor actually walks down the hall 10 minutes later. After a short 5 minutes behind closed doors, I am called into his office. He greets me, confirms that my test results were indeed negative, and types out the final information on the two forms. I then sign the two forms, he tells me that I need to go to V.Z.P. in - can you guess? - no later than 3 days (what is it with the 3 day thing?) but better if I go today and I would pick the time period of coverage, pay for it, and the kids would be all set. Great!!! As I leave, bonus, Alain and kids are coming off the elevator for their appointment. We make plans to trek to IKEA when we are finished with our respective 'next steps' and it looks like it is shaping up into a good day after all.

Logan & I head home so he can get fed and changed, I can eat breakfast and get the remaining paperwork together, and off we head to the V.Z.P. offices. On a nice day it is a pleasant walk to their location but on a day like this, we Metro it the one stop. As we head toward the building, I wonder if the new lift they were installing on our last trip here was finished...it was not. So, up we go the 3 flights to the waiting area. Proud of myself for remembering the procedure, I push the button for 'Comprehensive Care' on the ticket machine and get my number...Oh Joy - Lucky 13!!! We head for the stairs and I see that they currently are working with Clients 11 and 12 so it should be any minute now. 10 minutes later, a woman walks out and the number 13 lights up on the board. I start heading in and some woman barrels right past me and sits down at the available desk. I get strange looks from the two administrators - I mean really, how rude of me to walk right in when this woman was clearly next. So the one who I had met before asks me to please go out and take a number and wait my turn. I brandish my #13 in the air indignantly...this should surely win me back my rightful place! "Oh, yes, well...would you mind going back out in the waiting room until we call you in?" This is yet another example of how queuing really does not work here but that will all be covered in another post.

Finally, I am called in. The woman who took my place at least had the decency to apologize and even holds the door for me. I go to the desk and star putting all the paperwork down. The woman who is behind the desk is no-nonsense...not from rudeness, but because she only has about 25 English words in her repertoire. So, she begins asking the following: Doctor's Forms? - right here. Original Forms? - right here. Your passport? - No, but I have my form with me and the number is on it so she uses that. Any idea how long you want coverage for? - 6 months, please. Okay come back next Thursday. What?!?!?!??! Apparently they need to now send the doctor's forms and my forms to their 'specialist' who will go over the information and approve them. I need to go back next week to sign even more things and pay up front for the 6 months coverage. Will I have cards given to me at that time? Maybe, but I am beginning to think that will be yet another step in this drawn out comic tragedy that is The Quest for Ex-Pat Health Coverage.

Oh well - at least we had the IKEA trip to look forward to!

Medical Coverage - It's as Easy as V.Z.P. Part II

Here begins the second part of our Tales to Obtain Medical Coverage in Prague. When we left off, we had enjoyed a fabulous trial run to the hospital where the prescreen testing would occur. Today was the day for the kid's appointments. Last night I spent hours pouring over our maps and the bus website because I just could not believe I would have to take a tram or metro train all the way to Andel for the only bus that went to the hospital. Score one for me, another bus existed and it was local. Well now, instead of getting up at 5:30 we were all rewarded with an extra hour of sleeping in.
So, at 7:33 the three of us boarded a bus at our local Hradcanska stop. Do not ask because I have no idea why we were initially sent through Andel when there is a bus right across the street from us that goes there.
At 7:53 we were getting off at a stop near the hospital to transfer to another bus that would take us 2 stops…and right to the door of the hospital. We could have gotten off at one stop and walked a little more than a ¼ mile to the correct entrance but I was already feeling cruddy from the fasting and the early hour so we crossed the street and jumped on the 167 Bus to go the rest of the way. We got there at 8am and we left the hospital at 10:55am.
The kids’ appointment took forever but only because the Dr. kept receiving & taking calls on his cell phone. Also, he apparently had to type information onto the exact same forms that I had spent time filling in manually – but THEY MUST BE TYPED according to him. We still need the other Green VZP Forms because they have some other information on them and his forms had some slight differences so they were not total overlaps.
Also, they need results from the mother’s HIV tests in order to finish processing the paperwork and get everything stamped and ready to be brought to VZP. Apparently you need to have an HIV Test and bring the results back within 3 days of having the blood work. They could not stress this enough – so hopefully by Friday my results will be in and things will be all settled.
Then they told me to go upstairs and take care of my test and the nurse said she was coming with me. However, she was only walking me down the hall to the billing room (right after the Detsky Reception Area) to make sure that I paid up (1000 cz each child) and got my receipts. They then reiterated the fact that I needed to go up and have the HIV test and be back in no more than 3 days with the results so that they can stamp the paperwork and get the kids finished up. I wonder if people have messed this up in the past and now they feel the need to say it every 5 minutes.
We then went upstairs to the Best Health offices to see about getting my stuff taken care of – they decided to take care of me right away. However, for some reason they thought I already had insurance so they charged me for the HIV test and started filling out paperwork. I then told them I was in the same boat as the kids (which produced a slight nutty and lots of hems & haws from the woman I was dealing with) and she ripped up whatever she had been filling out, started new forms, and then told me that the HIV test would be included in my initial charges and tests. She then proceeded to charge me for my full testing…but did not credit me for the HIV charge she had just performed. Typical Prague…maybe she will treat herself to Coffee Heaven later on!
So she tells me to go out and follow the White Rabbit – I mean line – to the elevator and go up 2 flights to the Interne Recept. I go up there and no one speaks much English at all. They take my forms, start typing up even more forms and filling out paperwork, point to something that shows me my physical is on the 17^th, and then motion to the form which tells me to go to the Lab (follow the yellow line) and go to the X-Ray department as well (green line). Both places were on the 4^th floor and I could not find a yellow line, so I just returned the way I had come. So I do all this…what fun! The lab administrators do not speak a lick of English but thankfully there was an older gentleman behind me who delighted in playing translator. He was a bit embarrassed to ask, but one of the questions they actually had for me was if I had brought my own urine sample. Oh gosh – I usually carry one around with me in case there is some spur of the moment sidewalk drug testing going on but alas I had not remembered it this morning. So they give me a cup (no plastic bag complete with ammonia wipes), a Dixie cup with 5 labeled test vials, a lab slip, and a ticket with number 555 on it. They point me toward the seats which are by the two lab doors with a Deli-Style LCD panel above them. I look up and they are on Client 124…Oh Joy!!!! Alex decides that she wants to have something to hold onto and steals my client slip. I tell her to hold onto it tightly as we apparently have quite the wait ahead of us. However, Client 124 comes out and it magically jumps to my number so in we go.
The lab tech is very confused by the fact that there are 3 of us – I mean, why wouldn’t I just leave the kids in the hall? Then she takes my paperwork but sees that Alex has the ticket in her hand and is now downright baffled…who is getting the blood taken here?!?!?!?! Alex could just be a very young looking 39 year old right? So after we get that squared away, she decides I can now have a seat and she will take my 5 vials of blood. Then, for everyone to hear, she yells that I now need to go pee in the cup and return the sample. Great – well, I guess it was no surprise to the other 5 patients who miraculously have now entered the room under the guise of also having Ticket# 555 so in I go…leaving Alex & Logan just outside the door because there is really no room for more than one person in there. See I am slowly adjusting to parenting in Prague...kids here are granted amazing independence and I really need to drop my American overprotective take on things.
Now off we go in search of the X-Ray Department. We go to the first big desk, guessing it is Reception even though there are no signs. We are correct!!! They speak NO ENGLISH whatsoever here as well, take my last slip of paperwork, and point to the chairs. A quick 25 minutes later I am called into the x-ray room. Oh wait, I cannot bring children in there either. The tech (a man of course) gestures to leaving the kids out in the waiting area…ahhhh NO! So he calls over an administrator of some sort and she says “Will Watch, OK?”. Great…first issue solved.
Now, into the room I go. There is this tiny ante chamber where I am told by the tech guy to take off my shirt…oh and my bra as well. Bear in mind, most of my conversations today have been through the ever-expanding game of charades, so watching this guy mimic removing a bra was quite amusing. So I, being the American prude I am, ask if there is a gown or anything to put on. Ha – they are still probably laughing over that one. They were kind enough to keep straight faces as I crossed the room with my arms covering as much as possible. I almost lost it when the tech had to position me against the x-ray machine - maybe he thought my reaction was due to the cold glass panel that covers the machine, but once again I was grateful for the silent peals of laughter they were holding back. The funniest part to this whole thing was that they did not close the door to the ante chamber upon my entrance and disrobing, but apparently felt bad enough for my discomfort when I returned to this area to get my clothes back on and kindly closed the door a few inches for minimum privacy.
With all the testing completed, we were now free to go. I stopped off at the Best Health offices one more time to make sure I had an understanding of the next stage. The woman takes my slip of paperwork from me and says "It appears you need to come in tomorrow, on the 5th, to have your labs and x-ray done, and then you will be all set." So I tell her that they did everything already and comment that perhaps the notation for the 5th meant that I could return as early as the next day for my results? To this I receive a "It could mean that" and I decide I have had enough of playing the Dolt of the Ex-Pat World for the day. Thank you very much for all your help. I will be back in a day or two to figure out the next steps on my own.

So, back I go on Thursday for the HIV results so I can finish up the kids paperwork and go sign them up at VZP – since it sounds like they passed their exams, not that they told me anything. Then I go back in 2 weeks, get the rest of my results and have my physical, and hopefully get passed and then finish up my processing. This is a good thing since Ben has informed me that our Visas are ready and waiting in Berlin...a 'runner' will go get them for us but they will need our passports and Medical Cards in order to get them. I feel like nothing is being done in the correct order or in a timely fashion at all but then again, I still have an American mindset.

On a serious note, all of these dealings have proven a few things to me...
1) America is behind the eight ball when it comes to teaching language skills
2) I clearly need to step up my learning of Czech if I want to survive outside the city proper
3) You all better look out if we ever play Charades on any of my returns :)