Rash action

One of our first tasks in Yazd is to find a pharmacy - Gayle has come out in a rash which started in Tehran. It is Friday and everything is closed except for the 24-hour pharmacy. The chemist refers us to the hospital next door where we find a doctor who speaks some English and who writes out a prescription for a hydrocortisone injection for an allergic reaction. Gayle suggests it's an allergy to the hijab, a joke he doesn't appreciate. He thinks it might be food. We think back to all the kebabs we have eaten in Tehran...........a kebab allergy? This could be very difficult. We get the drugs and return for the jab. Gayle has to come back the next day for a follow-up. The whole process is quite quick and costs only 3 quid. Mind you, this might be value for money as the jabs don't work and after four days Gayle's rash is getting itchier and spreading.


So after some internet research we go to another chemist, in search of anti-histamines. The chemist recommends a dermatologist. His waiting room is half-full when we arrive at 4pm and are greeted by an insolent receptionist who won't look us in the eye. In fact, he never looks at anyone in the eye, just tuts and tilts his head back or forth. He tells us six o'clock. At first we think this is the appointment time, but it actually turns out to be time the doctor arrives. We sweat it out in a stuffy and crowded waiting room full of people who all stare at us. Fortunately the doctor arrives about 6.15 and we don't have to wait much longer. He speaks a little English - enough to tell Gayle that she is suffering from a reaction to an insect bite - most probably bed bugs. We think back to the flea-pits we stayed in in Tehran................... Gayle asks lots of questions to see how certain the doctor is. He points to his certificate on the wall from the American Faculty of Dermatologists - Gayle is unimpressed. So he pulls out a pictorial encyclopaedia of skin diseases and flicks through it. The large full-colour photographs make me blanche and think about all the other patients in the waiting room outside. Finally he finds a photo of someone's neck - it's exactly like Gayle's - the photo is captioned "bed bugs".


He sends Gayle off with a prescription for anti-histamines and within a day her skin is getting better............