Traveling has brought me many things, including some troublesome adventure...

It was my last day on Koh Chang island with my dear friend Emily and we decided to rent a motorbike to explore the island with our English friends. We had been quite lazy enjoying the sea and the sand, tanning ourselves, reading books, and eating and drinking ourselves silly. This was the most proactive decision we had made all week! We rented the bike where our friends had and with a vague explanation of how to use the machine, we hopped on and were slowly off down the road, adrenaline feeding the engine. As I held on to Emily's hips she became a natural; I could feel her muscles loosen as she became a more confident driver. Koh Chang is notorious for its mountains, making the journey to each beach a curvy and steep ride. As we attempted to climb a hill, our bodies and bike almost vertical, a sharp turn took advantage of our speed and, in slow motion, the wheels were taken from under us, we crashed to the ground, slid across the pavement, into the other lane and into the ditch. It happen so quickly and so slow; I could see it all happening. My thoughts were so present..."ok, we're not making this turn, ok now the bike is tipping, ok now I am on the ground, ok now i can feel the cement on my skin, keep your head up natalie, ok now i am in a ditch, ok now i hurt, uhhhhhhh". We were both shocked but peeled ourselves off the ground and to our feet, brushing dirt and leaves off, and examining where the sharp, burning pain was coming from. We both had our fair share of road burn caked in dirt and we both were extremely lucky that there was no oncoming traffic to make our injuries worse. With the help of our friends that were following behind us, we made it back down the hill and to the pharmacy where they cleaned us up and we bought them out of bandages and antibacterial cream. It was incredibly painful to be cleaned up; from the intense pain and overwhelming emotional pressure in my chest, all I could do was hold Emily's hand and cry.

Unfortunately, there was no resting and healing on the island for me. The next day, as bandaged as I could be, I limped my way to a taxi, a airport, a change in flights, another airport, a tuk tuk, and into a guesthouse in Phomn Penh, Cambodia where I was going to start my time volunteering. That night, alone in my room, I slowly stripped my leg of its bandages to observe how my injury had managed the day. I knew that something wasn't right; could it be infected? why is it SO swollen? Am I just so emotional I cannot see right? The next day, as I was on a four hour bus ride to the coastal town that I would settle in, my leg throbbed, and my continual explanation to onlookers was getting to me. I arrived to the volunteer house, introduced myself and almost passed out. My leg was swollen like a papaya, throbbing like a heartbeat, burning, stinging, and forcing me onto the couch. The other volunteers circled me and said that sure enough, it's infected and I need some serious clean up. I spent the next fews days either in bed or on the couch, hobbling from one to the other. I would say the most painful part was when the bandage stuck to the wound and I had to rip off the developing scab. Not only did is hurt like nothing I had felt before, I was also alone in a hot room, feeling very isolated and depressed; all I needed was something familiar and comforting.

It has been three weeks and my scabs have fallen off and my sprained knee is begining to give me more movement. I can swim in the ocean now, without fear of more infection (the water is WAY to warm here for the salt water to be healing), and go on walks without feeling sore. I still cannot fully straighten or bend me knee but that will only take time and patience. I have some awesome large scars that sorta match my birthmark on my other leg and a good story. Most importantly, I have a new perspective on how blessed I am to have my body and mobility, with all that I can do with it, I lead an amazing life.....

The photos above are first of my scar, the infection, and the swollen leg on the second night.