On Friday, Dec. 4, we flew to Orlando via Chicago, leaving at 6a SF time and arriving in Orlando about 6:30p. During the flight, Ralph broke out in a skin rash on his hands that kept getting worse. So once we checked in at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress hotel, we asked at the front desk for a nearby clinic. There was a place called Critical Care just around the corner, so we drove there. The staff was very helpful, but the two doctors who examined Ralph said his rash was beyond their ability to accurately diagnose or treat so they referred us to the nearest hospital.
Celebration Health was just a few miles away and the facility was very nice. A nurse examined him upon intake and agreed that he should be examined by a staff doctor. Within 20 minutes, they took Ralph and I to a hospital bed where a very smart doctor quickly examined him. While we were in the waiting room, Ralph's regular doctor called and said the rash might be caused by an allergic reaction to his standing meds, but the ER doctor disagreed.
A blood draw was ordered and an IV was inserted in Ralph's arm because he was a bit dehydrated. Then we just waited while blood draw was analyzed. Finally, the doctor returned and said the results showed that Ralph had an allergic reaction to something they could not pinpoint. She ordered injections of Benadryl and another antihistamine to counter the allergic reaction. Those meds made Ralph sleepy so he slept while I sat and monitored his vitals.
After an hour, the doctor returned and examined Ralph's hands. The blisters had gone down considerably so she discharged Ralph and prescribed Bendryl. We had arrived at the emergency room at 8p and left at 3a. Ralph slept until 11a on Saturday.
We had planned to go to Disney World, but there was no time and the weather was rainy and cold so we stayed around the hotel except for a visit to Mrs. Williams.
Our hotel room was quite nice and the shower was enormous with a rain shower fixture. I just loved it as you can see from this photo that Ralph took.From our room, you could see the lagoon around the hotel which looked great except for the bad weather.
The lobby was decorated with a huge Christmas tree which seemed a little odd in a place like Florida which probably never gets snow. There was also lots of Chinese sculptures and artwork which was just gorgeous.Ralph slept most of the day while I explored the hotel and watched a little TV. We also had internet access, which we enjoyed very much.
By that evening, Ralph felt well enough to go to dinner so we went to Oceanaire, a seafood restaurant that I found in advance of our trip. It was hard to find, but it was very, very good. The waiter was friendly and excellent, the decor was beautiful and the food was delicious. On the waiter's recommendation, we ordered a mixed corn side dish which was very tasty. Of course, I tried to figure out how it was made so I could duplicate it at home. All in all, we were very happy with the place.
After that late dinner, we just went back to the hotel where Ralph went back to sleep and I watched TV and surfed the Internet.
