Cancer Setbacks

Both optimists and pessimists 
contribute to our society.

The optimist invents the airplane 
the pessimist the parachute.

~Gil Stern






We are just back from a lovely holiday in New Zealand.  Went to Rotorua on the North Island and was not expecting that much as I thought the South Island was the one with spectacular scenery.  Heard that Rotorua was very smelly with sulphur fumes from the volcanic activity.  Sometimes it is good to have low expectations as it turned out to be very scenic with minimal bad odour.  We had a few days of rain which gave us time to laze about and read our books.  The rest of the time we went sight seeing.

Who knew that there was snow in the North Island in October (or at all for that matter).  We visited two ski fields where there was still enough snow for people to be skiing just south of Lake Tapau on Mt Ruapehu.  Very scenic.  The countryside is incredibly green, testament to lots of rain.  We saw why New Zealand is known for it's sheep, they were everywhere and there were lots of spring lambs gamboling about.  Friesian dairy cattle were also a common site as well as acres of plantation pines.

Closer to Rotorua we found a Californian redwood forest planted in 1909. Although not as big as the redwoods we had seen in California they  were pretty nonetheless quite impressive and a joy to walk amongst.

There was a major volcanic eruption in the area in 1886 and we visited the archeological site of a 'buried village' that had been excavated.  This gave us a bit of a taste of Moari culture.  A performance at Whakarewarewa by some traditional Moari singers and performers was also impressive.  As was the Pohutu Geyser which erupts several times an hour and goes for at least 5 minutes at a time shooting upabout 20 metres.  Certainly plenty of rotten egg smell at that site.

There were lots of lovely lakes and plenty of geothermal activity with geysers, boiling mud pools, fumeroles and the like reminiscent of Yellowstone National Park in the US.  Our apartment was on Rotorua Lake a little way out of town and very pretty.  Lots of black swans about, some with goslings, and the fly fishing season had just started so lots of fisherman around (not many fish being caught).  It was easy to get around in our little rental car with good roads and not much traffic.  Apart from the rain the weather was fabulous and warmer than expected.  All in all a very nice holiday and my energy levels were great.  Managed some quite long walks of upto an hour.

There is plenty of water in the area with lots of lakes, streams, waterfalls and springs.  The clarity of the water in places is incredible.  Humarana Springs at the north end of Rotorua Lake was particularly stunning.  There were some redwoods there as well, planted in 1916, but it was the springs themselves and the resulting streams that were magical.  I have never seen water so clear, not even in Kakadu.  Lots of water birds, some trout and the beauty of nature at its best.  Simply glorious.  That was on our last day there, great way to spend the morning.

Came back on the 5th October and had PET scan on the 6th.  Unfortunately not good news.  I now have two visible tumours.  One in a vertebra at T9, where I have had one before, and one in a lymph node in my right armpit.    I was hoping to be able to say I had been clear for twelve months. Alas not so.  The irony is that I am just starting to feel a lot better and was hoping the treatments could be reduced.  Instead I am looking at increased treatment and possible deterioration in physical wellbeing. Very disappointed doesn't really cover it. No doubt I will rally around as usual but at the moment I feel a bit overwhelmed.  I have emailed my doctor in Germany and waiting for a reply to see what the plan of action will be.  Some trepidation there but I do better when I have a plan to follow.


Survive and thrive

Linda