Quote from: calicarly on April 16, 2014, 03:45:28 AM
Thanks Caroline! You're so sweet!
Lol about your husband waiting for you! My bf's very impatient when waiting for me, but when it comes to me waiting for him, he couldn't be more careless, and I still don't know how a man with a shaved head can require so much grooming!
What do you think made the most striking difference once you had FFS? Also, I know when you last went to see Dr Bart, he was in Ghent and now he's in Antwerp, how did you find navigating around in Belgium the first time? Is it easy enough? I'm not worried about that too much, but I can imagine not getting the accommodation and cabs, etc right , could become a nightmare, Although my bf would be coming with me, I asked him to check on flights to Brussels and they are very economic! So that's good. I still wonder wether I should give seeing mr. Musgrove a try for a consultation, but I don't think it would make any difference, I have read about your experiences with him, and to me, feeling comfortable and seeing someone who is charming and personable is important. I just don't feel good when people behave like they are doing you a favour when they are supposed to be extra nice to you if they want your business , you know what I mean? And then I also think, if he charges £150 for a consult then I'd rather put that towards expenses in Antwerp...
Carly x
Just love the line about your boyfriend's shaved head. Hilarious.
It's difficult to say what made the most striking difference. Probably my lips are now my most noticeable feature. My hairline is my most naturally feminine feature, but I honestly can't say any one thing on its own is my most striking feature.
Regarding Belgium and Ghent. Going anywhere for the first time is a long learning curve. However, we found asking directions was simple as most Belgians speak very good English.
Getting to Ghent rail station was easy enough from Brussels. We were lucky that the first on the rank at Ghent station was a driver who was very accustomed to taking Bart's Ghent girls to the various accommodation listed on his website.
In fact, the taxi firm was recommended on his website. They knew where the clinic was and all spoke very good English. The taxi drivers also knew how to get to EMC2 hospital, but we didn't need to use them for that due to the fact that Dr Bart's delayed holiday flight home led to me having to have my pre-op consultation on the morning of the op.
Dr Bart then drove me and my husband to the hospital which was quite some distance away. On the way there he took a phone call during which I heard my name mentioned. I asked him what it was about and he said the hospital had rang to tell him I had not arrived there. He had to explain he was bringing me.
We arrived and minutes later he was all scrubbed up, masked and ready for action. It was a very weird experience but fun, too.
One of the nurses told me post-op. "We were very worried you weren't going to get here so we rang Dr Bart. He had forgotten to tell us he was bringing you. He's a very naughty man, " she said with a smile.
I imagine Antwerp will be be easy enough to get around. I'm probably going to use
airbnb.com for finding suitable accommodation. Here's a link
https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/540831I'm not recommending this apartment because I haven't been there, it's just an example of what's available.
Then just Google the route from the chosen apartment to the Piccard Hospital and find out which bus or tram will take you there, or catch a cab. Don't forget to keep a note of the Piccard Hospital's address because it is fairly new and some cabbies might not know it yet.
After the op I was worried about the reaction of work colleagues but there was no problem just lots of praise for how much better I looked. I didn't tell my children I was going abroad for surgery as I didn't want to worry them.
They live over 130 miles away from where we live so afterwards I told them what I had done over the phone and emailed them photos.
My daughter said she wouldn't have recognised me if I passed her in the street, whereas my son said I didn't look any different!! Go figure. Since then I have visited them several times with my husband, and my daughter is great, she has always talked to me about things as woman to woman, but now we seem even more closer. My son is really cool about it and we get on really well.
Incidentally, I just thought of this. The lovely couple who owned the accommodation we stayed at in Ghent were quite used to Dr Bart's girls. They had three apartments which were almost exclusively used by trans women.
Etienne, who was 20 years older than his wife Jeanna and in his 70s, was very active and spent the whole time we were there climbing ladders and drilling things).
His wife, Jeanna said Etienne found it a bit confusing when Dr Bart's patients sometimes arrived there dressed as a guy but insisted on being called by a female name. She said laughing: "He can't quite get his head around that one."
They were lovely and Etienne was very courteous with me. When we left he and Jeanna gave us gifts to remember the stay.
I was looking forward to seeing them both again.
Still, I'm looking forward to Antwerp, it shoudn't be a problem.
Lots of love
Caroline
x
