The Botanic Garden Hospital was lovely, I felt as though I were staying at a hotel within a beautiful tropical garden. My baby was kept down the hall in the birthing room; she had been born prematurely, and with no incubators available was being kept in the warmest place in the hospital. My private room was a peaceful oasis in which to recuperate, I would be there for a week until Vanessa’s weight rose to 5 pounds.
Barry Bailey, Captain of the Lena Marie, handed out Cuban cigars after the baby was born, and for a while the little hospital was filled with well-wishers. It was with relief that I settled into my comfortable room, watching as the nurses admired and put away the baby clothes I had made during my pregnancy. I had knitted woolen sweaters, booties and a couple of hats, all perfect of course for the tropics!
I quickly grew bored. Except for my trips down the hall to feed Vanessa I had nothing to do, and started feeling lonely. I was therefore pleasantly surprised when Nancy Joachim and Gail Jarrett appeared in my room on the second day. These were friends who lived on the mainland, and they had come to see the baby and take any soiled laundry home to wash for me. They promised to come every day and it gave me something to look forward to.
Nancy and Gail DID visit each day, arriving in the afternoon when they knew stern Dr. Cyrus would be seeing patients at his clinic. They brought ice-cold Heineken beers and cigarettes, and we sat on the balcony overlooking the gardens drinking and smoking as we chatted. They would leave before Dr. Cyrus was due to start his rounds, and I would shower and brush my teeth before slipping into bed.
One afternoon Dr. Cyrus made his rounds early and caught us in action. My friends scurried through the door with my soiled laundry as I got hastily into bed. The good Doctor was obviously annoyed and exclaimed, “it smells like a Bordello in here!” I pondered how on earth he knew how a bordello smells as the nurses nervously plumped my pillows.
A fat Cuban cigar that had been tucked under my pillow rolled off the bed and onto the floor, landing at Dr. Cyrus’s feet. Picking it up, he shook it at me and repeated, “A Bordello!”