Metro Tacubaya, Mexico City.

Back from the doctors earlier on today and they've got to the bottom of my ailment: a kidney infection.

Which explains both the weight loss and the fainting and is a great relief to find out.

I need to go see a nephrologist just to make sure and to get it fully under control. But it looks like since I got to Mexico, I haven't been drinking enough water on a daily basis. And consequently, my kidneys have been weakened and susceptible to this infection I now have.

I've now got medicines to clear up the infection and it should be gone pronto.  

Only downside is that I can't drink coffee or eat red meat until I see the nephrologist and the antibiotics have run their course. So no drinking either until they're finished. But yes a huge relief.

It appears that banging my head and chipping my teeth was a reasonable price to pay for finding out about this and getting it sorted now, before any permanent damage might have been caused.

Long term, it would appear that the only major life change I'll need to make is to drink more water. So, as outcomes go that's pretty grand, really.

Visited a friend of mine via El Metro, which is both extensive and very cheap. However, between about 6 and 8 pm weekdays it can be very crowded with millions of people trying to get across the city.

Tonight was the very worst that I have seen it in my 4 years here. There were queues coming off the platform, down 2 flights of stairs and back down one of the main connecting walkways. It took a good twenty minutes just to get onto the platform. Another fifteen waiting to get lifted and surged into a, thankfully empty metro. Empty for about a nanosecond! And getting off involved some pretty aggressive Twister like maneuvering  even to get to the door.

And after a brief catch up with my good friend Eric, I came home. This, at least, proved to be a lot more comfortable, seats the whole way and a bus waiting outside, when I emerged from the metro.

So, after a pleasantly eventful day, I'm off to take some medicine and then go to bed. Good night.