Yellow Fever Shot - Another Adventure

One of the shots we needed for Bolivia but not Costa Rica was Yellow Fever. The Health Department ran out in December, and Ty was the only member of our family who didn't receive one. We just figured we'd get him vaccinated when we return to the states before going to Bolivia. Well, since we have to go to Panama now to renew our visas, it may be necessary to have been vaccinated to reenter the country. A girl at school here went to Columbia over Spring Break and couldn't come back until she had been vaccinated and then waited 7 days for it to be effective! Not willing to risk this, we decided to take care of Ty now. Well, here if you need any vaccines, you just go to the pharmacy and request what you need and the pharmacist gives you the shot. The pharmacy we needed to go to is downtown. I assumed Bubba would take Ty since his Spanish is better, and I would stay here to be able to pick up Sam and Georgia after school. Well....He wanted me to take Ty since I have more patience in those situations (ie screaming kids :) - his words, not mine. He felt confident in my ability to navigate all this in Spanish, I wasn't so sure. But, wanting to try, Ty and I set off this afternoon after school. After much praying on my part in the taxi, we arrived at Clinica Biblica, asked directions from 2 different people, and ended up where we needed to be. I was able to communicate with the nurse what we needed, and I understood (more or less) what she was asking me/telling me. After Ty received the shot, I asked her about the card that is needed to prove you have received the shot (this is necessary to carry with your passport when traveling to many countries in the global south). At the health department in the states, they give you the card right there, stamped with an ink stamp and signed. I should have known from our experience at immigration that it wouldn't be that easy. She proceeded to tell me that I needed to go to the Ministerio de Salud (Ministry of Health) to get the card. So....Ty and I took another taxi to the Ministerio de Salud. Once there, the woman took our form, and asked if I had the stamp. When I said no, she said I needed to go buy one at the Red Cross across the street. When she saw my bewildered look, she said the man out front (who was parking cars) also sold them. I think he marked up the price, but at only $1 I was willing to buy from him to save the effort of trying to find the Red Cross and communicate with yet another person. So, once the stamp was purchased, we were able to obtain the necessary documentation. Even though I know I didn't say everything perfectly and didn't understand all that was said to me, it was a huge victory. 3 months ago, I wouldn't have been able to do any of this by myself!