"But, hello, I got crook as a dog and thought it was some fish I had bought up here in Northland."
He said his daughter became very concerned when his illness did not run its natural course and had him taken by ambulance to a medical centre in Kawakawa.
"It was not food poisoning, it was this bacteria I picked up probably from some drinking water over in Samoa."
He was soon taken to Whangarei Hospital in another ambulance and given fluids and had numerous blood tests before doctors diagnosed his problem. At the time he said he was severely dehydrated and feeling "pretty poorly".
"The good news is I have had tremendous treatment up here. They said it was a challenge for them but they got a handle on it. It's my first time in hospital since my teenage years when I had my tonsils out."
After a week in hospital recovering Mr Maxwell hopes to be back in town today.
"It's all cleared up but they wanted me here for one more day. There's no more needles sticking out of me thank goodness."
