This story continues from: Covid begins / Part 1 NYC March 22, 2020. I make it out of New York a day before the near-total shutdown, feeling like I am abandoning an old friend after they stopped being fun and grew burdensome. On the other hand, I tell myself, Vermont is my actual home. But truth is, I have not felt well for days, and the prospect of ending up, one more anonymous senior in the Javitz Center stocked with rows of army-issued cots, tamps down my guilt.
It was such a strange time so quiet, so peaceful, death hiding around every corner. I went out for walks daily, looking at a shut down city wondering if the city would ever come back to its vibrant screaming self. Well folks, it has, vibrant and insane as ever. Can’t keep this old gal down.
Thanks for the insightful reminders of that odd time. I was horrified by the news from NYC and concerned for my friends who were there. Meanwhile I was locked down in Hawaii with a garden to hang out in and none of my Vermont friends felt sorry for me. The flight back to Vermont was surreal, masked on a full plane, wandering through Chicago,s Ohare airport, empty, with Burger King the only concession open. So glad to be picked up in Burlington by a friend who kept his windows open and our masks on for the trip back to Hyde Park.
I was changed by getting COVID in Paris. April 2022. People masked up and went out as they chose. We heard "everybody gets it" more than a few times. France kept a complete registry of positive tests. We were fully vaccinated. And our symptoms were light and of short duration. The protocol for getting back in the US gave us two extra weeks in Europe after our 7 day quarantine in a nice Parisian hotel that served us meals. We went to a beer festival with two of Charlie's sons who were based in Madrid and Mastricht at that time.
Insurance reimbursed us almost fully when we got home.
The testing at the airport was a sham. The swab never touched the inside of the nose. They didn't want sick angry people hanging out at the airport.
We felt comfortable acting like the residents of each place we were. We did not complain or judge. And we have good health today and good stories to tell. We think God guided us and blessed us. Not sure why.
It all seems like a dream now
It was such a strange time so quiet, so peaceful, death hiding around every corner. I went out for walks daily, looking at a shut down city wondering if the city would ever come back to its vibrant screaming self. Well folks, it has, vibrant and insane as ever. Can’t keep this old gal down.
Thanks for the insightful reminders of that odd time. I was horrified by the news from NYC and concerned for my friends who were there. Meanwhile I was locked down in Hawaii with a garden to hang out in and none of my Vermont friends felt sorry for me. The flight back to Vermont was surreal, masked on a full plane, wandering through Chicago,s Ohare airport, empty, with Burger King the only concession open. So glad to be picked up in Burlington by a friend who kept his windows open and our masks on for the trip back to Hyde Park.
I was changed by getting COVID in Paris. April 2022. People masked up and went out as they chose. We heard "everybody gets it" more than a few times. France kept a complete registry of positive tests. We were fully vaccinated. And our symptoms were light and of short duration. The protocol for getting back in the US gave us two extra weeks in Europe after our 7 day quarantine in a nice Parisian hotel that served us meals. We went to a beer festival with two of Charlie's sons who were based in Madrid and Mastricht at that time.
Insurance reimbursed us almost fully when we got home.
The testing at the airport was a sham. The swab never touched the inside of the nose. They didn't want sick angry people hanging out at the airport.
We felt comfortable acting like the residents of each place we were. We did not complain or judge. And we have good health today and good stories to tell. We think God guided us and blessed us. Not sure why.
What a time, what an experience. We are indeed changed. But I think it must be a natural impulse to put it behind and try to be as we once were.
It all fades in a blur but here we are, or at least some of us, and I wonder what we have learned. Thank you for your writing.