Corona - what does help you? Your fears, thoughts, everything

[brianr]

Australians have to apply for exemption to leave Australia and it is very difficult to obtain. My Brother-in-law's nephew has lived in Prague for 20 years and been married to a Czech woman for 10 years and it took months for him to get an exemption. A problem was that he does not own his home in Prague, it is in his wife's name and he owns a unit in Sydney and has children and grandchildren there from his first marriage. It seems it took a letter from his wife's GP (she flew  home a few weeks before lockdown) about her health that finally swayed the exemption.
In New Zealand we can leave but must quarantine in a guarded hotel for 14 days on return and pay (as in Australia) $3,000. You are tested on Days 3 and 12.
It is just not possible to consider overseas travel from either country before 2021 at the earliest.
However yesterday in NZ, we celebrated 100 days without any community transmission. While we have a trickle of cases in quarantine, it has been 6 days since the last. There are no cases in hospital and we have the lowest death rate (22 out of 5 million) of OECD countries.

[brianr]

I wish I could cancel, but i feel compelled, for the sake or my traveling buddies, to make an effort to go on the trip.

When are you travelling?  Do you know that currently people are not allowed to fly to France (and probably most other European countries) from the USA except under certain exemptions.

[Front-Ranger]

When are you travelling?  Do you know that currently people are not allowed to fly to France (and probably most other European countries) from the USA except under certain exemptions.

Hi brian. Yes, I am aware of all the restrictions. Our flight to Paris was cancelled months ago.

I'm leaving Friday morning for the East Coast and will then fly to the UK for two weeks of quarantine before proceeding to the Continent. 

[brianr]

I have just had an email from a lady in our walking group. She and her husband went to the UK for a holiday in February, not sure how long they planned. They were there 6 months, 12 flights home cancelled, They have finally reached NZ and are quarantined in a hotel on the North Island for 14 days. The hotel has high fences and army around it, they mainly have to stay in their room with meals, no choice, delivered on a tray to the door, there is a knock and they open while staff stand back, they must service the room themselves and leave sheets in a bag outside the door. Assuming they test negative on day 12 they will be home and rejoining us next week. Fortunately they will not have to pay $3000.
If anyone here was to tell me they were flying to the UK next week, I would suggest they had a mental checkup
It seems we live on different planets.
But we have concerts, movies, restaurants, in fact life as normal, we are being asked to buy masks just in case, no need to wear.
We think we are the luckiest country in the world.

[Front-Ranger]

Yes, New Zealand is quite a success story. You and your country should be proud.

The news out of the U.S. is certainly cringe-worthy. Apparently the southern states are out of control. I wish we could block people from coming to Colorado from those crazy states. But I don't go out in public anyway, so it would not affect me (knock on wood).

[brianr]

Yes, New Zealand is quite a success story. You and your country should be proud.

Last night we had all TV programs interrupted for an emergency announcement by the Prime Minister and the Director of Health. A family of 4 have developed Covid with as yet no known source. The city of Auckland (over 1 million people) has gone back to level 3 (all non-essential services, schools, restaurants etc closed, no unnecessary travel) from midday today until at least Friday. The rest of the country is going to level 2 so back to social distancing, recording movement etc. I had put off my visit to the supermarket (I go either Tuesday or Wednesday) to today as I was tired after hiking yesterday. So I have to go this morning, not sure if I will go for coffee after as usual, it will be before midday. I think I will cancel my coffee group for tomorrow.
As I said, it is like we live on a different planet

[Front-Ranger]

Yes, that made the news here too! I hope they figure out how that family contracted the virus.

[serious crayons]

Last night we had all TV programs interrupted for an emergency announcement by the Prime Minister and the Director of Health.

If they did that here, the important announcements wold be interrupting each other. "We interrupt this program for an emergency an -- " "We interrupt this program for an emer --" "We interrupt this pro -- " and finally they'd all just be talking over each other.

[serious crayons]

It's the handwashing that I'm starting to forget.

For me it's social distancing. Even when I'm not wearing a mask, say when I'm walking with my dog, I'll stop to talk to a neighbor and suddenly notice I'm standing only three or four feet away.

When I'm masked and outdoors I get closer than that sometimes, even if the other person is not masked which, as I recall from Trump's habit of not masking, is more dangerous for me than them. This would mainly be at work, when I'm interviewing somebody and need to be able to hear them

Luckily these almost always happen outside, where I think the risk is smaller.

[brianr]

If they did that here, the important announcements wold be interrupting each other. "We interrupt this program for an emergency an -- " "We interrupt this program for an emer --" "We interrupt this pro -- " and finally they'd all just be talking over each other.

The only other times I remember an emergency announcement have been due to earthquakes and possible Tsunamis. The Kaikoura earthquake was in the early morning and I remember waking to a woman's voice screaming to me to get to higher ground but as my house is 269 metres above sea level, I stayed put.
I am not sure if there was an emergency announcement re the mass shooting in Christchurch last year but that would have only been in the Christchurch area.