Corona Virus Diary - Evolving page - Each consecutive day will be placed ABOVE the previous day's entry...but I might add to the bottom of each day's entry during the day!

 This diary page is now complete as I have returned safely to England

Due to some weird anomally, I often can't seem to reply to comments people make, but all comments are much appreciated!  (Especially the Birkenhead one!)

5th February 2020

Today I woke at 1.30 am.  A combination of jet lag and worry and a napping sleep pattern over the last few days.  Running round in my mind was the need to get back home before I get stuck here!  The need to get home quickly and 'under my employers radar' has made me a little paranoid, and that has transferred to the last leg of my journey:   London to Dorchester.  In my mind I have not made it home yet...Dorchester, my house, that's home.  Not there yet.  I'll wear my mask on the home journey for the sake of others.  I have been isolated in Jiangkou and display no symptoms.  But I care about others too and want to be safe, not sorry.  What has surprised me so far, is that no one has asked me why I am wearing it!  I felt a little odd when I started wearing it, but soon git used to it, and now I don't think twice and don't really notice that I am wearing it. 

I was joking about getting stuck in London but I tried to book National Express.  Technical difficulties - payment error.  Three times.  So I thought stuff it, I'll book a taxi. expensive, but by now I am getting fed up.  One of the taxi services says it is not taking bookings because of the  Corona Virus outbreak. Is National Express really updating their website as a result of the Corona Virus?  Heaven knows.  Not sure what to do now!  I don't want to book a taxi and have it turn up only to find that they refuse a customer who has been to China!  I could just lie and not wear a mask.  I think that is hugely irresponsible.  I could just say nothing, again hugely irresponsible, but I cant do nothing.  I have options.  I can book a taxi/national express/train and declare.  I can book a taxi/national express/train and not declare.  I can stay in London or stay at my sister's house.  I think I'll go to the bus station and try and buy a ticket there, and work forward.  Pain in the backside.  So I decided to take the way of least people contact  and get a taxi back to Dorchester, and be upfront about my return from China  Of course I expect a price hike, and yes,  I got one.  But I'll be home by about 10am.....Watch this space! So I went to breakfast at 6am.  Full English. Twice.  Not had his for 9 months

I was shaking when I started....like a starving man not because of any fever!  Content.  Part 1.  Content complete.

Part 2 content below.The taxi driver was the owner of the firm.  He was a lovely guy but obviously with a new customer wanted payment first, preferably in cash!  I had no UK money but had a reserve of Euros.  We converted and I paid.  So I went home in a nice Mercedes and had a fascinating conversation about life with the driver.  I got home really quickly...wish I had thought to do this last night!  Haha.

I got home and met my wife.  We were both awkward as we knew I had to self-quarentine for two weeks.  Not because I have any symptoms but to make sure that if I do develop any then I won't have spread the virus.

It was so nice to be home.  My wife, Maria had made such a beautiful isolation room for me!  We sat apart, feeling awkward, we wanted to be closer but thought it wise not to be yet.  Maria was working from home.  I  talked nonsense with her for an hour with occasional tears.  Watched some stupid TV and ate and ate and ate and drank and drank and drank.  Oh, I've missed my food.  No cheese, bacon, butter etc etc for mine months.  Then I ordered some of these masks from Amazon as we have both decided to wear them for two weeks  then went to bed and slept for a few hours.  Lying there typing I am happy to be here.  It's nice to be home.  So nice.

4th February 2020

At Guiyang airport got both my boarding passes printed. Much happier, but flights are being cancelled left right and centre!  Through the boarding checks.  It was very slow.  The guy in front took at least ten minutes.  As they were doing me they were talking about Jiangkou. There is no mention of this in my passport.  Has the area boss been on to someone?  I say this because I fit a phone call earlier fron.an unknown source and stupudly rejected it rather than let it rung out.   I was standing there waiting for the police to come and refuse me exit !  Paranoia.  But the area boss can be a shit.   We had an understanding between us, bit when he refused to extend my contract and asked me to go in January, I lost faith in him.  Perhaps I should have taken his advixe...wouldn't be here now!  Anyhow, through security, bag went through three times...same at most airports for me!  Now waiting at the gate. De de de! And now on the plane to Beijing.  Beijing looks like the toughest part of the journey.  Huge place got to the gate in time and boarding for the last leg of the journey.  Boarded!  Radio silence.

At the airport there was a Costa.  They have sandwiches...with what looked like bread, real bread, with ham and cheese!  CHEESE! not eaten that for nine months.  Bought one.  Ate it.  Even threw the crusts away!  Mmmm!

 Journey home.  So it's going to be a long journey!  11hrs.  I am lucky..I have a double seat to myself.  The staff here are fantastic.  Working like Trojans.  Drinks, meals, a constant supply of water, it is really dry, and as everyone is wearing surgical masks of different types and styles,

it feels even drier.  The staff are also cleaning the toilets very regularly with antiseptic.  Huge respect for them and their relentless work, but that is China all over.  Really had workers.  First meal was chicken and rice and a box of goodies with apologies for using disposable cutlery due to virus safety.  About four hours into the journey a nice old, I say old ...She was sixty-five, came and say next to me.   I had talked to her as we had entered the plane.  We swapped stories.  She isChines but married to a Brit.  She had gone to Beijing to look after her elderly and I'll mother. She was meant to remain in China until April, but her family members were keeping their eyes in the virus and changed her return ticket and told her to get out.  She did.  She talks a lot...Interesting lady.  Eventually I got my super seat back stretched out and napped. 

 So what am I thinking...not much.  I've suppressed a lot...it'll come.out soon enough when I am home!  I am looking g forward to seeing everyone again.  They've all been so good to me.  I'll not go into details.  What is really near the surface and nearly pushing years out as I write, is my love for the people of Jiangkou, and how they pulled me into their lives.  I also love the kids I taught so much.  They made an old foreigner feel really special.  Each and everyone of them.  I am really upset that I never got to say goodbye and feel sorry for these little gems is n the middle of a huge country.  In my heart I want to return.  Maybe if circumstances play well I can return and teach for a few more months.  If not, I want to go back and say goodbye to some of the most lovely people I have ever met.  A personal goodbye to each of them.  I just hope what I gave to them makes a difference because what they gave to me has made a difference to me.  I hope I am different and better from my encounter with them and their beauty.  I hope I treat those around me better than I did.  I think I've been too selfish, taken people for granted.  I have to stop writing now or I'll cry.

The next meal was beef and rice and a box of goodies proceed by two rounds of drinks.  Just under three hours to go!  My bum hurts, I've been sitting too long!  Not far from St. Petersburg so the in-flight screen says.  It s a long journey.  I just wonder are the pilots flying for the full eleven hours or is there a spare one who rotates with the othere and a bed in the cockpit for the off duty one? And do they have their own cockpit toilet?  Mmmm I wonder.

To go to landing and an announcement "The cabin will now be sprayed with a nontoxic (thank goodness!) disinfectant recommended by the World Health Organisation. If you think you may be affected by this please tell a member of staff.  Please cover your mouth and nose and if you are wearing contact lenses it is recommended that you keep your eyes closed.". Everyone was given tissues and the spraying commences.  I was expecting someone in a hazmat suit with a lever operated backpack.  But we got this instead

The smell was quite pleasant.  Sorry that the video is not good quality.  I wonder what fun will be waiting us in arrival!

 Well jsut as we were descending the staff brought around a a poorly photocopied document. ( I am not blaming the staff for this)  It looked like this ( Sorry about the quality)

So we got off the plane, picked up our luggage and went though passport control, those with e- passports did not even see a person.  Nothing.  No areas prepared to receive those who were ill, no temperatures taken, no questioning, nothing.   I was surprised!  Anyhow I got to my hotel and booked in.  I went to get soemthing from my bag but could not find the zip pulls.  when I go to my room and opened my bag, I saw a note.  My bag had been opened, and the combination lock opened with out damage.  This is what I did found:

and this is what I did not find!

I had packed a charger and it had been removed, but the adapters left.  They had also found a lighter and removed that.  Oops!  I had chats with a few people updated my blog.  My wife pointed out that the government were now advising foreign nationals to leave China.  Looks like I made it just in time.

3rd February 2020

7:30

Woke up early after a good night's sleep.  Bed is my favourite place at the moment.  The only warm place in Jiangkou.  Everything is about 4 degrees centigrade at the moment, even in my apartment.  In the Summer the air conditioning manages to cool my apartment fairly well, but in the winter it will only heat my bedroom if the door is closed, it won't heat my whole apartment.  Strange.  And "yes!". I have thought of moving my living space entirely into the bedroom and just living in there, but firstly the bedroom isn't big enough, it only just manages to house my bed, and secondly, the TV outlet is strangely wired into the wall with insulation tape and I daren't move that!

10.30

Today I booked my tickets home...In tears.  It was not and is not an easy decision...but I want to be with my wife and family.  The journey starts in an hour and a half.  I'll keep you updated.

11.:30

Got my taxi.  Long drive to the airport.

At the end of the motorway ewe went through 'Checkpoiny Charlie'. 

After the end of the motorway it was like a game of mousetrap trying to get to the airport, as everything was being developed roads being relaid etc....But we got close enough and I got out and with help managed and my hotel.  And, like at Checkpoint Charlie, I had my temperature taken and was metal detected before I could enter the hotel!

 

And my toilet had a telephone!  On the job on the job! 

  I parked up in the hotel and headed to KFC.  Temperature taken again.  I was starting to get worried as I'd been lumping a bug bag around and was feeling warm!  

But I got my food...nothing like this in Jiangkou! (But I do so love Jiangkou and it's people...I keep telling myself that I'll return if the virus thing clears up!). School isn't starting until maybe early/late March, so there will be time to return. But maybe that's just comfort talk, AND it presumes that I actually get out of China in the first place!  AND amongst the many things at the airport 'Robocop' was on duty.  People looked at me very suspiciously as I videos it.  Can't upload it directly but for your enjoyment here is a link.

https://1drv.ms/v/s!AnTXs8bPCbfPrb4UkyxlOgeWXy3hyQ

Travel starts early tomorrow, so if all goes well then expect a news blackout.  No news is good news.

2nd February 2020

Not a good day.  I woke early (8.a.m. that used to be late!) and checked my WeChat account.  I read an article which was not good.  I have every reason to believe that there was some truth in it, but believe it was from  from the early days of the infection lockdown in Wuhan.  It talked about the way in which treatment was or wasn't given.  How people were refused treatment unless they had passed the treatment criteria and the treatment criteria were based on medical tests using resources that were low.  So basically many people were dying as a result of not being treated because the treatment criteria had not been met because the medical testing equipment was in short supply.  People in queues for days and only family to feed them as hospitals were not cooking food.  People were dying prior to diagnosis they were not included in statistics.  It frightened me.  I need to stop reading these things.  It resonates some truth from what I experienced in hospital, but let me first make clear that during my time in hospital my staff and friends were 100% excellent.  This is NOT a criticism of them.  What strikes me as true is firstly the following the procedure part.  Nothing happens unless you do step 1,2,3 in the right order.  Food in hospitals.  Most people have family or friends bring in food for them although I do believe that there was some sort of canteen in the hospital I was in and one of my friends managed to order food for me from that facility.  However a hospital deluged with virus victims in the early stages of the infection would struggle to cope.  There is more I could say here about the differences between Chinese and English hospitals, but I choose not to. Things will probably have changed by now if they were ever like that in the first place.  However it spooked me! And let me say once again that the staff at the hospital in which had my appendix out, and my Chinese friends were 100% super.  What I say has not reflection on them, but it seems that  cabin fever has set in!  I want to go home.  If I am ill want to be ill in an English hospital, but I don't seem to be able to leave.  Flights are going but I cant seem to get to the airport!  Anyhow, I got up, did a little bit of exercise,  made breakfast and started to watch a film.  Its name translated from Chinese is "Destiny Planning Agency". The title on the film 'box' translated from Spanish (no I don't know why the 'box' has a Spanish title) was 'Agents of destiny' but I believe it's English name is "The Adjustment Bureau".  The main character was Mat Damon I couldn't work out who the female co-star was.  The film, in a nutshell, was about destination and freewill.  but what made me laugh was, as I was writing this blog, the film ended and the titles came on .  I looked up and saw the names of the executive producers:

small things amuse small minds!

10:37
I contacted the school and they told me to stay indoors and send a list of items I need to them and they would supply them.  I mentioned my return home but they said nothing other than they though that all flights in and out of China were suspended.  I don't think this is the case.
 12:00
I got a text message from my new friend over the road. He asked how I was.  I said I was a little bit low and missed my family.  He invited me for lunch and dinner.  Actually I want to go home!  Haha.
  My friend has been back on to me and again invited me to lunch and dinner.  He even said that his house has six rooms and lots of bathrooms, so if I wanted to stay over at his until this has all passed then I could.  People are so kind.  I will go over to his at dinner time.
 12:10

Today I am trying to find a way back to the UK, but don't hold out much hope of being able to do it!  Although if I get to Tongren I should be ok for Guiyang.  I am exploring a few options.  I've even started packing my bags, a combination of panic and something different to do, but packing my bags upsets me as I see all the things that remind me of home!  Haha!  I can't put up with myself so congratulations to Maria for managing for so long.....not sure how she managed that.
15:30
After that major 'wobble', I am calming down a bit now and catching up with friends online! It seems that China is gradually locking down everywhere, and looking at flights out of China, they are reducing day by day.  Might just have to stay here!  Still safe.  Still well.
15:55
One of my contacts at the school got back to ma and asked if I really still wanted to go back home.  I do.  We are talking about opions.

17:00

Over at my friend's for dinner.  What a relief: people!  We ate and talked a while.  His mum is there and his niece and nephew.  

Then we went to his computer.  

House is freezing 4 degrees outside all the first and windows open.  Every house is like this in China!  No wonder last month that  my boss mentioned that I'd been using too much electricity!

20:40

Still at his computer and I'm.losing the wild to live!  He is teaching his classes online due to the travel restrictions in place here.  Speaking dialect I think but whatever it is it is really fast!  Don't understand a word.  Honestly I might as well be at home now..Just waiting to get a  word in edgeways!

01:17

I managed to get home about half past nine.  Packed a few things in my bag - comfort packing and set about finding a lousey film to watch - comfort watching.  I found one.  Captain America 2!  So I got changed into my hands, pulled some warm clothes on top of them, hunched up in front of my little electric fire and thawed out whilst watching TV, but not before rebooting it three times because the digibox movies came without sound!  Well at least that's what I thought the problem was, but after the third reboot, I noticed that the films that had no sound, also had a red Dolby sign above them.  Looks like my TV can't handle that!  Goodnight!

1st February 2020

 I have been more or less isolated now for seven days.  It is strange how when I am at work, all I want to do is to lie at home and watch TV.  Now I have that chance all I want to do is to get out and have some contact with someone.

What is my work situation?

My contract in China and my residence permit, expires at the start of April, and I have to leave the county before then. However, before the 'outbreak' I had talked with my family in the UK and with their consent, had asked my agency to extend my contract and my visa.  This is not as simple as it sounds as a visa usually lasts one year, and this year I am sixty years old.  Sixty years old is the maximum age or rather the cut off age for Foreign Experts, which is what I am classified as here!  Currently the Agency is closed.  I have spoken to my agent who assures me that the application is in process and will succeed.  I don't always believe what I hear.  So in this instance, I am not sure what will happen.

What is it like here?

 Well, it is quiet.  Less hysteria on social media than there was before, as facts emerge above the rumours, but rumours are still rife.  Jiangkou itself has been closed for the Spring Break, as I mentioned below.  It is still closed now.  By closed I mean that most of the businesses are not open except for Supermarkets and Pharmacies.  As far as I can tell, and I live next to the main motorway out of Jiangkou, there is no 'lockdown'.  As far as I know also there are no cases of the virus here.  However every one has been asked/ordered to stay indoors as much as possible.  And there is is both the problem and the solution.  Staying indoors will prevent the spread of the virus as much as it can be prevented, but staying is responsible for many outbreaks of 'cabin fever'...which of course you know is not a real fever but a mental state caused by wither being alone in one room or being in a house with relatives you'd rather not be with!  Everyone is 'in the same boat'.  How do I cope with it?  there are several ways.  Firstly, just before this happened and after only seven months, I found the movie channel on my TV. Up until now I have not watched much.  To access it you have to switch on an external box and the he second part was more obscure and was complicated by the fact that the cable was plugged in incorrectly!  I can pick, genre, rating, etc etc so after watching about nine 1970's kung fu films, they are sooo bad, I decided to start on Science fiction: 702 to choose from.  I started with the lowest rating ans am working my way up!  Lots more to go!  Secondly, I prepare work for school when and if it starts, and thirdly I study Chinese, reading writing and speaking, although it is to as useful as it may sounds as many of the people here cannot speak and don't understand standard Mandarin Chinese.  It is so varied that at one end of the town I learn a dialect work for an item which when I repeat it at the other end of the town they don't seem to know it ans teach me 'their' word for the same object!  I try and cook for myself which is something I have never really bothered with in China as it is troublesome, there are no UK ingredients, and food is so cheap! ( no butter, cheese, fresh milk, and certainly no meat  that I would trust!).  My school has asked me to stay indoors and if I have any needs to ask them, however I do occasionally sneak out over the road to a friend's house or to join with people on the street or to buy some supplies.  I am not sure how long this will last, but there was talk on 28th that the virus infection rate would peak in seven to ten days form that date, but as the infection spreads, I do not know whether that will be correct.

What do I think?

 Actually I wish I didn't think!  If I look at the facts, as I do far to often, they I think that he spread of the virus and the number of infections from one person to another, is quite alarming, but given the size of China then it is not quite so drastic.  Am I frightened?  Not too much as the death rate, at the time of writing,  seems to be more or less constant, suggesting there is an underlying cause to there deaths, and the facts would seem to confirm this, however there is one anomaly in France which seems to suggest that the  main findings may need to be modified.  It seems to be older infirm people, mainly men, who are dying and despite the fact that I qualify on two of those categories I don't think I fit in the third!  What does worry me is the cabin fever!  I am thinking my self in circles and disappearing up myself!

 Do I want to leave and go home?

Well to escape from Cabin fever, Yes!  To see my family Yes!  but is it a wise decision?  Last night my friend from Beijing texted me and advised me to get out of the country while I can, pointing out that many airlines are not flying to China.  Most airlines say that this is for economical reasons of only having half full planes, but publicity is publicity. I have considered leaving, but if I leave, it means that I need to go through some of the main transport hubs and my chances of picking up the virus and spreading it increase greatly.  Also if I manage to get the airport and the re is a lockdown in the city I travel from then I am stuck there with nowhere to go.  I don't fancy that.  However what I do need to do is make a decision.  No decision is driving me mad.  I have talked with my family.  I have not made a decision.  Tongiht I will talk with them again I hope and then make a decision for the time being.  I know that most people in China feel much as I do.  They want to go home, to go out etc.  but staying home is certainlly teh way to control the spread of the infection, adn as peoile constantly point out "Dont' be the weak link in the chain!".  I fully uinderstand this, and don't want to be such.  Today I also learned that the airport bus is not leaving for Guiyang anymore, and that taxis, another method of getting to Tongren (the first stage of the journey) are also not running.  Visions of my A level French book, La Peste by Albert Camus, briefly popped into my head!  It's amazing what cabin fever brings up!  Haha

What do I think about the outbreak and China's response.

 China's repsonse has been fantastic.  Quarantining of cites, lockdown on transport, it could not have been better.  However, personally I  am not too surprised that the outbreak occured here. (China).  Nobody really knows for sure origin of the outbreak but if it was a food market then that is no surprise.  If the markets are like th ones round here then then it had to happen.  Food hygeine needs to be improved... greatly.  General hygeine needs to be improved greatly.  I am in no doubt about that.  Paw though some of my past posts to see the local markets.  Toilet hygeine also need to be improved greatly, and to be honest I am surprised that there have not been more outbreaks, not necessarily of this nature but of food poisoning etc.  I won't go into details here as this is public and not a place where I am comfortable going into details, but things need to change, greatly.  But one thing I will mention one thing that is being overloked:  Spitting.  If the virus is contained in saliva then there shouild be an order to stop spitting.  Peole still spit everywhere.  Just this morning outside my house, one guy drove up, parked his car, cleared both nostrils like a football plyer and spat on the ground.  Disgusting.  So there is a nice little pile of potential virus and a few more petential bowing in the  wind!

Prologue

Well it all started here at Spring Break.  Everything went quiet.  Shops were closed and gradually the restaurants closed too.  Apparently this is normal for Spring Break.  But hen they did to open again.  I noticed this when I walked into town.  No street sellers, no markets, no restaurants, just supermarkets and pharmacies were open.  I started to wonder.  Then came the news, slowly at first but then quicker.  Social media filled with the usual nonsense and people showed clearly that they were frightened as they did not fully understand the situation.  The facts were out there but people are more likely to read he hype.  Over the last few days the facts have become clearer, and the speech by Dr. Tedros Anhamon finally put paid to a lot of the rumours.  (Incidentally I don't know if he is yet being called Dr. WHO, but the name came to me straight away!)  The speech was brilliant.  I am sure you have listened to it already but here is anyway.  The last part, 7.44 onwards, is particularity poignant, and has been missed out on many of the other recordings I have seen.  The link will open in a new window.

Dr. Tedros Anahman Announces Global World Emergency