It’s official. I’m adding a 13th animal to the Chinese zodiac calendar. Instead of the tiger, I say we change 2022 to the year of the sheep. Let me explain.
Less than a month ago, our daily lives here changed overnight. Prior to the announcement in early December that zero-Covid was changing to a more scientific and dynamic policy, we lived a life that ensured we would be safe from the virus. For years, we’ve stood in lines in all kinds of weather to get our daily COVID test. The results of which were bound to our QR code.
Getting our COVID tests in all kinds of weather
I didn’t take this photo, but it circulated in our chat groups on a typhoon day here in Zhuhai when the brave weathered to storm to get their daily COVID tests.
This code is something needed for everyday life; from entering the grocery store, to crossing the bridge on my commute to work at a checkpoint, to entering our home. The code would remain green if you were negative, yellow if you had crossed paths with someone who might have also crossed paths with a COVID positive person, and red if you were positive.
My green code
Close contacts would be sent to a quarantine facility for up to 14 days, and secondary close contacts would have their entire building locked down. We were only in this situation one time in three years when there was a secondary close contact in our high rise. Around midnight that night we had a team of hazmat workers knock on our door, asking us to all come downstairs for a COVID test. The next morning when I took our dog down the elevator to go outside to pee, the building was locked. I went to the basement. The door to the garage was locked. I tried the back. It was locked. I saw someone in a hazmat suit outside the window and typed into my Google Translate app: “My dog needs to pee. Can you please unlock the door? My test came back negative.” I then held the translated message on my phone up to the window. Mr. Hazmat just shook his head no and walked back to guarding his post. I had a Chinese friend call the apartment complex for advice. They apologized, but said due to safety, they could not unlock the door until they were sure everyone in the building was COVID free. Perhaps he could pee in the lobby? My friend suggested the roof. The roof it was. And thankfully, 12 hours later we were free. Not too bad, but it was the day that started my anxiety. Okay, I wish I could blame all my anxiety on that day. I’m just an anxious person in general, but I started becoming a Doomsday Prepper. I had a suitcase packed by the door with 12 cans of spaghetti, powdered milk, a box of cereal, a box of Pop Tarts, paper bowls, 4 spoons, eye masks, ear plugs, a first aid kit, a bivvy, books, and an emergency packing list for each person in the family. I also had a Doomsday thumb drive with at least 40 hours of movies on it for me and the kids. Why? Well, if we were to one day be sent to a quarantine facility, I would be prepared. I would ensure my kids would have food and entertainment. It sometimes took over 12 hours for our PCR results to come back after our daily tests, and I would obsessively check the results before being able to fall asleep each night. I’m not ashamed to admit I sought medical help and started some anti-anxiety medications and more regular therapy during this time.
Why didn’t you just leave? (You might be wondering). Other than the fact that we couldn’t due to closed borders… We love it here! We really do. Did I mention we have a sea front apartment with phenomenal sunrise and sunset views every day, in a tropical weather environment? Did I mention Rob and I love our jobs and our kids are getting an excellent education? That we’ve had the opportunity to walk along the Great Wall with a dusting of snow coming down, or that we were face to face with the Terracotta Warriors, or that we were never able to afford a trip to Disney before moving here, but now we’ve been to Disney Shanghai and Hong Kong? And as much as the zero-COVID policy gave me anxiety, it worked. So we went with it. It’s a wonderful life here after all.
So imagine living in a way that involves scanning a code multiple times a day everyday, standing in line for daily PCR tests, and constantly wondering if today would be the day you would need to use your Doomsday suitcase; and then overnight you find out the policy is gone. The first few days were surreal. Everyone was walking around in a bit of disbelief. Was this real? But that afternoon when we didn’t get our temperature taken to enter our apartment, and the next day when I didn’t have to drive through a QR checkpoint on the way to work… It definitely became more real. It was as if the past three years were all fading away. And then it hit. The wave of sheep. Within one week I started noticing sheep emojis popping up on Chinese social media. I found out the Chinese word for ‘positive’ (yáng 阳) has the same pronunciation as the word for ‘sheep’ (yáng 羊). So people were indicating they were now COVID positive with the use of a sheep emoji. Within 2 weeks, several people at my school were sheep. The next week, so many people were sheep that we had to move to online learning again. And just a few days later my family also became sheep. On Christmas. I was a bit surprised by how quickly we became infected once the floodgates opened, but I’m glad to get it out of the way.
Because I know that most of you have already been sheep, I won’t go into detail about how awful this virus makes us feel. It has not been fun. We also had to cancel our anniversary/New Year’s Eve trip to Macau. So I get why we were shielded from it for so long. But soon this will all be a distant memory and we will be able to travel again! Quarantine for international arrivals is ending on January 8, and the world will once again be our oyster. We may plan a trip next month to Thailand or the Philippines. We even have a flight booked to come home this summer for the first time in four years.
This experience, living here during such an interesting and sometimes scary time, has changed me and my children for the better. I truly believe it’s made us more resilient. I love the quote from Mr. Rogers: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.‘” This was true in every single instance of scary times here. China possess a unique strength in the fact that there are helpers everywhere. So many willing to help when needed. I took this photo below on one of the days when we were stuck in a COVID testing line during a sudden downpour with no umbrella. I wanted to remember the moment because in the midst of being upset about yet another frustrating COVID moment, a very kind Chinese gentleman behind us in line simply extended his umbrella over our heads and walked that way with us until we reached the testing tent. He spoke no English and we only spoke enough Chinese to express our gratitude. He got soaked, I’m sure. But he was a helper. And I’m happy to join that flock of sheep.
The hot and humid season of summer is almost over here in China. What does that mean you say? Nothing. It means nothing. The area we live in here in China will be sweltering until Christmas. Many folks in this region tend to get away from the heat by heading to the northern or western regions of China where the temps can be slightly cooler and the humidity isn’t constantly bashing you over your sweaty head. So, for our vacation this summer we… well we just went somewhere even hotter. But there were pools. And waterslides. And beaches. And Cronuts. So there’s that.
According to Wikipedia, which I quote here because my history students seem to think it’s the best source for factual information says that Atlantis ” is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato‘s works Timaeus and Critias, wherein it represents the antagonist naval power that besieges “Ancient Athens”, the pseudo-historic embodiment of Plato’s ideal state in The Republic.[1] In the story, Athens repels the Atlantean attack unlike any other nation of the known world,[2] supposedly bearing witness to the superiority of Plato’s concept of a state.[3][4] The story concludes with Atlantis falling out of favor with the deities and submerging into the Atlantic Ocean.”
I’m going to leave all those links in there in case you, like me, sometimes like to slip down the rabbit hole of often unverified information that is Wikipedia. Anyway, yes, we went to Atlantis. No, not the Bahamas. No, no, not the one in the UAE. No, my good friend, the lost city of Atlantis is actually in China. I mean yes, the Atlantis resorts have locations in Nassau and Dubai, but we choose the one in China for obvious reasons that are mostly due to an ongoing pandemic. We didn’t even know such a thing existed. It’s a little different to just search the web for things to do here in China because of many factors, but as I was randomly net surfing last fall, I stumbled upon Atlantis here in China that’s only an hour flight away. Plan A for this summer was to go back to the States, but that didn’t happen so we switched to plan B: spend too much money at an amazing resort and have a kick ass time in the process all while not strangling each other.
My better half made all the plans, as is her way. She loves planning and is really good at it, which of course frees me up to be lazy, so its a win/win all around. We planned to stay for a week in the area total, spending a few days in the tourist beach town of Sanya for a few days before heading further up the coast to Atlantis. We hit up Sanya last summer as well, so plans were a little easier this time. I’m not sure if my wife would agree with that though so you better ask her. But at least we were better prepared this time. We had our little green codes on our phones up and ready to show anywhere that was needed – the departing airport, the arrival airport, checking into hotels, going to some restaurants and wherever else anyone is worried about Covid-19. I think many in the US would freak out with these type of regulations, but honestly to me I feel safer and it gives me more freedom to easily go and do what I want. We also have our vaccines. We got the Chinese one of course. Don’t ask me what it’s called, or how effective it is, I just got stabbed in the arm twice so I could travel easier. Side note – I’m not sure, other than saving lives (obviously), what good the vaccine is for. I thought it would somehow make it easier to travel. I had this idea I could just show them my vaccination record and they’d be like, “Cool.. you got the shot. Have at it. Go crazy.” This didn’t happen though. Maybe it will in the future, but right now we’re smackdab in the middle of wherever this pandemic is going to take all of us, so everyone buckle up. And by buckle up, I mean get the damn vaccine.
Okay, back to the vacay. We spent the first few nights in Sanya at a lovely hotel that had a pool directly off our balcony. We booked a family room, because we just wanted two beds instead of one. What family meant at this hotel, was a room that our children would love – aqua-themed pandas on the wall, a tent, lot’s of color, a starry ceiling light thingamajig and numerous stuffed animals. The beds were moderately comfortable, the pool was fantastic and the breakfast buffet had enough western options so my super picky son could get enough calories. We did very little at this hotel other than swim and eat. We did head into town a few times. One trip was to an outlet mall. Yes, they have those here in China. It was kind like Tanger Outlets (for my NC and SC peeps) but much more upscale with a Prada store thrown into boot. On a second trip in town, we went back to the same little entertainment/shopping/restaurant area we visited last summer. On the previous trip, the place was a ghost town as the pandemic was just getting into full swing, but this time the joint was hopping. We went at my son’s favorite restaurant in all the land – Pizza Hut, explored the numerous shops and then, for no particular reason at all, I decided I’d bungee jump off a tall tower. My family was genuinely concerned for my life, but those things are totally safe right? What’s more, it was super cheap. That inspired confidence. Oh yeah – the guy at the top strapping me in and giving me all the safety instructions? He only spoke Chinese. So we communicated through a series of hand gestures and grunts, but by the end of my briefing I was pretty much sure I would jump successfully… to my death. Just kidding, more like only serious injuries. In the end though, I closed my eyes, did a backflip off the tower and bungeed safely down and back up without so much as a stain of pee pee on my shorts.
I have teased Atlantis thus far, but fear not, we are finally getting to the meat and potatoes of this blog post. We got ourselves a DiDi (the Uber of China) and headed up the coast from Sanya proper to the lost city of Atlantis. I keep calling it that because it sounds cooler. I mean, the DiDi driver just used his phone’s map to get us there, so obviously this place isn’t as lost as it seems. We got there way too early to check in, but we were allowed free entrance into their waterpark. So we dropped off our luggage, took some quick pics and then headed on to every waterslide Atlantis had to offer. Ok, I… me… just Dad, Rob… did all the waterslides. My wife doesn’t really like spinning around in circles while getting water up your nose. My daughter also doesn’t enjoy even the casual trip down a lazy river. My son, the champion that he is, did only a few of the slides with me, and then made his way back to the wave pool. So, that left me to do the more crazy stuff, like plunging through a see through tunnel surrounded by sharks (which were hard to see because there was so much water up my nose and in my eyes) all by myself – cue Celine Dion music here. The waterpark itself is pretty amazing though. Instead of actual tickets, or scanning something on our phone, the resort just took pictures of our faces and used facial recognition to let us inside the place quickly and efficiently. They have all the typical waterparky things – the slide that drops you down a pyramid at a mostly vertical angle. It reminded me of my days at the PTL waterpark. Ah, Jim and Tammy Fay. There were a number of other waterslides, the lazy river (that had tiny rapids), a wave pool with a full concert stage in the middle of it, a good selection of western food options, a kiddie section with surprisingly fast waterslides that I couldn’t ride because I’m an adult whatever dumb rule anyway, a dolphin show, a sea lion show, and a Cirque du Soleil type show in the water complete with some extremely attractive Russian performers.
Even with all the offering of the actual waterpark, I was a little worried we would get bored after numerous days we’d be spending there. Thankfully, Atlantis is a full resort with much more to offer than just a waterpark. They have an aquarium, 3 different large hotel pools, the BEACH of course, a train, helicopter rides, a small mall, a Gordan Ramsey restaurant and a bunch of other stuff I can’t remember because I’m old and forget things. We even forgoed the waterpark on a few occasions just to fit in as much as the rest of the resort had to offer.
Here are some highlights:
The Train Ride around the resort – It’s like a backstage pass to all the inner workings. We even got the see the dolphins lazily swimming in a behind-the-scenes area.
Gordan Ramsey Restaurant – This was a date night for the Mr. and Mrs. The food was excellent, but overpriced and there wasn’t nearly enough of it.
The Beach – China doesn’t have a lot of nice beaches. But this one is amazing. You snake through a lovely little path of trees and then the beach just is there, looking lovely both day and night. But they still won’t let me ride a jet ski without some dude attached to my back. Mobius would be so disappointed.
The Aquarium – Lost city themed, so the design is very cool. Most of your typical aquatic life, but they also had Belugas. One of them was being very inappropriate while we were there. I feel like he is my Patronus.
The Cirque du Soleil Show with Hot Russians – Surprisingly good water show with high dives, one of those ring of death things, hot Russians (Did I mention them?), a sea lion and a plot that make no sense whatsoever.
Cronuts – The waterpark had a shop that sold these delectable treats. We missed the craze in the States so it was nice to have them here. VERY good, and even my son craved them.
A full on Water Concert/Laser/Fire Show every night – Remember that stage at the wave pool? We saw a magic show, the hot Russian performers and then a wild DJ dance party where my kids proudly displayed how white we all are.
The Hotel Pool in the evening – a nice way to wind down with kids activities, a band playing Richard Marx tunes, and an excellent place to smash your forehead on the bottom of a pool.
I am the type of guy who usually wants to do something different every time we go somewhere. But I’d be more than happy to go back to Atlantis again anytime. All in all, we had an amazing vacation. The family is now gearing up for school starting in a few short weeks. Both me and my love are transitioning into new (better) roles with our companies and are excited to continue this phase of life. We continue to miss our friends and families in the States and around the world. I hope you stay healthy and happy and you too can one day have the privilege of seeing beautiful Russians swimming in a pool for your personal entertainment.
One of the many goals whenever the fam and I disembark in a new country is to obtain my driver’s license as soon as possible. So, it was the same when we moved to China. It just took a lot longer to actually obtain said item than any of us expected. Between Chinese regulations and a world altering plague, today I FINALLY got my Chinese Driver’s license, 9 months after arriving in the country and 4 months after beginning the process.
Did you guys know there’s a pandemic going on right now? You might have heard of it. Covid-19 or something like that. Yeah, it started here in China. Or you can believe the thousand other conspiracy theories out there. I’m pretty sure the second gunman on the grassy knoll was Chinese. The Coronavirus did put a rather large kink in my plans to get my license. By kink, I mean postponement. As in, hey nothing is open here in China so you can’t get anything done. On top of that, the whole “getting process” is a bit convoluted. Being a seasoned expat at this point in my life though, I was prepared for what I figured would be an arduous task, giving myself the whole fall of last year to understand how to do everything.
Here’s a recap –
In January of this year, we purchased a car! Yes, we got a car before I had a driver’s license. Yes, this is counterintuitive, but my MUCH better half Alanna found an incredible deal on a very old car, so we quickly swooped in and purchased it. The deal involved the family participating in a Chinese tea ceremony in which cigarettes and a free kitten were offered. We took neither, as all we wanted was the car.
In any case, after some wheeling and dealing, the car was ours and we took it home. By home, I mean our complex. Which was also a process. We had to register the car first in our name, then get it registered at our complex, so that the gates would open when we entered and exited. Finally, we also received a private parking spot, in the underground garage beneath our building. Ok, I don’t think it’s under our building. It might be under another building. It’s like some giant subterranean world down there.
So I had a car, but no way to legally drive it. But like I said, I’d been doing my research. And by doing research, I mean Alanna used her vastly superior brain to figure everything out and then told me how to do it. The process was time-consuming and I began it sometime mid-January. I first had to get some documents translated into Chinese – some official stuff, my US license and the like. Next, I had to go get a medical report. Yes, to get a driver’s license in China, I was required to go to Hospital Number 5 (Flashbacks abounded) and get a physical. They were mostly concerned with hearing and vision, which I passed according to Chinese standards. I also had to get some passport size photos taken. No, they don’t “take your picture” at the Chinese DMV. You bring your own pictures, which they use on the medical form, the actual ID and a few other important documents that I can’t begin to understand.
After about a week’s worth of paperwork, I finally had it all ready to go and could head to the Chinese DMV to get my license. And then… CORONAVIRUS. This was when everyone went into quarantine here in China. Everything shut down, and that included pretty much all government facilities, the DMV of course being one of them. Getting my license was put on the back burner for a few months at least. I did illegally drive my car inside our complex once, but that is the closest I’d come to actually being on the road in anything more powerful than a scooter at this point in our China experience.
In late April, as businesses were slowly opening up here in my neck of China, there was hope (wishful thinking) that the DMV was opened as well. Since Alanna was physically working at this point, I urged her to speak with her Chinese colleagues about such a DMV opening opportunity. To our great joy, these nice colleagues said that the DMV was open! Hooray! I immediately gathered up all my paperwork, got a driver and was taken to the DMV. Which was closed. Not open. The guards at the gate of the place told my driver (who translated it to me) that the DMV was not open, had no idea when it was going to open, and they couldn’t quite understand how we didn’t know such a thing. So, with my head hung low, I headed back home and began the waiting process all over again.
Fast forward to the third week of May – in which Alanna’s colleagues informed us that now they were SURE the DMV was open, and that I could go apply, finally, for my Chinese Driver’s License. I grabbed a driver and was shuttled back to the DMV, which this time, thankfully, was open! Oh, but the story doesn’t end here. Not in China. The process is always a little more difficult than it should be. On this first successful trip to the DMV, I was allowed only to make an appointment, so that I could come back to the DMV at a later date in the week to take the test to get my license. After they checked my paperwork, they gave me a few other papers that I would use to pay, and also make my appointment with, which had to be done on WeChat, when I left, and it was all in Chinese, and I was thoroughly confused. Once I got home, it didn’t even work right that evening, but the next morning, with the help of one of my Chinese friends, I was able to successfully make the appointment. I made the appointment for a few days later and began to study for the test. The test is just a written exam. Those that have a license from another country don’t have to take a driving test. The written test though, I had to take. It is 100 questions, 40 which were agree/disagree and then 60 which were multiple choice. You have to make a 90% or better to pass this test. I wasn’t worried. I’m Smarty McSmarterson. How hard can it be, right? I found some similar tests online. Most of the questions seemed pretty straight forward and involved just being safe on the road. I would pass this test with flying colors. Right? Wrong!
I arrived at the DMV last week to take my test. It was raining, I was confused on where to go, but there was one nice lady who worked there that spoke English. As soon as I walked in, all the people working yelled for her to come help me. She told me the process:
Step 1 – Go to the second floor of the next building and put all your personal items in a locker.
Step 2 – Go to the third floor of that building, show them your paperwork and passport and they will set you up with the exam.
Step 3 – Take them exam. If you don’t pass, you can immediately take it again.
Step 4 – Go back to the second floor, get your stuff from the locker, then go watch a video.
Step 5 – Get your license.
I headed out, not remembering half of what she said. I did find the second floor of the next building. Seeing a bunch of lockers in the area kind of told me I was in the right place. Everything’s in Chinese though. I sorted it out – I had to push a button, which gave me a ticket. Then, one of the random 100 lockers would pop open. I put my stuff in the locker, closed it, then I would scan that ticket when I came back to open the locker. With my stuff put away, I headed up to the third floor to take the test.
They checked me in, and through what I can only describe as grunts and sign language, they asked me if I wanted to take the test in Chinese or English. I decided to take the test in English, since, you know, I don’t speak Chinese. Then they gave me a number – 93. I turned around and there were at least 150 cubicles, each with a computer inside them. I would say that half of those cubicles on this day were already occupied. I waded through the rows until I found number 93, then sat down and began my test. It’s all done on the computer, by just clicking a mouse. There is also a camera monitoring you the entire time, which you can see as you take the test. At one point during the test, I was keeping my hand up by my face because wearing a mask gets annoying. One of the DMV fellows came by, and in a very loud voice and broken English shouted “HAND DOWN”. I suppose he thought I was cheating, as if I had the answers written on my hand.
Side note – they used to cheat on the test back in the day. Originally, there was no English version. You just paid someone who knew Chinese to sit and take the test with you. What that really meant – you paid someone else to take the test. You didn’t even need to know anything. They did the whole thing for you. But not anymore, I had to pass the test all on my own.
Back to the test. It started out with most of the same type of questions I expected- the ones about safety and being a nice and courteous driver. But then, about half way through the test, it veered dramatically in a totally different direction. Suddenly the questions were about how many penalty points you would receive for specific violations, or what was the speed limit on an unmarked two lane road in the country, or what kind of sticker should be on your vehicle for the car to be legally driven. I had never studied nor even seen any of these types of questions. So, after I finished my test, I saw that my score was 80. Which was 10 points less than what I needed to pass. Oh, but I had a second chance immediately! And I didn’t pass again. I made an even lower score that time. I shuffled out of the testing room, made my way back to the second floor, retrieved my personal items, then headed to the other building and back to that one lady who spoke English so she could tell me what I needed to do. The lady was nice and explained that I could just retake the test in a couple days. I would have to of course make another appointment when I got home, on WeChat, in Chinese, but by now I am practically an expert at such trivial things.
Clearly though, I needed a study guide for this test, as with those type of questions I was severely underprepared for during attempts 1 and 2. An expat colleague had taken the test in early January and had passed, so I reached out to her. She led me to an app I could download. This app had all of the 1000 possible questions that could fill the 100 question exam I would take. It provided a nice way to study, gradually getting me to the point where I was comfortable with all the questions.
Alanna’s favorite question – It is not safe for a woman to wear high heels when driving. Agree/Disagree. The correct answer was agree, but we loved how the question was only directed at women So, if I wanted to wear high heels while driving as a man, then it would be perfectly safe according to the Chinese law.
After spending the rest of this week studying the questions on the app, this morning, a Saturday, was my next scheduled appointment. As we were waking up this morning, we were under a Red Rain Warning. That means, according to my wife, some kind of typhoon-like precipitation was in our area. Oh joy, that’s a good start to the day, Apparently, if this type of warning happens during the week, school is cancelled. But hey, DMV would be open right? I know what you’re thinking, but thankfully the place was still open and not flooded when I arrived. The only thing that was different on a Saturday was that it was much more crowded than during the week. Let my clarify though – while there were a million (that’s an over estimation) people there, China is super efficient. There’s no waiting outside in a line and spending 5 hours at the DMV like my previous experiences in the good ole’ U S of A. I went through the same process – I checked in, dropped off my stuff, headed to the test room (pretty much every cubicle was occupied this time) and took my test. Which I passed. The first time. 94% That’s an A. It’s not an A+, but I was never an A+ type of student so I’m happy with the results.
Step 4 – The video
With the test over and done, I headed to step 4, which was to go watch a video. Now, I’d been warned about the video. It’s a graphic, real-life video meant to scare the bejesus out of you to make sure you drive correctly and safely. I remember such things like that in my driver’s education course in the 90s – “Blood on the Highway”, I think it was called. But Blood on the Highway would have been considered a G Rated movie compared to the NC-17 horror flick I was forced to watch today at the Chinese DMV. I won’t get into the gory details, but… wow… they showed everything, multiple times, in slow motion, and zoomed on certain parts that they wanted to emphasize. This video was all in Chinese of course, so I had no idea what was happening, only just watched the graphic images and scenes that it showed… over and over again. During the video, a DMV official came around to everyone to check paperwork. I didn’t have the same paperwork as everyone, so I was a bit worried. But after we translated to each other through our phones, he told me to stay in the room after the video was done and he would get me sorted out.
Pledge of Allegiance to China to be Safe and Honorable Driver
After the video, one the DMV dudes got on a microphone and told (I guess. I don’t speak Chinese) everyone to stand up. I think this was the “Pledge of Allegiance to China to be Safe and Honorable Driver” part of my day. We all raised our right hand, balled it into a fist and placed it close to the right side of our head. We all then had to read out loud some paragraph on the wall. Yes, it was in Chinese. I just stood there, thankful for once to be wearing a mask as the 100 or so other new Chinese drivers read the pledge. We all agreed to something at the end. I think I’m probably a member of the Communist party now. I’m really not sure what was happening. Everyone else left, but I stayed behind and did what I was told. The DMV dude pointed to some symbol on the wall.
The Symbol
He told me to go back to the first building, find that symbol and then go the window there to pick up my new license, in a few hours. So I did that. I found that symbol. I sat down and waited. And it only took about 15 minutes before they told me that Luōbótè’s license was ready. Luōbótè – that’s my Chinese name. It kind of sounds like Robert, but with an L. It’s written as 罗伯特 in Chinese. I had to write it like that a few times. I am totally not good at Chinese.
Anyway, here it is. My license –
I now have my very own, totally official, was a breeze to get – Chinese Driver’s License. I plan to go out and drive all over my adopted city. When it stops raining of course.
Before I get to anything else, let me go ahead and update you on the one thing most everyone asks us about: We are perfectly safe, happy and healthy here in China. The actual risk of any of us contracting the Coronavirus are very minuscule. That being said, since the outbreak began in early January, we’ve been through a series of unfortunate events that I surmise will be fun for you to hear about.
Okay, first things first – a quick Coronavirus timeline for the uninitiated. And please forgive me if this information is slightly inaccurate –
DEC 31. At the end of last year, doctors in Wuhan, China were treating dozens of cases of what they thought was pneumonia. Days later, those same doctors figured out it was a little more than your typical pneumonia.
JAN 11. The first person dies from what is being called the Coronavirus. The 61 year old man was a regular at a wet market in Wuhan. Wet markets here in China are large open food markets with fresh meat, seafood, fruits, veggies and all kinds of other assorted food… things. The markets in my city are pretty similar, with the most unusual things you can buy to eat are turtles and eels. They are alive. Yes, you buy them like that. Then you take them home and do the deed. The Chinese like their food really fresh. The Chinese like many eastern Asian countries, enjoy a variety of fresh exotic foods – like snake and bats. The rumors are that the virus started with a bat, or a snake, that was eaten by a bat or snake, who passed the virus on to the other animal, and then THAT animal was sold at the Wuhan Wet Market , which in turn was passed on to some unfortunate human being. At least, that’s what I’ve heard. China is pretty closed off about information, going in or out. I’m pretty sure they just let the CDC in the country last week, a full month after this whole fiasco began.
On with the timeline –
JAN 20 – First confirmed cases outside of China in South Korea, Japan and Thailand.
JAN 21 – First case reported in the United States.
JAN 23 – The city of Wuhan, which has over 11 million people, was quarantined by the Chinese government. I mean cut off, like… you can’t leave. Go out of your house. Imagine that happening in the US? Ya’ll would go crazy. For reference, in case you’re freaking out and are worried about our location, we’re about a 12 hour drive south of Wuhan. And that’s just a tiny part of China.
JAN 30. – The World Health Organization declares a a global health emergency as there are thousands infected in China and many others in different countries.
JAN 31 – Major airlines stop service to China. The US restricts entry to the US, imposing a 14 day quarantine on people coming from China. By this date 213 people had died and nearly 9,800 had been infected worldwide.
FEB 2. – First Coronavirus-related death outside of China.
FEB. 5. – Hundreds, mostly Americans, were evacuated from Hubei Province and a cruise ship in Japan is quarantined.
FEB. 7. – A Chinese doctor, who tried to warn others, died from the coronavirus.
FEB. 10. – The death toll in China surpassed the number SARS killed worldwide. 40,000 people have been infected.
And on, and on and on. I’m tired of writing the timeline. Since this blog is about us, let us rewind and tell you what WE were and have been doing during all this.
When the whole shindig started, Alanna and I were on holiday from work. Chinese New Year was almost here and the kids were out of school. We had planned on spending a good part of the holiday in Hong Kong, just to get away from the mainland for a bit. We had just began to hear the ramblings of some virus, somewhere in China. Heck, I had never heard of Wuhan until all of this, and I live in China. Everything was still pretty normal where we live as we left China on Jan. 23 and headed to Hong Kong. Sure, some people were wearing masks, but with the air quality here in China, some people are always wearing masks.
We had a great two or three days in Hong, doing our normal touristy stuff – We visited a beach where found a 3000 year old rock carving, visited Hong Kong’s favorite son – Bruce Lee, spent some quality time in a Cat Cafe, and most importantly ate amazing food, minus the Pizza Hut and McDonald’s orders for our kids. But as we watched the news in our hotel room, we began to see the scope of what was happening. And it became quickly apparent in Hong Kong, as within only a few days EVERYONE was suddenly wearing a masks. We also heard rumors that it was now mandatory to wear masks back in our home city. So, we bought masks, or the 4 masks that were still in stock. Many reports today say that these masks really aren’t all the effective. I mean, they aren’t actually tight over your mouth and nose. Those little virus particles can get in. But, we wore them whenever we went out. At any rate, it made us stand out much less than we used to, so… bonus.
By the time the weekend had rolled out, we were getting ready to head back to the mainland, because we were expecting at least Alanna and the kids going back to school. I still had a few more weeks left before I returned. That never happened. Schools all across China were postponed from starting back, and pretty much all businesses began to shut down, save for grocery stores, pharmacies and restaurants. As we traveled back to the mainland, the temperature checks began. At length. This would sometimes happen randomly during a border crossing in China. Now… it was happening at every border crossing. And at the hotel, and at our gate of our complex.
Chinese officials were urging everyone, even in our city, to just stay indoors and avoid contact with people pretty much as soon as we were back in town. We really didn’t have a ton of food in the house though those first few days back, so we ventured out to the closest restaurant within walking distance – Burger King. The city at this point already looked like a ghost town. No one was around, except for security guards, police, a few people here and there, and those poor suckers who had to serve us a Burger King. Of course, we were the ONLY customers there. Normally during lunch time, its packed to the walls. Not that day. and not since.
The next day we took a trip to Sam’s Club. Yes, they have one here. And though its quite different from the American version, it usually allows us to stock up on a bunch of stuff. Not so much this time. You know when they predict a light dusting of snow and there’s no bread and milk on the grocery shelves? That’s how it felt at Sam’s Club. People were scrambling for the last best meats, the eggs, all the good stuff. Or at least the good stuff that we liked. There were still plenty of noodles.
At the beginning of February, the virus was in full swing, and Alanna and the kids were in the midst of online schooling. The Chinese internet is a bit… restrictive here, so anything online is going to be fraught with difficulties. At this point, we were looking at options for getting out of China. There was always a quick vacation destination nearby, such as Korea or Thailand, and we also discussed just making the long haul back to the States to wait all this out. In the end though, we came to the conclusion that, for now, staying put was best for our family. And by staying put, I mean we were going to hang out in Hong Kong for another week. So on Feb 7, we headed back across the border. Hong Kong, unlike mainland China, still has mostly everything open. No, Disneyland and most of the large public tourist destinations are closed until further notice, but the malls, restaurants and the like are all in full swing. So even though everyone walking around with a mask on and worrying about dying, or you know, China pressuring them into being more like China, most Hong Kong people are carrying on their day to to day lives.
Yes, this elderly couple is doing Tai chi with swords.
We stayed in Hong Kong until Feb. 12, doing the same things we normally do – relaxing at the hotel, eating great food, all the jazz. Biggest bummer this time was that, because of the virus, the hotel’s amazing hot tub and pool were closed. We’ve been back (stuck) in our city in China since the 12th. Cabin Fever is a real thing. More restrictions continue to be piled on us as the days go by. We all tried to walk to Burger King one day early last week, and on the way there, they told us only one person was allowed through this makeshift gate. So only I went to BK that day. They are doing this, from what we’ve heard, to restrict too many people in public areas. I mean, really. If they would have left my wife and kids, there would have been a total four 4 people in that area instead of just me. This past week has been more of the same. We are in somewhat of a routine now. We get up and make sure the kids do their online school work, we play games, we run around the house, we listen to music, I clean things because I’m bored. We have watched a LOT of TV and movies, catching up on many things we missed. Alanna says Parasite was just okay. I didn’t watch it. I did watch 1917 though, and Alanna agrees with me that it should have won Best Picture over Parasite. That’s saying a lot as Alanna’s least favorite genre of entertainment is war movies.
We’ve heard rumors just today of a new restriction. They are closing our “side gate” to our complex. Its the gate we can walk out of to get to Burger King. Now, if we want to get to Burger King, we’ve have to talk about 20 minutes out of the way to get there. Also, there’s rumor that only one family member is going to be allowed out of the complex at a time so they can monitor who is in and out. We’ll see how that goes if it happens. At this point, they’ve also shut down mostly all the restauraunts, save for a few that will only do take out.
Hey… thanks to each and everyone of you for reaching out to us. It does mean a great deal to know we have so many of you who care about what happens to our crazy nomadic family. Honestly, to us, it feels like a “first world” problem. We are terribly inconvenienced by what is happening, but it could be a lot worse, and IS a lot worse for a lot of other people. We are thankful for our health. We are thankful for each and everyone of you. And, at least at this point and time, we are thankful that Burger King is still open. For take out.
