On June the 16th, 2021 we arrived in Hangzhou. After a long day, and a short flight, we arrived.
Here it got difficult.
They separated everyone, except mothers and children.
Like any family, we pack our suitcases with what we need. It’s not separated into hers and mine. Suddenly we had to organize the bags to prepare for our two weeks apart. Now we’d communicate through WeChat and Whatsapp.
Oh, everyone in their own room? That sounds like fun.
Had we known beforehand we could have prepared ourselves, logistically and mentally. Then there’s the financial burden of paying for two rooms.
We had no idea. Emily was pretty shaken.
We accepted that we couldn’t convince them to change the program. So we resolved to get through the next couple of weeks.
I taught. Emily chatted with our family.
A lot of blocks were in place, and the VPN wasn’t working.
There seems to be little concern for anyone’s mental or emotional state.
What doesn’t kill you … isn’t trying hard enough.
As long as the VPN was working we could open most sites. Emily was doing well. I was able to talk her through getting the VPN up and running on her phone and tablet. She could watch church services, participate in her fellowship, stay in touch with family, and watch Korean and Chinese dramas … so that’s good.
What am I doing with my downtime?
Watching movies, teaching (although this week has been mostly downtime) chatting with Emily, Wyatt, Adryan, and Grace.
I napped, which wasn’t usually planned. Sat on the bed to play solitaire and the next thing I knew, I was rested.
I started watching Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
It’s not a happy tale, but it’s engaging.
They’ve pulled the threads of a lot of different comic stories together, and it works.
If I wasn’t worried about Emily and our family, being isolated wouldn’t be so bad.
I spent the 2nd-week teaching and struggling to complete government-mandated health apps. The isolation has been taxing. Thankful for social media, but hate it at the same time.
The last few days were stressful. Lots of paperwork, real and virtual.
We had blood tests, and nasal and throat swabs last night. Nothing says romance like an extra-long Qtip.
Last Wednesday was our last night in quarantine.
On Thursday morning we were released. It was a bit more literal than expected as we had to wait in our rooms to be escorted to the elevator.
Emily called up to my room to ask where I was. I put a cheerful voice on to tell her I was waiting for my escort. My cheer became a bit forced in successive texts over the next hour.
Finally, at about 11:00am, I stepped into the hallway to see my Knight in Shining Hazmat about to release me from the Tower. I’d given up hope of staging a Rapunzel-like escape.
We’re in Shenzhen now. Enjoying the freedom of a morning walk, and being able to walk into a shop.
Our freedom is underscored, mostly by worry about family and friends back in Indonesia. Indonesia is currently undergoing a steadily worsening lockdown.
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