Fucking keen as to get the new version of Friends of Mineral town, cause, let me tell ya, i’ve had a fucking month.
(It’s covid related so, i’m putting it under a cut, just incase anyone wants to stay away from that shit. Also please don’t message me anything covid related because i’m pretty stressed atm, but I think its an important thing to share because this virus presents so differently in everyone.)
So, basically. My husband and I are back in Aus.
It was crazy being in the UK and being in lockdown (obviously very important!) We jumped on the plane in heathrow and had to wear masks for the entire 30 hours trip (also very important!!!)
Australia currently has a scheme for new arrivals, it’s essentially forced quarantine. Its been really good for keeping rates down since the virus was being spread by overseas traveller (except for melbs, that fucked theres up, and is now in state lockdown. google it.). The government pays to put you up for 2 weeks in a hotel, and pays for all food provided (unless you get your own). This has literally just changed overnight though and they are now charging travels for mandatory lockdown in NSW.
So, we get to Sydney, and its to nuts to see. A Bio security agent gets on the plane and takes a head count (maybe 50 on the plane all up). We all get off and line up for a health check, where a nurse takes your temp, asks if you have any symptoms currently and gives you information about potential symptoms. Then you go through immigration, and then you get taken to the baggage area.
I am very privilege, I’ve travelled a lot, but i’ve never seen Sydney airport so empty before. Only one baggage carousel was open, after you grab your bags, you check in with the Australian Federal Police, who sits you in seats 2 metres away from each other, and you wait there for the NSW police to escort you to buses to take you to your lockdown hotel.
We get called, get lead to a bus, the Army was also there putting bags onto buses. Jump on the bus and off you go, they don’t tell you where you are going, but we rocked up to a very nice hotel in the CBD. After checking in again with the NSW police, you get told your room number and we were taken to the room by a solider. We weren’t given a key, because you are not allowed to leave the room for two weeks. There are security guards on every floor and police in the lobby to enforce this. All meals are dropped at your door. You can get care packages and uber eats if you want, but you cannot under any circumstances leave the room.
A nurse calls every day to check on your mental health and for symptoms, if you say you have any of the symptoms they test you. On day 10, they give you a covid test regardless of if you are showing symptoms or not. We had ours day 10, it came back negative and then on Day 13 we had a pre departure screening with nurses and the army. Day 14 we were out. My in laws picked us up, and we went back to my home town and had a small BBQ with our friends.
I should note, btw, that this was allowed. A lot of Australia’s restrictions in NSW have eased.
On the Sunday, we woke up, and my husband said he wasn’t feeling so good, just run down we thought, we’d just spent 2 weeks in a hotel with no fresh air, and its winter. We went to a friends house for breakfast, and on the way home he said he was feeling way more congested. I said, even though we tested negative 4 days ago, we need to get another test. So we went to a drive through clinic and got another swab to be safe, called everyone who was at the BBQ to let them know this so they could stay inside for the day, just incase.
Literally he had no cough or fever, it was like he had a slight head cold. The next day, we got the terrible phone call to say that the test results were back, and my husband was positive for covid. I was negative.
Obviously, extremely stressful situation, we were staying with his 60 year parents. However, NSW health organised for us both to put up in another hotel, separately. So thats were I am now. We are on day 7 of another 2 week lockdown. My husband is feeling loads better, and it seems he has an extremely mild case of it. He did develop a cough a few days ago but its pretty much gone now. If he doesn’t have symptoms for 3 days as of tomorrow then he can leave the hotel thursday.
I am still here till next tuesday, and all our close contacts are also isolating in their houses. We are going to stay away from everyone for another week when we get out, just to be sure.
All our close contacts are fine as well so far as. Nurses call them daily to check up on them. A few of them have had swabs due to some symptoms but all swabs have come back negative.
My husband was also on the news because of this! My home town has been covid free for 8 weeks, so there were all these articles about an ‘international traveller’ that had returned with the virus. Luckily, we didn’t go anywhere in the community.
Basically, moral of the story is, in these crazy fucking times, just get tested, if your country will let you. Even if you’ve just got the sniffles. Its better to be safe than sorry.
Also extremely grateful for the way Australia is dealing with it. Its not nice to be locked in a hotel for a month, but its important to do to make sure the community is safe!!
(I have a balcony this time btw, so does my husband, so we can get fresh air and sunshine!)
