COVID-19 - Our 14 Days In Solitary Confinement
- Ash Collins
- Dec 29, 2020
- 5 min read
After six (6) years and seven (7) months living in Larkspur, a small city located in San Francisco’s North Bay Area of Marin County, our tenure in the US had come to an abrupt COVID-19 influenced conclusion. As our E3 visa allows for 60 days with which to exit the US (it was 10 days), we decided to spend much of this time traveling on trains, planes & automobiles across the US. However all the best laid plans etcetera, etcetera, saw our 40 night itinerary thrown into utter chaos as the US was once again plunged into pandemonium as the onset of Winter, coupled with a second severe COVID-19 outbreak, gripped the country.
As cancellation emails began clogging my in box, we had to make a bitterly disappointing decision; cancelling our epic expedition. Not defeated, we decided to throw down the gauntlet in the face of COVID by compromising our Griswald like US vacation, opting to spend our final weeks visiting friends and colleagues on an emotional grand finale. With visits to Oregon, Kansas, Texas, NorCal and Hawaii, the bell tolled signalling that our time in North America was finally up. So with many fond memories and a tear in the eye, we boarded our Cathay Pacific flight from SFO to Hong Kong en route to Melbourne. All up our journey home took some 43 hours with 18 of those hours spent masked and seated in the Wing Lounge of Hong Kong’s Chek Lap Kok Airport.
With our arrival home into Melbourne complete at lunchtime on the 16th December, the real journey was about to begin; quarantine. A requirement for all international travellers repatriating to Australia is spending 14 days in quarantine confinement. Having psyched ourselves up for our internment, we were not prepared for the encounter that lay ahead.
Having jumped through all the formal hoops at Melbourne Airport, we boarded the airport shuttle bus ferrying the 20 passengers from our flight into Melbourne. Complete with a police escort, our bus turned onto Little Bourke Street located in Melbourne’s CBD (Chinatown), pulling up outside our quarantine hotel. Our initial visual impression of the area surrounding the Mercure Hotel was the quantity of police tape cordoning off the area heavily guarded by Victoria’s finest, representatives from the armed forces and State Government officers. You could certainly be forgiven for believing we had been driven into a crime scene.
Passengers were being led from the bus in family groups / couples, processed by awaiting nursing staff in hazmat PPE then escorted from the street into the hotel lobby. Once in the lobby, you were read the rules & regulations by a member from the Dept. of Justice team for your 14 day “detention“. Once completed, we were ushered into the lift and up to the 11th floor to commence our quarantine incarceration. Before continuing, I will commend the courteous, empathetic and supportive attitude of the DoJ and clinical staff upon our arrival.
Our worst fears were confirmed as and when the door of room 1138 closed behind us. Our next 14 days would be spent in a tiny room within a 3* budget motel that lacked many of the facilities and amenities typically taken for granted in the 21st century. Our 5 large suitcases took up all available floor / storage space, the bathroom would be more at home on the set of Gulliver’s Travels and the two king single mattress & base ensemble had all the forgiveness of a park bench. The computer screen sized tv monitor fixed to a right angle facing wall meant viewing could only be achievable by sitting / lying on the park bench. To make matters worse, the screen has 3 large scar-like marks on the screen obscuring the view. There is only one available power point with a cheap power board to connect our US devices and adaptors. And finally, the WiFi signal is so poor it takes an eternity for email and social media to open if at all.
Coupled with our very modest accommodation, the food being dished up at the Mecure was less than satisfactory. Acknowledging the obvious challenge of preparing 3 meals per day for the 183 peeps in quarantine, much of what the kitchen served up was simply inedible. A consequence of this awful food was the disturbing amount of waste as it could not be recycled; as such, it was tossed into our large, black garbage bags as trash. Once again we were infuriated knowing that the unpalatable grub prepared in the 3* shared kitchen below us, was no doubt well below the quality of what was being provided to our 5* neighbours around Melbourne.
As average as our accommodation and menu was, we could grin and bear our situation if it were not for the fact that others in quarantine had been placed in 5* facilities. What burns deepest is that the Victorian Government’s expectation is that we, in our 3* doss house, are expected to shell out the same amount ($4,000) as our fellow 5* inmates. Suffice to say VicGov can do what a duck can’t do...stick their bill up their ass!!!
On a positive note, we do have to give credit where credit is due. As we were celebrating Christmas Day in detention, our obvious concern was the quality of the traditional fare being served up for lunch. To our great surprise, the shared kitchen excelled, presenting the occupants of room 1138 with a more than acceptable festive feast. Roast turkey was served with pumpkin, potatoes, carrots and gravy. The main course was followed by a chocolate pudding garnished with strawberries washed down with a kahlua espresso martini.
Despite the above average Christmas Day experience, we still faced our major challenge; the tyranny of time coupled with how it could be consumed on a day by day basis. Newspapers, puzzles, music, television, FaceTime and social media were all activities we used to whittle away time. The frustration of clock watching was gleefully interrupted by periodic knocks on our door 3 times / day announcing the arrival & delivery of some substance cunningly disguised as food.
Another welcome distraction was the daily phone call from the nurse / doctor to assess our state of physical and mental health. With no care packages allowed, very few toys to play with, no access to direct sunlight or the outside world, our physical wellbeing and state of mind was a primary concern for our clinical carers. Importantly, there are two mandatory examinations we must have whilst interned...COVID-19 tests. The first scheduled for day 3 and the second on day 11; fortunately we returned a negative result for both.
Well our 14 day stint in quarantine isolation is complete. I’ve little more to say over and above what has already been said...to be honest, it was difficult at times. I am proud of the way my wife and I have handled ourselves in a confined environment, made more difficult by virtue of our very average surrounds. Albeit an enforced stay without choice of location, we will not be taking away fond memories of the Mecure Welcome Hotel. We will read with interest the comments of others that have endured this budget quarantine hotel along with those that found themselves in more comfortable surrounds. Onward and upward now as our next challenge will be to re-establish and re-build our lives and home in Melbourne.
Cheers...roll on 2021 😘 😉
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