From the moment I walked off the plane in northern Italy on January 28th, there were murmers about the Coronavirus. It was not as big of a deal as it is now, but it was lurking around the corners waiting to make it’s grand appearance in Italy. When I was teaching at the school and exploring cities in Italy, I had no worries of the virus. It wasn’t until late February, when I was on a solo trip to several cities in Italy, that I received news that school would be closed another week following the closing for Carnival (which is held February 22-26). I was quite worried then because I realized that this was a bigger problem than I thought. I was using public transportation and staying in hostels so I became a little paranoid about being surrounded by so many people. When I was in Pisa, there were people starting to wear masks and I didn’t want anyone to touch my phone so I took a self timer photo of me in front of the Leaning Tower. I stopped into a Panineria to get a sandwich and I could hear the workers talking about the virus. It wasn’t until I was on the train to Florence when I saw the mass concern for the virus. I wore my mask as a preventative measure and some others wore theirs as well. In Florence on February 25th, there were still many tourists. Nothing was closed at this point and everyone was going to the museums, cathedrals, and other tourist spots. I became a little freaked out at this point. I had been reading and thinking about the Coronavirus for about a month now and it finally got to me mentally. I couldn’t even enjoy Florence! What a shame that was.
On the 26th, I returned to Northern Italy where I was staying with my host family and we began to talk about the situation. At first, everyone thought “This is just like the flu” or “It only affects old people and the immunocompromised”. Then school was closed for another week. I began to think about returning to Texas, but I was conflicted because I invested in the program and wanted to see it all the way through no matter what. I decided I could travel during the school closures because at that point the virus wasn’t as serious- so we thought. I planned a trip to Lyon with another teaching assistant. We were supposed to go on March 6th. The day after we planned the trip, the other teaching assistant informed me she would not be able to go because she was getting rid of a cough and was informed that if we went to France and they stopped her, she could possibly be stuck in France in quarantine. I was still in the mindset of “This is ridiculous, there are less cases in France than in Italy so I should be fine”. A few days later I was in the Italian Alps with some friends of mine and we received news that our region of Italy (Piedmont) was a Level 3. So that meant no traveling. I cancelled my trip to Lyon because I knew it would not be smart to go at that point. My host family and program coordinator encouraged me to cancel the trip too because if anything changed while I was in France, then I would be stuck and not be able to enter into the Piedmont region. I stayed with my host family in the mountains and we decided we would ski the following day. Before dinner we went to the grocery store to pick up some food and there was a friend of my Host Dad who is a ski instructor. He told us that the slopes are being closed and he was really angry about that. That night we were eating dinner and we received a call from a friend saying that the Italian President put Italy on lockdown. We turned on the TV to see the news and sure enough, Italy was being put on lockdown. At that point it meant that everyone needs to return to their home, where they will stay inside and can only leave the house for work, food, and emergencies. So instead of skiing the next day, we packed up our things and went back to the house in Piedmont.
I then received an email from my teaching program that our program was terminated. This meant that we are now required to go back to our home countries as soon as possible. When we got back, my real Dad was calling me to see if I can come home and was helping me with flights. My Dad found a flight leaving the next day that would go from Turin to Munich, Munich to San Francisco, and San Francisco to Austin. In total it would be a 20 hour trip. I agreed and started packing up everything. I was extremely distraught and upset that I had to leave. I was getting closer with my host family and I didn’t want to leave them so soon. That night we had dinner and played Uno together which is such a bittersweet memory for me. I really grew in the month and a half that I was there because each day had multiple obstacles. I learned so much and met so many great people. I ate lots of amazing food and felt very welcomed by everyone. I didn’t want to leave at all, but I had to. The next day, I said goodbye to my host mom and host sister with tears running down my face. My host dad brought me to the airport and I couldn’t stop crying. I was sad, scared, and exhausted. Everyday for the past month and a half this virus was trying to take away my joy and I felt like it had finally won.
Leaving Turin, I had to fill out a form saying where I was going and why I was leaving. When I got to Munich they asked me if I had been in China or Iran. Everyone was skeptical of me because I was wearing my mask but for me it just helped me mentally. I got on the plane and everyone was sort of spread out. Everyone had their own row which had become sort of normal for me at this point because of the decrease of travelers. An older woman was sitting behind me coughing alot and a man behind her was coughing too. When I got to San Francisco, I had to go through customs. Sadly they were not very skeptical of me even though I told them I was coming from Italy. No temperature was taken, no questioning, only “Did you come into contact with anyone sick” and I was on my way. I was scared by this because even if I am fine, others that have the virus are getting in so easily and that is a big problem. I did not sleep for 26 hours until I got back to Austin. Probably because my body was in survival mode or something. When I finally got back to Austin, my dad picked me up from the airport. Everyone in the US seemed to be relaxed and no one was wearing a mask. I felt like I had gone to the future and just came back and the people didn’t know what was coming.
My dad had a mask and lysol in hand when he picked me up. My parents bought a mini fridge to put upstairs near my room and told me I would be in self quarantine for 14 days. On day 4 of my quarantine I heard that there was a drive-thru testing clinic in Austin. I looked into it and decided I would go the next day. I went to the clinic in Austin and they redirected me to a bigger and newer clinic in Round Rock where they are doing the tests. I went and got in line. About 10 cars were in front of me. They asked me about the symptoms and where I had traveled. The test was a swab that they put all the way up both of your nostrils. The next day I got my results and I was negative for the virus- Praise God.
I feel better now knowing that I am not a threat to others, but this whole situation is very alarming. I hope that we can all come together- worldwide- to find a cure and help others. The positive thing about all of this is that even though we are told to stay away from each other, I think this will bring us together in the end. More people are spending time with their families, reading, painting, walking their dogs, watching movies, cooking, and so many other hobbies that we didn’t have time for. People in Italy and Spain are singing from their balconies and are still hopeful. If I have learned anything out of this whole experience is that I am not in control over what happens in the world or in my life, but I can control my perspective and what I make out of what happens.
Stay hopeful and care for others.