We had two flights cancelled in this whole procedure of getting back to China. First the original flight from LA to Guangzhou then a flight from San Francisco to Shanghai were both cancelled. I had looked forward to SF for the weather and opportunity for being outdoors.
But the flight from Dallas to Shanghai was the lucky one. After the Olympics concluded it was only one of two flights allowed to proceed from the US. Of course flying in to Shanghai changes quarantine a bit. Now three weeks will be spent in a quarantine hotel (or a central facility if someone near me on the plane tests positive.) After I arrive in Guangzhou I will have another week and more COVID tests.
I was required to be at the city of departure a full 7 days before flying. There we are to health monitor by answering questions and taking temperatures each day for 7 days. We also have to declare our vaccination status and prepare documents such as passport, visa, resident registration, vaccination form, itinerary, test results….. All of these need to be uploaded to an embassy site to be authorized to fly. Now the waiting begins. Without the code you are not allowed on the airplane.
I stayed in a suite so that I could cook food and not go to restaurants. I still had to teach online from 6 pm until around midnight. A walk everyday, swimming in the pool, and running allowed some breaks.
The hotel was in a corporate area so not a lot of thru traffic. There was even a small nature center 2.5 km away. As it is spring it was wonderful to smell pines and juniper and see everything turning green.
For outings we went to Bass Pro Shops to look at fish and did some mall walking. The weather was pretty decent for early March to be outside. One other colleague stayed in the same hotel. It was nice to walk and talk to someone each day.
It was good to see colleagues and students on the screen. This is my student government students and the other advisor Katie. And the days blended together….
One former teacher, now retired, lives not so far away. I stopped to see her and walk around her neighborhood. Ruth Volz used to live in my compound in China as well. Lots to catch up on!
Two days before leaving we had to go to two different testing sites to get a PCR test. Pretty stressful as the whole plane had to do the same thing at the same places. We prepared all the documents to be ready to upload to the consulate site and then wait to get the green code. I was able to get mine pretty quickly but half of our group were still waiting for their last test result before they could start they process. Needless to say it is very stressful.
Finally we showed both codes multiple times and was cleared to board. Next stop, Shanghai and three weeks of quarantine…