Stuck in paradise

Nature has us all in its grip. The whole world is affected! Now fear has also arrived in Vanuatu and everything happened very quickly. What we first followed from a distance in the news is now also changing our situation in Vanuatu.

The trigger was the outbreak of the virus in Australia, New Zealand, and then on some Pacific islands, which resulted in the closure of borders in Vanuatu.

Although there is no confirmed case here yet, the government took strict measures relatively quickly. All flights were canceled and the volunteers from Australia, America, and New Zealand were evacuated. Travelers who arrived in Vanuatu in recent days were put in quarantine. A few days later, schools and many other public institutions closed. And 2 days later, a state of emergency was declared, which is ultimately supposed to paralyze the entire public life for 2 weeks. It is definitely the best approach to act preventively now and hope that no test result comes back positive from the laboratories in Noumea or Brisbane in the next 2 weeks and that the numbers of the sick and the dead do not increase noticeably.

It was also a turbulent time for our small family with a lot of changes, goodbyes, doubts, and uncertainty. And not only we had to consider if and how we might still get off the island.

My sister Merle is practically stuck in paradise. In the week when Anna and Malin left just in time with the two babies, she decided not to leave early and thus missed the first opportunity to return to Germany, which we were not aware of at the time. The borders closed very quickly and nobody can enter or leave anymore. Some locals who are abroad are also denied entry into their home country, and nobody knows for sure how long.

But for Merli and also for us at the moment, it could be worse. In good weather, we are sitting here now and have the opportunity to pass the time on lonely beaches or by the pool in the garden. We play many games (city, country, river with various categories or Yahtzee), philosophize about life, cook exotic dishes, read, and play with Pepe.

Merle is not the only one stuck here. Together with an estimated 13 other German tourists, we are in frequent contact with the German Consul and the French Embassy to find out when Merle will be able to go home. It is rumored that it could take months or happen suddenly tomorrow. This uncertainty of time makes it a bit tedious, but we are all experiencing it at the moment.

Barbara and Sven also stayed in the country, as well as our Spanish friends from Barcelona. That's very nice because many others (all Australian friends) had to take the next plane abruptly. So we meet occasionally with those who stayed behind. We have to pay a little attention in public spaces to follow the government's instructions not to be more than 5 people. All cafes close at 3:00 PM, restaurants only offer takeaway or delivery service, and the kava bars had to close. There is now a curfew at 9:00 PM and nobody is allowed out anymore.

However, the beaches are still mostly accessible, and a few individual resorts are still open. But most accommodations have already closed or serve as quarantine centers.

Michel provides online training plans for his players and does a training session with them every morning at 9:00 AM via live chat.

I have reduced my hours because many of my patients have left or currently have other problems due to the very tense economic situation. I am now in the practice for half a day but still available for emergencies at any time. So we both have a lot of time for Pepe, enjoy being together, and marvel at his daily progress (crawling, sitting, eating, etc.).

That's how it looks here at the moment, and we hope that the situation will relax again in the next 2 weeks, and some light will come into the darkness for Merle.

As for our exact future planning, it's hard to say due to the postponement of the Olympic Games. But who can say for sure at the moment 🤷🏽‍♂️