Life Goes On 2020

Day 8, we’re over the half-way point! Another day of work, coming up with ideas on how to engage with students outside class, in a virtual world. The Swiss-Aussie travelling lads and his team had a brainwave deciding on a new initiative: Time2connect. Daily online, virtual activities for students, under the supervision of a staff member or student volunteer. Mine obviously being Time2exercise, encouraging students to join a 30-min daily workout routine to stay physically active! Bring on this virtual world! The Italo-Aussie instead, discovered Tik-Tok, spending the day on it, laughing, giggling, grunting at the repetitiveness of some, but never-the-less more and more sucked into the virtual world, adamant he’ll participate with his own Tik-Tok contribution. The working day also brought sobering news, with the corporate headquarters informing all staff of imminent hours and salary cuts equivalent to 20% of all our jobs and remunerations, only to top it off with the closure of one of our...

Day 7 of isolation. The Swiss-Aussie travelling lad started working from home, a welcomed distraction from sitting on the couch, surfing the internet, reading news or looking out the window. I showered, shaved and put on my business shirt, deciding shorts and bare feet is a perfectly appropriate work at home business attire, sitting at the dining table tapping away at my laptop and joining in a deluge of online meetings. I was given an update, I was briefed, I was quizzed, I was asked, I was challenged, I was given instructions. I needed to work and loved it. For the Italo-Aussie instead realisation sunk in of what another 7 days of this means, sitting around, partner’s laptop going into overdrive and him? It was a bleak day. We needed each other more than ever, giving each other support, encouragement and positiveness! Thank goodness for online aerobic workouts! That re-set the mood… Only another 7 days now…

Saturday and Sunday, days of relaxation, days of rest, days of shopping, spending money and meeting friends. For these 2 travelling lads it already was plenty of rest and relaxation… Too much of it, starting to drive us insane! So, we made sure to vacuum the carpets, mop the tiles, wipe the bathrooms, clean the toilets, water the plants, tidy the balcony and 30 minutes later back to our rest and relaxation… Isolation is starting to take its toll! Thank goodness for a Sunday of sunshine, giving us an excuse to sunbathe, listen to music and drink, having a chat with friends, settling on the couch with a nice movie and a freshly backed vanilla-chocolate cake. We can do this, only another 8 days to go!

Day 4 of isolation. We have started having virtual coffee catch-ups with friends, setting on a time and all of us sitting down on facetime with a coffee in hand. Inspired by our Jane Fonda aerobics workout, we found a slightly more up-to-date session, with less laughter and more sweat. It does the trick, making us sweat, keeping us distracted and especially keeping us physically active! We chatted with our dear friends in Melbourne, checking in on each other during this quarantine. We received news of the two Swiss being in transit through Doha and boarding their leg to Zurich. We made ourselves a Bloody Mary Mexican style (with Tequila) as suggested by my brother. Not the same but indeed tasty! Finally, it was time to provide mum with the facts of our journey, no longer keeping her in the darkness nor hiding the stress behind smiling pictures of us in Bali, by a pool, with drinks… She knew something was up, she was concerned at all our travel movements, keen to know what was hiding be...

As the 2 travelling lads settled into their 3rd day of isolation, ensuring to eat healthy with salads and tuna (with the occasional Prosecco), discovering old Jane Fonda aerobics workouts to keep fit (and laughing our heads off), the main concern was for the last day in Bali for the remaining two Swiss of the party of four. They reported Bali had completely shut down, Jalan Laksmana completely closed, no restaurants opened anymore, no Circle K or Mini Mart to buy essentials, no more traffic. Online check-in had been done the previous day, flight status was being checked hourly (and looking good), the driver organised and confirmed. The waiting game began. Usually one wants their last day of holiday to go a slow as possible, but invariably it just flies by. Not so this time, every minute felt like an hour. Finally, the time came and we had confirmation of their arrival at Denpasar airport. Obviously way too early for the check-in counters to be open, further waiting was called for. Repo...

We spent the second day of quarantine (isolation) trying to catch-up with all the various messages from the Australian government: 10 people at a funeral, only 5 at a wedding, do not go outdoors, do not gather in groups, but you can do an outdoor workout with maximum of 10 people. You must stay home, unless necessary, but go to work. Which one is it? We spoke to friends and colleagues, hearing their frustrations and receiving their updates. Why on earth is this country not in lock-down? Why are we interested in saving the economy at the cost of human lives!? Every person potentially exposed to COVID-19 is a person that could pass it onto someone else, who might pass it onto another person, till they pass it onto a more vulnerable person, a person at risk: a father-in-law with pre-existing respiratory conditions; a friend recovering from a cancer treatment; an elderly grandparent. This country must go into lock-down right now, TODAY! These 2 travelling lads are flabbergasted at the inac...

Once we were in the air, aboard our Perth to Sydney flight with the lights of Bali fading away into the night and our meals served, we settled into the flight with a strange unease. Usually one looks forward to their own bed, their routine back home. No so this time. Especially not knowing what was expecting us in Australia nor how things will develop in the coming weeks. More importantly though, once the lights were dimmed being on this flight seemed like experiencing a disaster movie, where passengers aboard an aircraft where seconds away from a sudden catastrophic event. As we were sitting in our seats, we were wondering how many passengers onboard this full flight have COVID-19? Maybe being a child of the 70s, growing up with the Airport film series doesn’t help… By the way for any of you in quarantine, download them, still greatly entertaining to watch, especially if you’re an airline fanatic! We arrived in Sydney with the sad update from the captain that for all staff onboard thi...

So here we are, us 2 travelling lads, sitting at Denpasar Airport, waiting for our Sydney flight. We spent our day at our oasis, our villa, immersed in the lush tropical green of the plants, luxurious furnishing and a pool to jump into when-ever the heat got too much. We all just needed a lazy day of “dolce far niente” after the emotional roller-coaster of these past couple of days. Something positive has come out of all this kafuffle! This last week has completely taken it out of us, tested us, challenged us, but our bond has grown stronger than ever. We did a last visit to the shops, as my dearest brother insisted on cooking us a simple plate of spaghetti al sugo, a home cooked meal to bring back some normality, a final family meal before we now parted ways. Us flying to Perth via Sydney hoping we land prior to the border of Western Australia closing; them waiting for Friday to fly to Zurich via Doha, also hoping our home state of Ticino is not going to be put into lock-down from the...

These 2 travelling lads started the day with a stroll to view the burnt-out wreck of Bintang supermarket, taking familiar alleyways and roads we have taken so many times before. Familiar they looked not. Down the length of Double-Six there was no traffic, no scooters, no cars, no vans, no taxis. No locals, no tourists. No open shops, stand, café or restaurant. So eerily quiet! Once we reached the main road things improved slightly and we reached Bintang to see the devastation of the January fire. As we paused and gazed at it, a security guard approached us for a friendly chat about anything and everything. To our surprise the pop-up Bintang supermarket was open, so we ventured in. What a relief! What an immediate boost to our senses. The familiar sight of shelves full of produce we cherish so much from our previous Balinese shopping excursions. The smell and sounds making us feel normal. Amazing how such little things immediately boost our moral. We shopped, and shopped, and shopped. W...

The day started early by all of us 4 travellers meeting at the agreed time of 8.15am, with the one objective: Re-route the Perth-Zurich trip to a Denpasar-Zurich one. We had packed everything: laptop, passports, all our money, all valuables on us, just in case. We hopped into a taxi and off to Qatar office, via the zig-zagging Balinese roads, empty of tourists, with closed shops, little traffic and locals just busy with their phones and staring out into the distance. A sad sight, a very strange sight. At the destination the obligatory forehead temperature reading by the hotel staff, to let us pass. One of us returned 33.5 degrees, obviously an acceptable temperature reading which was acknowledged with a kind smile. We reached the still closed Qatar office to see masses of waiting foreigners once again, we tried to figure out what type of queue system was in place, how one is supposed to line up? The Swiss travelling lad ventured to the door to read the various signs and try to spy on o...

And so the day started with a first hit, receiving a message from a friend, indicating all Air Asia flights out of Bali where cancelled as of 24hours from now... A quick thinking Italo-Australian travelling lad looked and found flights with Jetstar, at very reasonable pricing, swiping that credit card faster than one can sneeze. We felt on top of things, amazing individuals with plenty of resourceful ideas. Off we went for a final breakfast overlooking the stunning bay of Nusa Lembongan and made our way to the speedboat office for our trip back onto Bali. The number of tourists wanting to get off the island grew bigger and bigger by the minute, the tiny speedboat was full to the grim of anxious Westerners cancelling, changing, shortening their trip and making their way home. Our car ride to the hotel in Seminyak to be re-united with family turned out to be a pleasant chat with two like-minded Sydneysiders taking a cool, calm and collected approach to the whole COVID-19 situation. Not p...

We wake up to the sound of sunrise chants making their way up the cliff from the village temple, we open the curtains to the sight of Mount Agung across the bay and make our way to the friendly Balinese staff taking our breakfast order. It is pure bliss. An oasis of tranquility, with no sound of cars, no boats, no scooters, no honking taxi drivers. Just the waves crashing onto the reef and the occasional birds. We rented a scooter just based on a handshake and one 100,000-rupiah banknote, no names, no receipts, no driver licenses were exchanged. Off we went on a scooter whose back brakes stopped working way too many moons ago and tires as deflated as a child, whose ice cream just plopped onto the pavement. No helmets, no protective gear, just sunglasses, a hat and an open shirt. No need for maps as there is only one main lane doing the round of the island, with various dead-ends that invariably take you to a breath taking view of the ocean and a couple of warungs, beach bungalows or re...

As we woke up to a beautiful view of Mount Agung, Bali’s volcano, against a blue sky, reflecting its massive size in a tranquil turquoise lagoon lined by palm trees, we were greeted by anxious messages of friends and loved ones about Australia imposing further travel restrictions. This made us ask: “Are we safe?”, “Are we being responsible by not jumping on the next aircraft home?” Upon assessing the current situation of being on an island swept by a fresh breeze, with the sunshine tickling our skin and the pool’s chlorine disinfecting it, the first reaction was: “Yes, we are safe & being responsible by not panicking!” Our thoughts went to my brother and his daughter also in Bali with us, but not on the same island. Are they safe? Furthermore we have two dear friends, our soul mates, currently in Indonesia for business and an additional very dear friend now living here. Are they safe? We reached out and all of us agreed we are not having any current health issues that might put us ...

We set out to explore this island of Nusa Lembongan with a walk along the beach shacks. All along the way we were greeted by locals, having nothing to do due to the dramatic lack of tourists. We passed bungalows, warungs, diving centres all empty, not a tourist in sight. A sad sight, knowing how dependent the local economy is on tourism. A few voiced their surprise at seeing us, but we re-iterated our trust in their hospitality and the safety of being outdoors and mingling, despite COVID-19. Especially in a deserted environment as this, there is hardly anyone around. Indeed it seemed as if we traveled back in time to a Bali of the 80s or 90s that we hear so much about from intrepid travelers that experienced it. There is only one paved road, the main circuit around the island, a small one-lane sliver of bitumen. The rest are dirt tracks, leading to what-ever side business one wishes to visit, lined by shacks, barracks, abandoned properties or lush plot of lands, where nature still rule...

We left the hotel for the beach and the speed boat trip to Nusa Lembongan. It seemed quiet, but being 10am in the morning, nothing seemed unusual or different from a normal day in Bali. The arrival of the boat with hoards of tourists and suitcases seemed to reconfirm our impression that Bali had escaped the madness and business and daily routines seemed unaffected by COVID-19, but it had to hit us again… Upon boarding the speedboat, we did realise there were only 6 of us “starting” our holiday, versus the masses that had just disembarked. We arrived in Nusa Lembongan to empty streets, vendors of a range of services falling onto each other to offer what-ever we might need. The staff member greeting us ashore indicated the 3000 Chinese tourists coming every day have stopped completely, boat charters have gone bankrupt and the island is severely impacted by the massively reduced number of tourists. The hotel we are staying at is extremely quiet, with maybe 8 guests at most and all persona...

We took the Swiss visitors to the airport, just to be absolutely sure there had not been any last-minute restrictions put in place which might hinder their departure. Off they took. We followed 3hrs later, arriving to an eerily quiet Perth airport. At boarding we did realise the aircraft was extremely empty, only having 15-20 passengers on the way to Bali. We flew with facemasks on, considering an enclosed space to be of higher risk then being in the fresh air. We arrived at an EMPTY airport, with a health card to be filed stating our health (or illness) and be presented to the waiting quarantine officer. Customs was a breeze; luggage pick up easier than ever. The money exchange come with gift vouchers for airport shopping and a discount for the taxi. The travel to Sanur was via traffic flowing like it seldom has before. Sanur beach and streets seemed as busy as always, with the locals enjoying a Sunday afternoon and probably masking the lack of tourists. In the meantime, Australia ann...

We all woke up with a hangover from too much Prosecco, a sign of a good party! With COVID-19 updates coming by the hour, we decided to change my brother and my niece’s travel plans and bring their departure to Bali forward, i.e. same as us, Sunday March 15th, 2020. To change, re-arrange, book travel with less then 24 hours to go is a logistical nightmare and something that cannot be done without human intervention. Air Asia was contacted to bring forward the existing booking by a week, only to have the automated chat function unable to cope, the human chat function was unresponsive and the only phone lines seeming to cope directing us to be on hold to the UK. We aborted that topic. an economical flight was found via Batik Air. With passports at hand and credit cards at the ready the nifty fingers of this Swiss lad hacked away at the keyboard, wanting to be sure to lock it all in. Regrettably the credit card facility didn’t seem to be as responsive as my fingers and only a phone call to...

Finally, the wedding day reached us. We were all in high spirits, dressing up in our white shirts and jeans, making our way to the registry office for a pre-wedding glass of champagne with our friends Maelle and Peter. We made our way up to the wedding, were the rest of the family was waiting. We chatted and laughed as we waited for our time slot, only to be told to have some patience, as the room had to be disinfected. COVID-19 hit us again… The wedding itself was absolutely divine, with a slight hint of disinfectant in the air… The lunch and subsequent drinks with all our friends were an absolute blast, with some guests voicing concerns about our upcoming travel to Bali or all of us hugging and kissing and laughing in such close proximity. Was it to be one of the last social gatherings of 2020? Time will tell, but life goes on…

Our Swiss visitors thoroughly enjoyed Perth during the first two weeks, making the most of cycling paths, easy access to beaches, the sun and the warmth. We were all having a wonderful time, enjoying ourselves, talking, laughing, eating and drinking on our balcony, overlooking a leafy Perth suburb, enjoying beautiful sunsets. Work and the news kept us up-to-date with COVID-19 developments, as the whole of Italy entered a lock-down, something unheard of or never imagined possible. It concerned us, but it seemed so far away to hardly impact our upcoming trip to Bali. We started getting excited for our wedding. As the day started approaching, the "toilet-paper mania" hit, when Australians country-wide suddenly stripped shopping centres empty of their supply of such paper. At the same time more countries started imposing travel restrictions, with the USA closing its borders for anyone coming from the Continent. Australia did shut its borders to anyone coming from Italy, but lit...

Finally, 20 years in the making, my dearest brother booked his trip Downunder to come and join us with his daughter, my niece. Us, the 2 travelling lads, were ecstatic. My brother and niece were to join us March 2nd, 2020 and stay till April 8th, 2020 (6 weeks). During one of the travelling lad's trip back home, we discussed final details in preparation of their visit. We booked leave from work to be available during their stay. To surprise my niece we booked a secret Bali trip, for 1 week, for all of us and unbeknownst to them, we planned our legal wedding to happen during their stay in Oz, followed by a honeymoon week in Nusa Lembongan just us, the 2 travelling lads and them joining us in Seminyak for the second week. Christmas 2019 came and went, summer 2019/2020 was ticking along nicely, preparations for their arrival were coming along nicely, when COVID-19 hit. At first it didn't really seem to impact THE trip, but slowly things started to change... China put their epice...