Life in Beijing in the Time of Covid (a quick bulletin, details to follow)

Don’t worry–we’re all fine!

From concerned emails I’ve received since my last post went out, I realize that the perception of testing positive for COVID here remains a frightening prospect, given all the media about lockdowns, enforced quarantines, children being separated from parents… We really appreciate your thoughtfulness in reaching out to ask.

Things have really changed!

The Chinese government has gone from zero to sixty on lifting restrictions in the past few weeks. Therefore, COVID is rampant. Community testing is no longer a requirement, and has become a Catch-22, anyway. For cost-cutting or whatever reasons, kiosks like the ones in this neighborhood batch ten people’s tests together. Before contact tracing on phones recently ended, every person in a batch was identified and required to quarantine at home or in a hotel for a few days until the culprits–people in the batch who actually had COVID–were identified. Amy and Mirah and the nanny had this happen to them, even though they were not themselves positive.

So, when the kids tested positive it was using home tests. They didn’t have to report to anyone or go anywhere for quarantine. Amy and the nanny had the worst cases–headaches, fatigue, cold symptoms–but Jonathan and the girls really just seemed to have colds. Everyone slept a little more than usual, but by the end of the week they were either COVID-free or displaying only faint pink lines. In fact, on Saturday, we went to one of the Pak Pak restaurants for lunch with Jonathan and the girls, all in fine fettle.

Chanukah Celebration on Schedule

We had a wonderful first night of Chanukah at the apartment, and the girls “helped” in the kitchen with potato peeling and latke-frying supervision, table setting, etc. That was Sunday night.

Monday, Monday…

Monday morning guess who tested positive? Eli and I. It was inevitable. I’d felt pretty sniffly and sore-throated all weekend, Eli caught up, and after almost three years of no COVID (we think), we had our bright pink lines. Unlike millions of senior citizens in China, we are fully vaccinated and boosted and in generally good health. So, now we’ve experienced this rite of passage, and are doing fine. We have stayed in the apartment, but there’s no alarm on our door. In fact, they kids have come for candle lighting, if not dinner or sleepovers right now.