I Escaped From The Corona Virus in Italy
I (thankfully) escaped from the Corona Virus in Italy… just in time!
Oh dear, goodness gracious! I have never considered myself more lucky, or God’s timing so right as to allow me to leave Italy before the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis absolutely rocked this small country to the core.
You might know from my previous posts Here’s the Low-Down & The Pro’s + Con’s of Becoming an Au Pair, that at the beginning of this year, 2020, I had made a commitment to be an Au Pair with a family in Rome, Italy for a duration of about 3 months (as long as my US tourist visa would permit me to stay). Prior to leaving the US at the end of January, the Corona Virus was a seemingly ~mythical~ problem in a far away, distant country and didn’t quite appear to be a threat to anyone beyond those boarders, yet. In fact, I feel as though many people had shared a similar awareness of this issue, but continued on with day-to-day normalities as though there was no threat. Admittedly, I too had this mindset. So I continued on my merry way to pursue a short-term stint in Italy.
Interested in learning more about becoming an ‘Au Pair’? Check out The Pro’s + Con’s of Becoming an Au Pair.
Though there were definitely some “highs” and “lows” of the Au Pair experience itself, I am so grateful that it provided me the opportunity to at least go on such an adventure- one where I could learn more about myself, grow and truly be exposed and invested in a whole new world.
For the first month of my trip, I would venture to say that society was functioning as normal. I am so humbled that I was able to experience some of the vibrant local flavors and social offerings, while attempting to listen to and learn as much Italian as I possibly could manage. I attended Mass on Sunday mornings with my host family, in some of the most jaw-droppingly beautiful cathedrals, I could have ever imagined; I was able to aimlessly wander the cobblestone streets of Florence, while ending my day, rubbing shoulders with the numerous other travelers attempting to share the stunning panoramic view that Piazzale Michelangelo provides at sunset. All the while, the reality of the Corona Virus was hidden away in the far corners of our most dire concerns. Even when there was a possible concern that a traveler might bring the first confirmed cases to this small country, the locals kept aware, but light-hearted of the situation with jokes and positive attitudes.
The first twinge of genuine concern I noticed among the natives appeared when a group of travelers with confirmed cases of the virus among them, were going to be returning from overseas to Italy and undergoing specialized confinement and treatment, in a very highly qualified hospital in Rome. The fact that these people were knowingly ill, and they were being brought home into the SAME city that we were inhabiting, breathing the SAME air and using the SAME resources that we were, was a bit of a red flag.
While now alert and aware of this enclosing threat and the seemingly compulsive measures of hospitals popping-up over night to help combat this terrible situation in other countries, we all still continued about our daily activities a bit doubtful of the authenticity of the information that was being shared, in consideration of the actions that were being put forth. Maybe it was a lack of fear, a lack of proper information being promoted or simply a choice to persist on our part, but it wasn’t until the last week of February, 2020 that things started to reveal the very real possibility of this pandemic, snowballing complications each day and causing protocols to become so uncertain.
It wasn’t until the University that I graduated from this past December released an urgent request that all students studying abroad in Italy (and really Italy alone) return home as soon as possible, that my parents felt the concern and in turn, urged me to follow suit. This was one of the first times where I felt so shaken about a decision on my own accord: having to break a commitment and come home from my travels abroad 2 months too soon, OR remain in a foreign territory and deal with any illness and possible complications there. Ultimately, because of the uncertainty of the situation, I chose to embark back home to the US, so that I might be able to limit the number of uncertain factors I’d have to face on my own, and so that I would be closer to my family, should anything happen.
Within the first few days of March I was able to book a return flight and come home. Mind you, all of these decisions were merely 1-2 weeks prior to the President’s decisions to shut down the boarders for any kind of International travel. It appeared to be a relatively even split between the travelers who wore face masks, and those who did not. There did not appear to be any dire concern, yet proactive measures to screen travelers were in the very baby steps of being implemented. After the booking agent at the gate scanned my boarding pass, we were unable to walk the boarding runway until after our body temperature had been scanned via an iPad body heat map reader.
Once on the plane, it was interesting to observe other people and their behavior. My flight was still at about 90% capacity, people were unhesitatingly sitting next to strangers with coupled seat tickets, a man without a mask anxiously used a sanitation wipes to cleanse his immediate area then used hand sanitizer on himself to complete the job, those who did have a cough would instinctively cover their mouths. It appeared that things were on the verge of a mass change for the protection of public health, but none of us could have imagined the reality that we would be blindly walking into the coming weeks and months ahead.
Interested in learning more about what it means to be an ‘Au Pair’? Check out Here's the Low-Down: Au Pair, what?
Upon my return, admittedly, self-quarantining for a set period of time was not heavily encouraged quite yet, but I did try to be mindful in the following weeks by limiting my exposure to others because I did not know if I could be a asymptomatic carrier of the virus. Meanwhile, upon corresponding with my host family in Italy, I learned that as the numbers of confirmed cases of the virus sky-rocketed, the children’s schools had been shut down and moved to on-line learning, in-person work had been moved to half-capacity or remote from home, and people were starting to be unable to leave their houses without verified purpose and confirmation that they lived in the immediate area where they might have been stopped to be questioned on the street.
I truly had no idea that had I tried to stick things out a bit longer, the ability for me to return might have been complicated immeasurably. Several other Au Pair friends that I had made in Italy would remain there for a bit longer than I did, but one told me that she had to travel for at least 5 straight days, essentially flying from country to country to any border that would allow her access to the other, for the next closest step towards home (the US). Pure and utter madness.
Being where I sit now and the perspective that I currently hold, I couldn’t be more grateful for escaping Italy and the Corona virus when I did. The timing was impeccable. Now, with the complication of everything else that is going on, I am so humbled at how the past several months of my life have played out- I graduated early, but was able to be fully anticipate and enjoy the experience; I was able to travel internationally and have some life-changing opportunities; I now have such an awesome job in a place I wouldn’t have even planned on moving to in the immediate future, but love. Though during those times I found moments of frustration, confusion, excitement and extreme uncertainty, I am blessed by the situation and life chapter that I now find myself in.
I’m sure this time of quarantine from COVID-19 holds many lessons, all unique and variant upon the individual that choses to learn from it. But one more prominent especially during the early stages of the shut-down was how evident it is that we are not really in control- of our plans, our lives, our situations. As much as we might try really hard for something to “work out”, or turn out how we expect it to, or arrange the “right” circumstances to come into our ideal order, it’s not really up to us. There are things that are possible that are beyond our imagination. Sure, right now, essentially the world shutting down was not the best unimaginable thing we’d want, but there’s still the opposite side of the spectrum that allows for beauty, and unexpected joy, should you opt for that mindset.
Though my trip to Italy was cut short, I am so grateful for the opportunities that I was able to have during my stint as an Au Pair there. The memories and lessons that I learned, along with the self-exploration and adventure that I dove into, are ones that I will cherish for a long time to come. I’ve created a little re-cap of some of my special moments. Most of the time, I love storytelling with photography and really think I captured many beautiful times through some photos that I have already posted. But I wanted to try my hand at videography, and capturing these experiences in real time, as they were occurring, so that it might be a more authentic re-telling or nod to the moment. So with that, here she is:
Now what are my current whereabouts? Well, that’s a story for another time (likely very soon considering all this free time we’ve got).
Thanks for taking the time to read a little bit about my Italian Au Pair adventure. It truly means so much to me. If you have an experience of your own that you’d like to share or have any questions, please feel free to comment below and let’s get a conversation started!
xoxo,
Brittany
Hello there, friend… I am an adventurer, photographer and enthusiast of living life to the fullest. I enjoy writing stories to document various lessons I’ve learned throughout my life. Similarly, I love using photography to capture a precious moment in time as a way to revisit it. I hope you are able to find something here you enjoy, even if it is just following along my journey. I truly do appreciate you!
