Life in Macau during COVID-19

We are now entering our second month since COVID-19 began to impact us here in Macau. After the Christmas holiday, we resumed classes the beginning of January and then had two weeks of instruction before a two-week recess for Chinese New Year. It was in the latter part of January when we began to hear about this Coronavirus in Wuhan. Then, the last week of January we as a family went to Taiwan for CNY, the first time we've been in Taiwan for CNY since 2008. We had a wonderful time visiting family there, and enjoying my brother-in-law's new home in Changhua. But we were also following news of an increasing number of cases of the virus. Masks were hard to find, but then Donna's sister told us of a factory in their hometown that makes masks. We went there and bought a supply just in time. The day after we bought ours, the Taiwan government announced that all manufacturers were to send their supply of masks for the government for a centralized distribution.

The University of Macau then began to send urgent messages, instructing students in mainland China to remain there. They instructed academic staff (professors) to return immediately, and if they were spent time in Hubei Province, to self-quarantine on campus for two weeks. We returned from Taiwan as scheduled by February 1.

The first week after we returned was close to normal. While there were no classes, activities were not greatly limited. But then a case of COVID-19 was found in a casino worker, and the casinos shut down. That was perhaps the most dangerous time for the virus.

Since then the situation has slowly improved. The last person infected was recently released from the hospital. The government resumed full administrative services last week, and the university admin staff also resumed their duties. We're still teaching classes online. But this is now running more smoothly. And we look forward to the day (hopefully soon) when life gets back to normal.

But, and this is the big problem, the world outside Macau looks increasingly fraught. The virus has now spread widely, with many more countries impacted by this virus. There will not be a return to "normal" here or any place in the world for the forseeable future.

Meanwhile signs of spring emerge. The air quality has been great for all of February and March - something that I never experienced in previous years here. The azaleas are in bloom, and the birds are singing lustily.



Wishing all of you good health in the time of COVID-19!

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