Travel in the era of COVID — Part 2

A little over a month ago I embarked on my first international trip since COVID (part 1 is linked here) — from Singapore to France & back. The trip was personal, not quite leisure nor business nor emergency — just trying to get on with life and travel in the “new normal”. I had read a lot of articles on the impact on travel, poured over the new formalities, but I was still nervous since I could find myself unexpectedly stuck in transit, maybe between borders or in a foreign hospital.

The Departure — Empty Airports, Empty Planes

The departure from Changi Airport was sobering. Only a few of the check-in counters were open, otherwise rows after rows of counters for various airlines were empty. Once airside, the busy terminal that I had been through scores of times before was desolate — the shops’ shutters were closed, the restaurants and cafes cordoned off, only a handful of passengers in the halls. The ambiance was like a mall after hours, products were still on display, yet locked up & everything eerily quiet. Surprisingly the formalities were otherwise pretty much normal through immigration, security, and boarding, which only added to the strangeness of it.

Air France 257 is a 290-seat Boeing 787 aircraft. It was virtually empty (as expected), we were maybe a dozen passengers aboard. Before the cabin crew offered welcome sweets, now we were given disinfectant wipes. I was given a disposable surgical mask to replace my Singapore-issued one. There was an interesting addition to the normal flight safety video: “in the event of an emergency” should we need to use the oxygen masks, we were reminded to take off our surgical masks… it seems obvious albeit in hindsight. The flight itself was on par with its usual quality of meals & drinks. We could stretch out in the row to sleep (masks on), although I felt slightly guilty for taking advantage of the emptiness. It was an otherwise normal, uneventful, quiet flight.

Landing in Charles-De Gaulle Airport in Paris, the handful of passengers meandered off towards baggage or transfers, through the automatic immigration. There were no obvious health check of incoming passengers. The French travel declarations that I had painstakingly downloaded, filled in & printed out were never examined. Transiting to the domestic terminal for my connection, the airport became actually quite busy. The flight from Paris to Marseille was full. Arriving in Marseille, I picked up my bags and that was that, I had arrived.

Bienvenue en France— A Curious COVID Experience

After the past 8 months of being stuck in the little city-state of Singapore, I had a twinge of excitement for this getaway to France as it was a bit of change and something new to explore, as well as to compare & contrast the differences of how the two were dealing with COVID.

Day-to-day life in Singapore had started to feel somewhat normal. It consisted of working from home, walking the dog, occasionally going out to the supermarket or local restaurants, meeting up with friends (of course no more than 5 at a time). Once outside, everyone has masks, they scan the QR codes and systematically check-in and out of places for contact tracing, and follow social distancing markings. That said, most everything is open, shops, restaurants, cinemas, and besides the new formalities it is for the most part back to normal. Singapore’s infection rates are down in single digits, one can go out without much concern.

Arriving in France, my impression was that it was mostly business-as-usual, notably accommodating the local tourists during the ongoing Toussaint vacation period. But trying to navigate the French measures that were put in place around COVID was unclear and disturbingly casual . At the time when I arrived, depending on the department and their infection rate, masks were either recommended-but-optional or mandatory. Certain larger cities that were affected had started to implement curfews and close down bars and restaurants. Figuring out what measures were being enforced in a given place was an art rather than a science, typically the source of information was simply asking someone local.

Stores and venues generally mandated masks, had disinfectant dispensers for washing hands, and limited the number of customers in the store. One interesting measure that was distinct from Singapore was that most stores had put up clear Plexiglas barriers between the cashier & customers, making it feel a bit like a ticket booth at a carnival.

Most locals had for the most part stopped the practice of greeting each other with the famous French “bises” on each cheek, but there was no other obvious social distancing. In general people were consistently wearing masks, although there were some noses hanging out, some wearing them under their chin, some occasionally not wearing them at all. Compared to Singapore, being out and about in France felt a bit like playing a pandemic version of Russian roulette.

So I tried to travel in a manner to minimize unnecessary exposure: mask & disinfectant, avoided crowded venues in favour of less crowded and outdoor ones, rented a car & avoided public transportation when I could , stayed for longer periods mostly in AirBnBs, cooked-in instead of eating out. When AirBnB wasn’t practical (ex: overnight stays mid-trip), I did stay in a couple of hotels. For the most part, these hotels generally demonstrated reasonable awareness and practices around COVID sanitation & hygiene such as room cleanliness.

Mid-Trip, 2nd Wave, and Confinement Abroad

But the infection rates were growing out of control and the hospitals were filling dangerously close to capacity. About 2 weeks into the trip, around the last week of October, rumours started to spread that there would be another lockdown across all of France. I raced back to the village where I was planning to be for the final 2 weeks. Running up to and after the announcement, the news was full of debates on the type, effectiveness and fairness of the measures that were put into place as well as the short notice of the announcement. President Macron suddenly confirmed the reconfinement on Wednesday . The new lockdown took effect starting that Thursday at midnight and to be enforced at least the entire month of November.

It was intended to be a lighter confinement compared to the one in April. Students were still going to school. People were still allowed to go to work although if possible it was strongly recommended to “tele-travail” (remotely work). If one went outside, they needed to fill out and carry a self-declaration form, with the time, date, and purpose of being out whether for essentials, school, work, or medical reasons. Travel between French departments was not allowed.

The impact on businesses was confusing at best. Non-essential services were obliged to close but the line was blurred. Supermarkets were open, although curiously the “non-essential” aisles were cordoned off (typically books, beauty products & clothes). One day the dishware section was blocked (“non-essential”?) but a few days later it was open again (“essential”?). Booksellers notably complained that culture was an “essential service” and were frustrated that they had to close their doors, meanwhile consumers were turning online to the likes of Amazon.

French restaurants were forced to stop all dining-in. Most were not equipped to manage outside orders or deliveries and had to close entirely. Because of the short notice of the confinement, many restaurants complained that they had pantries full of perishable food that would eventually go in the trash .What was left was mostly pizza delivery, food trucks and burger drive-thru windows.

The little commercial activity that was left still came to a halt Sundays (in respect of the French secular tradition), and then it suddenly stopped again mid-November for the French institution: the “jour férié” (bank holiday).

For myself, day-to-day life was unaffected for the most part. I was settled in my AirBnB, comfortably stocked to cook-in, and working remotely as always with internet and SIM data. I diligently filled in the online attestation when I needed to go out, during the 2 weeks they were never actually verified.

Travelling Thru a Pandemic

I began to be concerned that the implications of the confinement would potentially impact the return back to Singapore, including questions such as whether I could travel between the French departments to get to the airport (from 04 to 13), whether the airport shuttle bus itself was still running, whether flight itself to Singapore was still flying. This was in addition to doubts on whether I had ticked off all of the formalities to get back into Singapore itself.

Then I was notified that my BA flight was suddenly cancelled. After a bit of panic, I found an alternative, passing on a cheaper fare with Etihad (as it was via Abu Dhabi, they needed a COVID-19 PCR test prior to boarding). Air France offered a return flight (and a decent fare) that got me direct in to Singapore within Singapore MOM’s approved 3-day window that I was given for arrival.

On Thursday I started the journey back: the airport shuttle bus was on time and nobody checked any of the formalities, at the airport the check-in was straightforward, the flight in Marseille boarded as normal. At immigration in Paris and in true CDG fashion, the automatic passport gates were all inoperative while one lone immigration officer was arguing with 3 foreigners in a mix of approximate english about their visa renewals and excuses around the confinement. The immigration line eventually backed up behind me from just myself to a gaggle of 50–60 travellers waiting to get through, but eventually it sorted itself out. Once at the gate, the airline agent in Paris took my temperature and asked to see the Singapore MOM and ICA forms (the digital/e-mail versions were enough). The rest of the trip back was like the one over: long, empty, uneventful.

Return to Singapore and Quarantine

The flight arrived at Changi Airport, we disembarked past the temperature cameras and to immigration. The automatic immigration gates were intentionally closed, a small army of staff guided people to the right lines, the immigration agents took my passport & checked the e-mails for the additional MOM Entry Approval and ICA Arrival Card . I had pre-paid a COVID test on arrival but never received it (apparently it is unnecessary on arrival for my case, a subtle distinction between a SafeTravel Pass and an Air Travel Pass, so I‘m checking to see if it can be refunded).

After I picked up my baggage, myself and 7 others were escorted to a bus — no fanfare nor announcement as to where we were going. We mysteriously drove through the city, past MBS, turned before Sentosa and through Tanjong Pagar and in front of a hotel. The hotel would be my quarantine or “SHN” (Stay Home Notice) for the next fortnight.

My room key works only once to open the door, once in my room I’m not allowed out until the 14 days is over. I received an SMS to download “Homer”, a phone app which is kept on all the time to track our location and where we have to upload a selfie & report our temperature 3 times a day. In addition the MOM calls about twice-a-day with the same questions (NRIC? EP or DP? which hotel? which room? am I alone? have I updated Homer ?). At some time (around 11th day?) I’ll have to take a COVID PCR test (which is also a brief moment, minutes, to appreciate to be around people and out of the room).

The room has wifi, a water kettle, a shower + bath, TV with a couple news and movie channels. I’ve got my own Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Spotify, and TuneIn and hacked my Chromecast to work with the hotel TV. The room itself is comfortable, well-lit with a view of the neighbourhood. But the windows don’t open and I’m battling the aircon against hypothermia so I’m keeping it mostly off.

The stay includes hotel meals delivered 3 times daily. At check-in I chose “Indian vegetarian” for something different, after a few rounds it seems to be variations of curry vegetables and rice or chapatti. They arrive in a disposable container wrapped in a plastic bag and are placed on a plastic covered chair that stares at me when I open my room door. We can eventually order local food deliveries, we’ll see how long it takes before I give in to a proper pizza.

Otherwise ahead is a 14 days of repetitiveness: wake up, eat, shower, get in some exercise, some work, some reading, sleep. Today I’m on day-2 (arriving is “day-0”), I’ll repeat the routine a dozen more times, then all things going well, I’ll finally be allowed to go home.

In the end, was it worth it? I’ll let you know in 12 days.

Hindsight Post-COVID Travel + SHN

I’m finally home. The two weeks of Singapore SHN quarantine actually were bearable, the days were filled enough with the routine that they actually went by fast. The departure was surprisingly unceremonious, I walked out of the room that I effectively had not left in two weeks, closed the door behind me, took the elevator, stopped to clear any room service tab, then was out the door looking for a taxi.

There is a post-SHN moment when you’re around people again, able to go about freely, no longer fenced into a routine… oddly this does take some adjustment. I’m also still trying to process the overall experience through France pre & during their confinement and back. There’s a couple of great support groups on Facebook of people going through similar experiences where people share everything from practical questions to hotel hacks to complaints to anxiety but also motivation. What is most apparent is that everyone’s experience is different. Mine could be classified as uneventful, average, which in the overall context was fine.

So yes, it can be done but travel these days also comes with a new trade-off. The most prominent aspect is simply more uncertainty and potential points-of-failure during the trip: did I fill in the formalities right for departure? for arrival? Is the flight still scheduled? Once I get there, can I get around, at least settled? What’s the plan B if there is a hang-up? Or plan C? Is the health situation at the destination itself opening? Improving? Worsening? Not only can things change unexpectedly but there are fewer options to sort them out than before too which eventually can compound the problem.

There are still too many disconnects between the formalities, official rules, airlines and airports, and support. A disruption at any one step can potentially cascade across the others with little recourse and the whole trip falls apart. I consider myself a seasoned enough traveller to have navigated through it, but I also recognized that the systems around travel is simply not ready to handle larger number of passengers or the higher risk of disruptions in this new context.

In hindsight would I still have taken the trip? I’d say yes. That said, it’s also something I won’t be choosing to go through again soon.