Novel Coronavirus and how the outbreak has been affecting us

Before we left for Malaysia I was aware of the emergence of the Coronavirus in China from which a number of people had died, mostly people who already had underlying health conditions and compromised immune systems.

Malaysia has a significant Chinese population and we arrived just at the start of Chinese New Year celebrations where lots of Chinese nationals visit relatives around the world and take holidays, often in other SE Asian countries.

Whilst we were in Langkawi more cases of Coronavirus emerged in countries other than China and this included Malaysia. At this point many people started wearing face masks, including all of the staff. There were a lot of guests from China and other East Asian countries staying at the hotel and on our flights to and from the mainland. I don’t believe that the masks protect you from catching any virus but I do think that they can help to reduce the spread and so should be worn by people who are ill to help keep the spread of germs etc to a minimum. Hand washing and hand sanitiser are advised and I’ve thankfully brought a few bottles with me although having tried to stock up, I realise that everyone else has done the same and all shops have run out of stock of masks and hand sanitiser and that is an on going concern!

What I am alarmed by is the amount of people from East Asia who openly clear their throat of phlegm and spit it out wherever they may be. By a sun lounger, on a footpath, even in to the pool, albeit the surround. I find that utterly repulsive behaviour and see it from both men and women, young and old and given the current situation I also find it pretty reckless. Other than giving them an equally filthy look and being pretty vocal about my thoughts, there’s not a lot I can do to prevent that. It’s obviously normal behaviour in their culture.

George Town in Penang has a large Chinese community of about 60% so again there were a lot of Chinese nationals staying in the same hotel as us.

I’m not overly concerned about us actually catching Coronavirus. The chances are extremely slim, we’re fit and healthy with strong immune systems and I’m making sure that hands are cleaned and sanitised regularly.

Even so, its hard not to grimace when you’re sharing a lift or a plane with someone that looks to be of Chinese origin and they sneeze or cough.

Family and friends kept messaging with concern as I believe it was being widely reported there in the UK. It must have seemed as though we were in the epicentre of it but we really aren’t. It’s China that’s really suffering and we’re thousands of miles away from there.

Alfie had both a chest and an ear infection which worsened whilst we were in George Town, Penang so I sought out a doctor. I was aware that this was then putting us in a confined space with people who are confirmed as being sick during a pandemic. Hand sanitiser was put to good use that day!

Well we left with a lot of antibiotics and medications and a much sought after face mask. A week on and he has improved. He even managed a 5 hour jungle trek at the weekend!

I get regular updates from the UK government for countries that we’re due to visit on our trip including Cambodia, Japan and the Philippines. I’m keeping an eye on Cambodia and the Philippines as their health systems could easily be overwhelmed by this if an outbreak occurs there and I’d look to change our plans. So far, thankfully for them, it seems contained.

Less people here are wearing masks now and we’ve moved out of the densely populated areas. We’re still using the hand sanitiser and it’s still like rocking horse s#@t to get hold of. I’ve even considered getting some delivered from amazon to one of the hotels we’ll be staying at. This time next week I may be carrying a bar of soap in my bag 🙂

Thinking of all the poor people who have lost loved ones and been affected by this and hoping that it becomes contained very soon.