Not too hard to come back? How did you do? Aren’t you too disappointed? Why did you make this decision? Were people also stressed over there? Do you plan to leave again?
Now is the time to answer all of these questions properly!
From our last days in Laos to our rehabilitation in France in full confinement, here we give you a detailed account of our early and somewhat eventful return.
OPTIONS & DECISION
March 9th. Our arrival in Laos went smoothly, and despite the growing attention paid to the Coronavirus in Europe, the subject has been completely ignored here. No worries have been expressed by the population, and life seems to be going normally.
For our part, we remain vigilant and favor wearing masks while traveling.
Nothing therefore seems to indicate any return to our country. And yet...
March 14th. In less than a week, the situation in France deteriorated significantly, leading to the closure of almost all public places. We find that hard to imagine as we are going through the exact opposite of such restrictive measures: scooter rental, roadtrip in the countryside, trek in the mountains, markets and restaurants. In short, the routine… far from the unrealistic circumstances described by our families.
March 15th. After several hours of reflection, we decide to continue our trip in Laos. We will travel along the Thai border to the south of the country where a community will welcome us for our volunteering experience. In case of a precipitous closure of Laos, we will then easily reach Thailand with developed medical infrastructures.
March 16th. In accordance with our choice, we are about to reach the capital for our next step when we meet a group of French globetrotters. Curious about their experiences, we join the discussion without suspecting it will call everything into question.
Indeed, we learn that Cambodia and Vietnam, our next (and last) destinations in Asia, have just closed their borders. But what really shocks us is two couples relating the growing mistrust of local populations towards European tourists, including being evicted from their guesthouse. They then explain in turn their new roadmap: imminent return to France, continuation in Laos, departure for Tahiti, etc.
It is 7 p.m. and a bit confused that we return to our accommodation to assess all our options:
- Stay in Laos with healthcare facilities below its Asian neighbors
- Join Thailand and settle there temporarily
- Return to France and interrupt our trip
Overnight, we follow the presidential speech decreeing national confinement the very next day, which increases the pressure. At the same time, we witness the closure of almost all countries and the suspension of many international flights.
In short, we should decide quickly!
March 17th. It is around 2 a.m. and with a heavy heart that we make the decision to return to France for the following reasons:
> If we have to confine ourselves in a country, we better like it to be in France
> Be with our families in the event of contamination or hospitalization
> Have access to better care
> To no risk being rejected by the locals and thus avoid tarnishing a human aventure
UN OBSTACLE COURSE
First step: the emergency booking of the plane tickets. Or rather THE place ticket. Indeed, given the multiplication of airlines cancellations, we prefer to book each flight separately as our trip back to France progresses. This is how we end up with our first ticket Luang Prabang - Bangkok with a takeoff scheduled in less than 10 hours.
Four hours of sleep later and we’re headed for the airport. In the tuk-tuk, we start to realize what awaits us, especially when all the travel blogs recommend a psychological preparation of several weeks before returning… The situation is certainly exceptional, but we feel that rehabilitation will be more difficult than usual.
At the airport, we are not surprised at the long line of tourists leaving for Europe. The anguish is quite palpable...
In the departure terminal, we have confirmation that our first flight to Bangkok is maintained. Now is the time to book our next trip… while all passengers are boarding. Not easy on the Laotian public wifi, but we manage to do it!
Upon landing in Bangkok, we discover an almost deserted airport. Always decked out in our masks, we are looking for a quiet place to wait until our next boarding in … more than 12 hours!!
Indeed, we opted for a flight to Brussels with a stopover in Dubai. As the Emirates haven’t closed their airport yet and do check the temperature of all passengers passing through the country, we feel a bit more reassured. But the more the departure advances, the more the number of canceled flights increases.
March 18th. Luckily, we take off as planned. When we arrive in Dubai, we go through the thermal cameras and hurry up to check our next flight to Brussels. Europe is finally within reach!
Two hours later, and it is time to board our last plane for a while! We start to really feel tired but fortunately, time flies and we reach our destination quite quickly. It is almost 1 p.m. when we set foot on Belgian soil.
The penultimate stage of this adventure and not the least: the crossing of the Franco-Belgian border. On board the ghost train linking Brussels to Lille, we are preparing our defense in the event of an interception by the authorities. Obviously, the derogation to be presented does not provide for the “early return from world tour” case. We therefore add our situation on the paper and prepare all the evidence attesting to our good faith.
In Lille station, only 2 kilometers separate us from our goal. We do them on foot with our 20 kilos on our backs, the last effort of this return worthy of a marathon. The city is disconcertingly calm, the opposite of what we just left.
March 18th. It is 4 p.m. when we finally reach our destination, after more than 36 hours of travelling.
RETURN TO FRANCE & READJUSTMENT
Why Lille? Returning from Asia and travelling through busy international airports, our chances of being contaminated on the trip were far from zero. As recommended by the government, we wanted to quarantine ourselves for 14 days before joining the people at risk among our relatives. We also wanted to isolate ourselves in a city easily accessible from Brussels. We were thus particularly well welcomed by cousins (in excellent health) living in Lille.
Disinfection: as soon as we arrived, we had to clean and potentially decontaminate all of our belongings. Hours of laundry in perspective...
And then we had to readjust. As always, there are the good and the bad sides…
The easiest? Enjoy the good French products and tasty dishes we missed so much; shower with hot water; be able to organize our stuff in a cupboard; appreciate the absence of cockroaches; rest in a good bed; simply find stable benchmarks.
The hardest? If we forget the sudden drop in temperatures (-30°C), it is of course this famous confinement. In just two days, we go from discovering large spaces to a quarantine in an apartment, from tens of kilometers to just a few meters per day, from meetings on every street corner to a very small relational circle. The shock is immense, brutal. Added to this is the heavy fear of the unknown: how long will this situation last? How to occupy our minds? Where to project ourselves?
After two weeks, we somehow book a rental car to get back to our loved ones in Lorraine, where we do not yet know but will stay for more than six months.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Back to mom and dad for 3 months, during which we try to see a little more clearly. We grope our way, day by day, until we realize that we have to shake things to alleviate these conditions. Fortunately, we both sign a fixed-term contract with Decathlon for the summer, allowing us to resume a good daily rhythm. We also rent a small studio giving us back a semblance of independence.
However, we do not forget our project. We monitor with great attention the development of the situation in the world in the hope of finding a solution and above all to have more visibility.
There is the possibility of staying in France for a few years before resuming the trip. But we doubt to have the same opportunity/availability in the future, not to mention the current dire job market.
We then think of leaving again, knowing full well that the conditions will be different. Asia and South America are unlikely to reopen their borders before 2021, forcing us to revise our plans a bit. On the other hand, Africa remains within our reach. To date (and subject to change), we plan to fly to Tanzania in October and continue with Namibia.
Do not see this as a selfish decision. We have thought long and hard, and we check the travel blogs on a daily basis to get the most reliable information possible. The continent is by far the least affected by the virus, and PCR tests are mandatory upon entering the territory. We plan to wear our masks as much as possible and to remain cautious without falling in to paranoia.
It should not be forgotten that tourism plays a prominent role in the African economy. The testimonies are final: travelers are more than welcome and that in full knowledge of the facts. We also contacted a local association for which we would like to volunteer there. After lengthily explaining the situation to them, their answer was clear: when can you come?
In less than a month, we hope to share with you the African stage of our humanitarian world tour.
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