REDSTAR Hangzhou March 2020

广 告 • 特 辑 // FEATURES /
I try to maintain a level, logical head. But every cough,
sneeze, wheeze, ache and pain becomes suspect.
Have I been infected? Boredom quickly becomes
one’s default position. I binge watch a few movie
trilogies, Beverly Hills Cop, The Bourne movies. I am
usually a creative person and can fill my time with
writing, painting, reading but my brain seems to have
become zombified – maybe the zombie apocalypse
is not brought on by a virus but by boredom.
I go out around the community grounds; the dog still
needs to be walked. The place is empty. One day as I
was peering out of the entrance to see if the pharmacy
across the road was open, an ambulance turned up
and men in full hazmat suits got out. I high tailed it
back to my apartment. Out of my window on the
9th floor, I watched the ambulance park outside the
apartment block next door. “Maybe someone is ill”
is the next thought you have as your anxiety levels
jump up another notch. The week passes boringly, I
eat all the snacks in the house and run out of wine.
Friday 31s t
January
My wife returns from Changzhou. She tells me that it
was impossible to buy masks there as all the pharmacies
were sold out; her mum and brother only have a few left.
I purchased masks from Ebay in the UK while she was
away, and a friend will courier them out to us. Amazon
UK had sold out, yet ironically was in stock for masks
that would be “shipped from China.” We will not receive
these masks for at least another seven days or more.
Saturday 1 st
February
We once again ventured out to the supermarket.
On this occasion 100% of the shoppers were
wearing masks. We were able to stock up on food
and there was little or no evidence of panic buying.
The government has already stated that keeping
supermarkets, vegetable markets and pharmacies
open was a priority. The only shelves that were nearly
empty were the ones for instant and dried noodles.
Since my wife has returned, she has been watching the
news. One has to be impressed with the dedication
of the doctors, nurses, police, army, ancillary workers,
workers in the factories making masks and hazmat suits,
down to the delivery guys and taxi drivers still working,
and to our own community cleaners who rigorously
disinfect the lifts and the community spaces every day.
Tuesday 4 th
February
Things have not gone from bad to worse but have
significantly changed––things are still bad. Just three
days after visiting the supermarket to stock up, our
locality went into lockdown. We must stay in our
apartments but are allowed in the grounds, for example
to take the dog for a walk. Now, however, the rule is only
one person can leave the community to go fetch food
and essentials and they can only do that every two days.
redstarhangzhou.com 21