I haven’t finished writing about Christmas yet and then I have Chinese New Year to write about…. However I thought I should do a quick update on the coronavirus situation.
Let me start by saying I haven’t caught the virus and neither has anyone I know. There have been surprisingly few cases in Vietnam. At the time of writing, there is a higher probability of catching it in the UK than in Vietnam so don’t worry about me!
School’s have been shut here since the start of February in response to the virus. They closed at the end of January for Chinese New Year and never reopened. I have been tutoring some of my students in cafes and others via Skype from home. There is talk of GCSE and A’level exams being pushed back but the IB organisation have apparently issued a statement saying that nothing will change so we’re worried about that.
Other than that most things are operating as normal here. People are wearing surgical masks but people always have done; they think it helps with pollution. I hear that Vietnam is no longer issuing new visas and have removed the visa waiver for tourists. I haven’t noticed any difference in the number of people out and about but I hear tourist cities like Hoi An are very empty.
Eastward Ho! 