It’s difficult to believe we’ve almost completed our fourteen days of Managed Isolation. Weirdly, I’ll miss being holed up in this cosy room on the third floor, looking out over the road to Christchurch Airport. The Southern Alps majestically glimmer with snowy peaks in the distance. A king-sized bed, large bath, meals delivered three times a day. An excellent trim flat white ordered each morning. A hired exercise bike to help tone our legs (though we really should’ve used it more!).

Heading To Gisborne

The Wellbeing Team newsletter, secreted daily into the lunch bag, informed us our flight to Auckland tomorrow was likely to be scheduled at 10.30 am. After lunch, I called them to confirm, following which a phone call to Air New Zealand brought disappointment. The flight at 1.40 pm tomorrow, that previously had five seats available, now didn’t. Ah well, we couldn’t have done anything differently. My lovely friends aren’t far from the airport and able to pick us up, take us home for a long-awaited catch-up, then take us back to Auckland Airport on Sunday afternoon for our scheduled flight at 3.40 pm. There’s not long to wait now.

This morning’s task was packing – thank goodness we haven’t been able to go shopping and resisted doing so online! I managed to get everything back in the big suitcase, though it was touch and go! The case was bought new in Anglesey a few weeks ago, and already one end is damaged from our flights here. Hopefully, it’ll survive another two!

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We’ve yet to be told our COVID-19 12-day test results, but I’m sure if they were positive we’d know by now!

The Loop Wasn’t Broken After All

Yesterday I mistakenly guessed we’d missed the egg sandwich for breakfast loop. Not a chance! It turned up this morning. This time though, I found a way not to waste too much. Using one side of the bread, that didn’t taste of chopped up eggs, I could spread with Vegemite and enjoy. The pineapple frappe, on the other hand, once again was delicious.

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Our final ‘chef’s dessert’ Pip, was as delicious as usual. My weight will be grateful not to have to eat this naughtiness any more each evening! No self-control whatsoever here …

UK COVID Symptom Study – Finally!

Regular readers will know I spent the whole UK lockdown and beyond, posting daily updates about the COVID-19 Symptom Study. You may also recall my frustration at not being able to alter our location once the lockdown eased? I finally stopped reporting a couple of weeks before our flights here, as I felt reporting was skewing their research.

Finally, an email arrived from the team today. They’ve found a way to change reporters’ location – though still don’t acknowledge there’s a fair number of folks who live itinerantly. We lived ‘most of the time’ on our narrowboat, that moves around all the time! Ah well, at least they’ve moved forward at last. Here’s the email:

“Hello

Thank you for your continued support of the COVID Symptom Study. 

We are aware that since lockdown rules eased in the UK, a number of you have been moving around the UK, be it for a brief staycation or something bigger like moving house. It became clear that we needed to update the app to allow you to tell us that you have changed your location – so we have done exactly that! 

The new feature introduces the idea of a permanent home address (where you live most of the time) and an additional address for where you are currently staying. So if you are planning to change your location for a week or more, or have moved house, we would like you to use this feature to let us know where you are.  

This update is essential to the COVID Symptom Study app’s future as we look to enhance our ability to predict hotspots in the UK, so the accuracy of your current resident location is more important than ever.“

Here in New Zealand, we’ve signed up to their COVID track and trace App and are currently logged in at the MIQ facility. I believe every business in the country has a scannable barcode so we can record where we are.

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Changes at Sudima

Not a lot happens each day differently, to be honest, but today we noticed a couple of changes. On our first full day here, Barry’s daughter Jamie came to visit, and we were able to chat to her at a distance and see her through the gap in the mesh covering. After the fences were secured following the high winds a couple of days ago, they put some fresh-mesh (!) on which didn’t have any gaps. We saw a family having visitors to the car park this morning, causing some commotion amongst security and staff. All was fine, but shortly afterwards, this hole was cut in the mesh. How lovely. That’s such a kind thing to do.

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Then the yellow box was added. We’ve no idea what that’s all about, but a policeman was walking around the exercise area this afternoon. Maybe it’s for one of them, or a security guard, to be able to monitor the outside area? Who knows – we’ve finished out gated walks now.

Haere Ra and Thank You!

This evening we’ve had the final schedule for our ‘release’ tomorrow morning. We DO have to be up, packed and ready to leave by 8.15 am. The nurses WILL be visiting the rooms from 5 am. We’ll be checked out by 8.30 am, and on the bus by 9 am. Crikey! That’s going to be a bit of a shock after such a restful two weeks!

We’d like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to everyone at Sudima Airport Hotel Christchurch. You’ve all been superb. The staff, security, police, and NZDF. Just the one hiccup of the suited stern ‘surgical masks only‘ man. Funnily enough, I haven’t seen him again since speaking with the Wellness Team.

I shan’t be posting here tomorrow – but aim to update you on Sunday evening NZ time.

Ka whakapā atu ano ahau ka tata – I’ll be in touch again soon 😉