TRAVEL IN THE TIMES OF THE CORONAVIRUS

Credits: Nada Rashad

After three cancelled flights, and nearly a month of uncertainty and fear, she received a call at 9 pm.

“Be in the airport by 9 am tomorrow.”

With two children and elderly parents anxiously awaiting her return, she rushed to pack her bags, only one word on her mind, “finally.”

Noha Mourad is one of many who have struggled to return to Egypt after all flights to and from the country were suspended in an attempt to curb the spread of coronavirus. What had started as a short vacation to visit relatives soon turned into a nightmare of anxiety and bureaucratic red tape.

The flight suspension was originally set to last two weeks starting Mar. 19, and her original flight was after the suspension was supposed to have lifted. However, the suspension was extended for another two weeks. And then another. As of the date of this article, it is set to be lifted on May 21, but due to the current uncertain circumstances, that is liable to change at any moment.

The Arrival

In the midst of the early morning hustle, Omnia Hesham stands like an island in a stream of bustling airport security and staff. The flight has just landed in Marsa Alam, Hurghada, after nearly 13 hours in the air, and the staff are rushing to receive the passengers.

"I'm so glad so many health measures are in place," Hesham whispers to herself. "I was so worried I'd spread the disease to my newborn granddaughter".

Masks are handed out upon take-off, and the passengers are seated one to every three seats. In the airport, they are welcomed with snacks, drinks, and care packages. Their shoes, clothes, and carry-ons are disinfected. They are seated far apart in spacious halls, given blood tests, and their temperatures are taken. After passing through customs and sanitizing their luggage, they are shown to the shuttle bus waiting to transport them to the quarantine.

Quarantine

The quarantine itself is in a series of resorts and hotels located in picturesque Marsa Alam that are vacant due to the halt of the influx of tourists both foreign and domestic.

“It’s so peaceful here" To'aa Alaa said with a sigh. "I almost don’t want to go home, after all."

Mourad at quarantine in Marsa Alam, Hurghada

Since all measures of physical distancing and testing are stringently applied at these idyllic locations, and any and all medical issues are immediately addressed, they feel safe from the ever-looming threat of the pandemic, if only for a time.

However, it hasn’t all been a bed of roses. Since the Ministry of Health has had to deal with people who are unwilling to comply with the rules of the quarantine, and many had friends and relatives visit despite stern warnings, they have had to set the location farther away from Cairo and large cities, hence the resorts. But this shift in location has come at a cost to the Ministry of Health, one that has grown too expensive for the economy to bear. So, while every other flight before this was placed into quarantine completely free of charge, beginning from Noha’s flight, quarantined passengers have to pay a steep £E 11,000 for the 14-day stay, as well as twice as much the regular plane fare.

Home at Last

After being confined to their rooms for two weeks, with very little contact with anyone but the doctor routinely doing rounds and the others in quarantine, the passengers are finally allowed to go home.

"I can't believe I can finally hold my mother in my arms" Gina Rasheed, 13, cried in shock, upon seeing her mother wearily dragging in her luggage, mask firmly in place. "I was so scared I'd never see her again".

For Gina, Noha, and the rest, the journey has finally come to an end, but to many still trapped in foreign lands, it has only just begun. With the pandemic yet to show any signs of slowing down, the resumption of international flights seems to be governments' last priority. When, or if, they will ever be able to return home remains to be seen.