Blog: Travels, Testing and Twitter
Well, I did it. I got on an aeroplane, took the tube through London, wore a mask for hours on end, got my Covid test on my return (negative, phew) and got cancelled on Twitter in the process.Back in the dim and distant past of 'normal times' I used to travel for work or pleasure on a regular basis. Hopping over to the UK for a family event or weekend visiting friends was something I took for granted, albeit with much angsting about my carbon footprint (I drive an electric car, so I am trying). But after months of lockdown, borders closed, horror stories and terrifying statistics coming out of the UK, the thought of being in a series of enclosed spaces like planes or trains with hundreds of potentially infected strangers was not very appealing. So when my best childhood friend invited me to her 40th birthday celebration in London, I was genuinely conflicted.It was to be a picnic, outside, with a small number of close friends - all within the rules - and this friend had been living on their own in a one bedroom flat with no outside space throughout lockdown, and had lost all their freelance work, so it's reasonable to infer they'd had a tough time. This event really mattered. And when I heard the Medical Officer of Health Dr Susan Turnbull say the risk of catching or passing on coronavirus if you follow all the guidance was small, my mind was made up. Dr Turnbull and I were rivals in the 2013 Jersey version of Strictly Come Dancing, and once you've bonded with someone over blisters and ballgowns, you tend to trust their judgement. A certain Gary Burgess was also a contestant that year. I think a video exists. I am not sure I'd want to watch it now.Anyway, I digress. Saturday morning comes and I bound up to Jersey airport, mask on face, minimal baggage in hand, ready to reenter the world ouside Jersey. I don't know what I expected, but everything about travel now is different. The departure lounge looked deserted, as just the passengers for my flight sat around metres apart, faces covered, looking apprehensive. The cafe and shops were closed, apart from WH Smith, mercifully, so I could pick up my JEP for the journey. We were called to the gate in groups of row numbers - boarding from the back of the plane to give passengers time to put bags away and get settled etc before the next lot of people got on. So far, so sensible. It was only once I was on I realised the flight was completely full. I was sat in the middle seat (my least favourite) shoulders almost touching with total strangers on either side. Even with everyone wearing masks, it was an odd experience. We've been keeping our distance even from friends and family for so long now, it felt so weird to be so close to dozens of random people.
It was weirder still to be given free packets of crisps by the cabin crew mid-flight, so everyone took their masks off and started crunching away. I am no scientist, but I'm pretty sure you breathe when you eat crisps, and if I can smell the cheese and onion wafting from the seat next to me, I'm probably breathing in their stale air. Through my mask, but still. It's all about confidence and feeling safe isn't it? This just didn't feel great to me. Maybe other passengers liked it, because it restored a small sense of normal plane routine, and maybe that gave them a feeling of confidence and safety.
The airline must have sought advice about food service, and deemed it safe. Still, I thought to myself, this is an interesting conundrum, I bet the reasoned and polite folk over on Twitter would like to know about it. Wow. The reasoned and polite folk must have been having a day off Twitter, because when I posted a photo, what ensued was what I believe the kids call a 'pile-on'.
Dozens of angry comments slagging me off for undertaking non-essential travel (it's allowed), having a go at hard-working cabin crew (certainly not) or wearing the wrong sort of mask. Now, hands up, I was wearing a Chinese-made mask which I now know has been ruled unsuitable as formal PPE. My mistake. We can't get everything right. But considering the law states only a face 'covering' is required, and some people were wearing home-made cloth masks made out of old socks - and others only had their mouths and not their noses covered - I considered my misstep to be fairly minor. Everything about it elicited a furious response. I was even called a Karen (look it up, it's an American thing). I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. I know social media storms are nothing new, but the fear and confusion surrounding the pandemic has certainly heightened the tension.Twitter notifications muted for the day, I set off into central London on a near empty train, then a similarly deserted tube. I'm lucky in that I'm able to sit down and stand up without using handrails, unlike an older woman further along the carriage, so I managed to touch very few surfaces. And I had my trusty hand sanitiser gel to use after each bit of the journey, so it all felt very safe and easy. When more people return to the city centres that may change, but right now it's fine.I came back to Jersey on the Sunday morning, not really wanting to spend more time in the UK than I had to, and as the flight was less busy, the middle seats in most rows were free. I get that airlines couldn't do this all the time without massively hiking prices, but it did feel better. I could still smell the crisps when they were handed out again (seriously, who really wants to eat sour cream pretzels at 7am?) but I knew what to expect and just looked out of the window (window seat, yay!) and ignored it. So much of this is about managing our own feelings and expectations, and trusting that private companies are doing the right thing.Full credit to the testing team in arrivals at Jersey airport, I was through within 10 minutes. The process was efficient and the people were lovely. Thanks to the gag reflex warning from the nurse who actually did my swab test. It's not particularly pleasant, a stick is scraped across the back of you throat, but it's over in seconds. I got my result on Monday afternoon, faster than I was expecting, which means I can return to the office tomorrow.
Although the government hasn't told us to isolate before getting test results, ITV is erring on the side of caution, so I was working from home instead. Which was fine. But now I'm back in the outside world armed with more knowledge about how this open borders thing actually works. I totally understand people's concerns about travel, but on balance I trusted the experts, and I did what I needed to do for my own well-being and that of my friend. The shift from government orders to personal choice has been slow and subtle, but it's clear we all have to learn how to weigh up these risks, as we are not going to be spoon-fed tailor-made advice for each and every scenario. Just don't do your workings out on Twitter.