The whole world is kind of shutting down due to some virus that started in China. There is no cure, it is highly contagious, it mostly kills older people or young children, and it is spreading rapidly. People are freaking out, but others are living life as if everything was normal. This is not ok. Many countries are closing their boarders and initiating a quarantine. I will be celebrating my second month in Ecuador in quarantine and will probably spend most of my third month in quarantine. It SUCKS. But what people need to do now is STAY HOME. Yes, it’s boring, house arrest is not fun, but it’s better than the virus. Younger people seem to being ignoring this due to the fact that the mortality rate is really low for them, but they are thinking selfishly. The virus is transmitted easily and could be given to loved ones or strangers that could die as a result. It has become a pandemic in such a short amount of time. Rumors that the virus is just like a “bad flu” are turning people away from the idea that it is no big deal. I hope quarantine and all the actions being taken start to scare people into submission. Maybe this is no big deal, maybe Corona Virus will just become nothing in a few months, but now we have to treat it like it is a real problem. Despite saying this I do believe some actions being taken are a little too extreme. 

Having been a part of the exchange community and now having many friends on exchange COVID-19 has become a major issue. Many companies are deciding to send students home without giving them a choice on what to do, one specifically is YFU. My question for these organizations is: Why would you put a student in an even more dangerous situation to go in an airport and go back to a country where the situation might be worse? Why would you send a student who is in United States back to Italy? Depending on the student’s location in the United States they could be A LOT safer than they would be in Italy. Also by forcing an exchange student to go home you are putting them on AN AIRPLANE???? Which is where they are likely going to be exposed to the virus even more than in their host country (where they might already be quarantined (voluntarily or not)). I believe giving students the CHOICE to return home or not is valid. If a student wants to go home and be with their family or the situation is worse in their host country than their home country and they want to risk the plane ride then they can decide that. But it should be the student and their family’s choice, not the organization. I found out today one of my friends is being sent home, without a choice, as soon as flights are leaving from Ecuador again. I am not happy about this and I was sitting there in disbelief expecting him to start laughing and telling me he was just messing with me (like normal), but he didn’t. My other friends are also scared of being sent home for the same reason. I could not imagine my exchange being ended early for not even breaking the rules and not being able to do anything about it. I know this blog post will not likely go very far and will be read by maybe 5 people, but I wish more people would see it, people that could read this and make a difference for the exchange students that are being sent home to worse situations and don’t want to go.

 COVID-19 is everywhere, worse in certain places, please stay safe. Wash your hands, stay at home, watch a movie, read a book, learn something new, please don’t travel the world right now. People practicing self quarantine thank you, others please do this so everything can go back to normal soon, and maybe more exchange students don’t have to go home.  

Thank you.