We’re Stranded In Fiji

Nikki Wynn

Mar 25, 2020 — 2 min read

It seems almost embarrassingly unimportant to share our saga considering the problems the world is facing right now. But, that could be said about every story we have ever published.

So, for the sake of those who want to be updated, need a distraction or are simply curious, here it goes…

This is the open-ended story of that time a pandemic broke out and left us stranded in Fiji.

Sanitize your hands, remote, computer keys, phone or tablet and then hit the play button.

We’re stranded and locked down here in Fiji for a while and it’s not ideal, but it could be worse.

I would love nothing more than to be back on-board Curiosity for all of this. Saving money, working on the literal boatload of repairs we need to make, sleeping in our own bed and cooking in my little galley.

But, safety first. So, we’ll stay “home” and work on our long-distance relationships.

A brief timeline…

We left Florida on February 17 to fly over to South Africa. There weren’t many cases of coronavirus in the USA, there were no travel advisories and ZERO cases of coronavirus in place for any of the areas we were headed (South Africa or the South Pacific).

We left South Africa to fly into Tonga on March 15th. Just four days after the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic. On the 15th there were no cases of COVID-19 in Tonga and only a handful in South Africa. For our layover stops Fiji had zero reported cases, United Arab Emirates had less than 100 and Australia had around 300 confirmed cases.

It’s now March 25th and those numbers are vastly different. We’re completely locked down in Fiji and the confirmed cases of coronavirus around the world have exploded. It’s all evolved so quickly and seems to have no clear end in sight…but it won’t last forever. This too shall pass.

Confirmed Cases Worldwide

Fiji reported it’s 5th case today and more will likely follow. Hopefully, the government will enforce strict lockdowns. Many of the citizens here don’t understand the severity of the situation and continue to hug, shake hands, gather and go about their normal day.

Fiji is a developing country but not a developed country. Their few hospitals can be quickly overwhelmed and understaffed. If it reaches the more remote out islands, it could decimate the population. All the more reason for us to stay in and stay healthy.

We are taking our self-quarantine period seriously…for our health and the health of everyone around us.

Information On How To Protect Yourself from Covid-19: who.int/

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