It’s been a tough few months, I won’t sugarcoat that. Vietnam is no longer winning its fight against the virus. We’ve been in lockdown here in Da Nang since the early days of May. I don’t know, it’s hard to say. Days bleed into the night, time becomes meaningless, and things just seem to float on. We have had two breaks. One lasted 5 days, I think, and the other lasted 4. Other than that, it’s been mostly perpetual Since May 7th, I believe. The Lockdowns have been isolated around the country—city by city, province by province. Da Nang has just gotten the short stick, I guess. Being it the longest stretch of lockdowns Nationwide.
I keep hearing people back home claim how easy it is to fly in and out of Vietnam, but when pressed, they just don’t have any real truth to their statements. Da Nang hasn’t had a flight out towards the US since the pandemic started, and the flights leaving are both costly and limited. The first hurdle is getting to Saigon, which is now impossible. All public transportation in every major city is shut down, even private car services. Food delivery too. And travel between cities is just not possible. We are 500 miles from the closest extraction point with no way to get there. And the only way in is if you are an “expert” or a Vietnamese national.
The reality of getting out
But that’s not our biggest problem. Our biggest problem is that we have to go through the US consulate in Saigon for an interview to get entry stamps for Diem and the girls to travel to the US. The consulate has been closed for much of the past 18 months. We have expedited service and completed paperwork, the only step left is to meet with a representative of the Ambassador’s office to get the Entry Visas to the US, or no airline will let us on a plane. If I could get to Saigon, I probably could get out at a hefty price. But Diem and the girls would be left to face the Embassy alone, which could jeopardize their ability to leave. If I leave, I can’t come back anytime in the foreseeable future.
It’s going to be hard enough leaving the only home Diem and the girls have ever known for a foreign land, much less doing it alone. Just as is the case with me, there is no telling when they, we, can return. The world will never be the same again. At least not in my lifetime. My in-laws aren’t getting any younger, and I can see a growing fear in Diem’s eyes that A: she may not get to see them again before we leave as An Lao has recently had its first cases since the pandemic started. The rural districts are completely isolated at the moment. And B: unless the world takes a complete 180 soon, there is a reality she may never see them again. It just breaks my heart.
An Lao lost
We can’t even send in supplies. Nothing enters or exits. They recently had a swine flu outbreak almost at the same time their Covid lockdown began, and the government came in and culled every pig in the district. So there are concerns about food shortages and Covid in An Lao. One can only pray that things will turn around soon. But, they are resourceful people. There are lots of gardens and fruit. The rice harvest recently ended, so stocks are full. It may get boring, but it’s survivable. It was one of the purest places on earth during the entire pandemic. I remember just walking through the rice fields. No worries about the raging disease bringing the world to its knees. Now even paradise is lost.
When the party was over
Vietnam has been a huge success until recently. Keeping the virus at bay in an unprecedented manner. Yes, we had lockdowns over a handful of cases. Many called it overkill. But anyone who frequents my website knows that for most of the past 18 months, we have had the time of our lives. Resorts overlooking some of the most beautiful bays in the world, small islands only inhabited by small fishing villages, floating markets on the Mekong river delta, it’s been an adventure of a lifetime. Then it all came crashing down when we were at a wedding in the remote mountain city of Buon Ma Thuot near the Cambodian border. An adventure I haven’t even written yet. But I will soon.
I wrote about that event in the last Dragon Diaries you can find here. We, as the previous article discusses, had left our youngest, Xu, in An Lao with her grandparents. She had no interest in the formalities of a wedding. We were eventually able through some tactics that may have bordered on, well, let’s just say we managed to get her home to us in Da Nang after a very stressful and unsure rescue mission. And here we have sat ever since. Unable to do much beyond walk the dog, and get groceries.
Numbers
Vietnam has been beyond impressive. Even now, with the relentless variants ripping through the country’s medical resources, the numbers seem unreal. But I think that was the point of the heavy-handed approach. Vietnam has a very modern healthcare system. Equipment and facilities are just not as robust as, say, the US healthcare system. It’s not a matter of technology, it’s a matter of how much of it. There isn’t a hospital in every town in Vietnam or a Cancer center in every region. The quality of Healthcare is there, there is just not enough of it. Vietnam was terrified to reach critical mass, we are on the edge now.
Saigon (HCMC)
Saigon is the epicenter of the current outbreak, or as it is being referred to, the fourth wave. Reports are coming out of Saigon that if you don’t have Covid, you are on your own as bed space is increasingly strained. Empty apartment buildings are being converted into hospitals and are filling up as fast as they are being prepared. Curfews of 6 PM were enacted yesterday in the nation’s largest city, and some districts within the city have enacted a full stay-at-home orders period. No going out for even groceries. Saigon announced yesterday that it was preparing for an all-out war against the current outbreak.
The city is in the process of a “worst case scenario” mobilization. 80,000 cases seem to be the worst-case scenario number, and the city is quickly preparing facilities and a game plan to tackle the growing numbers. Facilities are specifically targeted and staffed—a rather brilliant approach. The targeted nature and game plan are impressive for the coming days and weeks. And speaks to the great care and concern the nation has for its inhabitants.
The Plan
Quarantine facilities are prepared for asymptomatic positives with space for up to 40,000. Though that number could be increased if needed. In this group, there will be one doctor and two nurses for up to 100 patients. In the next tier would be those with minor symptoms. Facilities are being prepared with roughly 21,600 beds spread across field hospitals around the city at field hospitals. This group would receive one doctor and two nurses for every 25 patients.
There will initially be 8,000 beds for patients with underlying health conditions and those with moderate to severe symptoms. They will receive one doctor and two nurses for every 20 patients. The next tier, severe cases suffering from comorbidities, multiple diseases simultaneously, historically one the most at-risk Covid patients, will have 6,400 beds available initially. With one doctor and two nurses for every 10 patients. And finally, there will be 4,000 beds in “resuscitation” hospitals. The most critical of patients, with a ratio of five patients to every one doctor and two nurses. And that is the plan. Godspeed.
My own illness
Amidst all of this, and one reason I haven’t posted in a while, I have a post in editing, I just haven’t gotten it out yet, I became severely ill. Dengue fever. It was the worst sickness I have ever had in my adult life and conjured countless nights of fever dreams and wakeful moments lacking much one could describe as lucid. It’s an incurable mosquito-borne virus that is quite uncommon in Da Nang. I guess I was a winner. Endless migraines, fever, pain in the optic nerves, body aches, vomiting, there were moments death seemed to be a relief.
The last supper, so to speak.
The worst was that with the lockdown, no public transportation, and Covid getting priority, I had to get to the hospitals on my own. Imagine the worst possible sickness you could have and clinging to the back of a motorbike while your wife drives you to hospital after hospital. They wouldn’t touch me without a Covid test, so we did a rapid and went home. Upon our return, they wanted a longer, more thorough test to be sure treatment would be put off again. In an intimate moment, and probably the only thing that kept me from dying was Diem sponging me with water under the fan to dissipate the heat that radiated from my body. It was the fever that was beginning to scare me. It just wouldn’t go away.
A slow recovery
From the first sign of symptoms to waking up with no remnants of even a headache was about 9 days. It was just brutal. I finally did get treatment about day 5 or 6, I can’t be sure. When I finally started to get my faculties together, days passed, and I didn’t even know it. I must have slept for three days straight. I’m still feeling a little fatigue, but that may linger for a few more days. The good news is it is over.
Home remedies
A fever dream
I recall the days of endless sleep only interrupted by Diem giving me medicine, dreams that conjured memories not buried but long forgotten. I was sitting on the beach in Gulf Shores, Mississippi. Barely able to stand. I remember the brilliance of the sun as I sat just kind of running my hands through the sand staring out into the ocean. Watching in mild envy as my fellow youth group members splashed and played in the sea. It was the first time I had been out of bed in days. I must have been 13 or 14. Until this recent illness, it was the illest I had ever been.
All those times at the beach most spent sick from some infection picked up at the Indian reservation we had just spent the past week doing mission work near Philadelphia, Mississippi. It was our reward for a week of good deeds, and I spent most of it extremely ill. The dream conjured old memories of the reservation, the work we did, and the beach, but the thing still lingers in my mind is the brilliance of the sun high in the sky as I sat in the sand. Like it was the first time I ever noticed it. It has always been there, but that day its warmth, light, its life-giving power radiated inside me as I sat running my hands through the sand.
Hanoi
Hanoi is more than the capital city of a nation. It’s a symbol of much, much more than that. The cradle of the Vietnamese people. Their story begins and will probably end in the Red river delta city of Hanoi. Established as the Cổ Loa Citadel in the third century BCE. Hanoi is the heart of both the Vietnamese people and its culture. It survived through the centuries, and its culture, ideals, and influence have led to the modern idea of what Vietnamese is. Hanoi is steeped in history, culture, and of course, food. There has never been a direct lockdown order for Hanoi. It stood as a symbol of strength and resilience of resolve Vietnam would exhibit to keep the pandemic from engulfing Vietnam, much as it has most of the world.
I received this from the US Embassy in Hanoi two days ago via email.
Message for U.S. Citizens: Stricter Social Distancing Measures Implemented in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi
As of July 24, both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City authorities have implemented Directive 16, which will be in effect for at least 15 days in Hanoi and at least until August 1 in Ho Chi Minh City. Essential businesses, including grocery stores and pharmacies, will remain open throughout the city. However, local wards, districts, and provinces may impose stricter guidelines, including partial closures, with little or no warning.  Â
The ability to travel throughout Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City remains limited as there are no public transportation services, ride-hailing services, or taxis available. The Government of Vietnam has placed checkpoints around the cities to prevent unauthorized entries and departures. Flights to the United States from Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi remain available through private airlines. U.S. citizens must have a valid passport, visa or exit stamp, and a negative COVID-19 test result to board a plane from Ho Chi Minh City to the United States.    Â
The U.S. Mission in Vietnam reminds all U.S. citizens that they are subject to Vietnamese local laws and regulations while visiting or living in Vietnam. We advise U.S. citizens to comply with the Vietnamese government’s testing and quarantine requirements.
U.S. citizens should refrain from gathering in large groups and monitor local news and government restrictions to avoid travel disruptions. Government of Vietnam regulations regarding business operations, quarantine, movement, and travel restrictions in all parts of Vietnam can change with little notice.
We recommend U.S. citizens check the Embassy’s COVID-19 page daily for information and register or update their information with the Department of State’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP).
The Implications
This tells me that reality has finally caught up with us here. No matter how hard you try, no matter what you do, it will overtake you. Hanoi’s lockdown is symbolic for many reasons. It is past the point of control. Now we are in mitigation mode. I don’t know what the future holds. If we could only get vaccines, it would be a huge step in fighting this. For a nation that has done everything right, it just seems wrong. To get so close, to work so hard, but it is still not enough. With the fall of Hanoi, the last bastion of hope that we still have this under control, I don’t know what comes next.
The Numbers
Below are roughly a few charts for the pandemic in both the US and Vietnam over the past 18 months. The top two showing both the US’ peek, and Vietnam around that same time. It has been two different worlds. Unfortunately for us, our nightmare may just be beginning. Vietnam is roughly a third the size of the US by population. Around 100 million inhabitants.
Featured Image photo by Bergkinder on Unsplash.
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Wow! Scary incident with your Dengue fever. But you survived. That is the upside of your story 🙂