It's been a little over a year since I decided to return to El Salvador, and what initially seemed to be a "brief" trip back home turned out to be the start of an uncontemplatable college experience.
In January 2020, I had planned with friends to visit Guangzhou for the Chinese New Year; we had booked our train tickets and found accommodation with a host family. Suddenly, news circulated about a "new virus" rapidly spreading across a nearby city—Wuhan. I remember sitting down with my classmates and reviewing a notice from the United States Embassy in China, alerting citizens about the evolving situation surrounding the virus.
Several days later, on January 20th at 4:46 AM, I decided to contact some administrators and my professor: expressing my concern about the lack of announcements that the community had received on the recent virus outbreak, especially as many of us were preparing to travel for Chinese New Year. Within twelve hours, Denis Simon, the former Executive Vice Chancellor of Duke Kunshan University, addressed the community in an email sharing the creation of a task force to develop an action plan to protect community members given the uncertainties surrounding the spreading virus.
I had not yet started to evaluate the possibility of canceling my trip to Guangzhou. I told myself:
"It will get better."
"It will hopefully not be that serious."
"We are traveling to the southern part anyway."
I had not yet realized how wrong I was.
I realized that the situation was not improving when students received a survey requesting travel plans for the Spring Festival Break; however, some students were not happy when the university asked for the information, ignoring the emerging crisis. After contacting my parents for advice, I shared with my friends that I would remain at Scholar's Hotel, and shortly after, they also chose to cancel their travel plans.
On January 23rd, I went with some friends to 万象汇 (Mix-C) to buy some groceries; already wearing protective masks and tinted with concern, we stopped at Burger King for an after-dinner treat.
On January 24th, my host family and I ate dinner together, without knowing it would be my penultimate dinner in China.
On January 25th, I prepared my final meal with my friends in the Residence Hall Kitchen. We finished our meal and opened an email detailing class postponement, restricted access to campus, and financial assistance for returning home. Hours that followed were full of stress, anxiety, and uncertainty: words that have become a norm since.
On January 26th, I said goodbye to my friends in the Scholar's Hotel Lobby as they left for Shanghai Pudong International Airport. I went back to my room and called my host family; I needed a ride to the airport, and they quickly came to help. While having breakfast at their house, they informed me that roads were closing, and they would instead take me to a bus stop to take public transportation to the airport. After waiting for seven hours in the airport terminal, I boarded my flight home.
Thirty-two hours later, after layovers in Amsterdam and Panama City, I arrived at the Aeropuerto Internacional de El Salvador San Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (El Salvador International Airport Saint Oscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez). I am still in El Salvador and will continue to be until further notice.
As this semester comes to a close, my divided college experience will consist of: one and a half years in China and one and a half years in El Salvador. What happens next? I'll have to wait and see.
Section Editor: Mia Meier
Section: Student Life
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