Quarantine aboard the Diamond Princess - Day 10

2/13/2020

00:28

Check this out! Letter to all Diamond Princess crew regarding the quarantine. They will get two months of PTO! Here’s the letter.

“We are deeply grateful and incredibly proud of all of you. We understand that each of you are under great stress in this extraordinary situation, and we hope you are taking some time to speak with your family and friends – as well as reaching out to our Crew Assistance resources.

We have been working to determine how we can best support you once we are past this difficult time. You deserve, and will need, a break. So, we offer you two months of paid time off. This will include your salary and any average gratuities you may normally receive.

We strongly encourage you to use the paid time off for much needed rest. If you decide to leave when the quarantine and later choose to rejoin a ship before the two months pass, you will still receive this extra pay.

In addition, all reasonable charges to your onboard account for this voyage will be cleared. You will not incur any other charges during the quarantine period.

We will also handle your flights to return home and your job will be protected to return for another contract.

We learn more information every day, and we appreciate your patience as we do our best to keep you informed. Your colleagues across the fleet and all of us ashore send you our ongoing support and thanks.” -jan, CEO of Princess Cruises

08:00

Woke up to orange juice, a banana, banana muffin, yogurt, eggs, a croissant. and sausage. Good breakfast again!

Looks a bit stormy today – I’m guessing it will rain for the first time since being in port.

09:02 Definitely raining. Our outside time is around 9:30 – good thing we bought umbrellas in Hong Kong! No new news as of yet.

9:15 Captain announcement: we’re now we’ll into the second week of our quarantine. He thanks of for our patience. He provided sympathies to those that are ill, their family, and friends. He shared guidance from health authorities – further cases were expected after quarantine began due to pre-quarantine exposure. He reinforced all regulations/procedures, and said that we are all in this together. Masks must be worn any time an external door is opened. He acknowledged that sometimes media is reporting before him, but the captain is working with authorities to provide accurate information as soon as possible. Accuracy and full transparency with us/crew are his top priority. Protocols are still being reviewed by the ministry of health to clean staterooms, as they haven’t been cleaned since 2/3. Linens and towels are still available upon request. Dietary surveys have been passed out, and must be completed by 1pm. Internet has intermittent breaks only due to the rotation of satellites. He says that we are all in this together, and everything is being done to support one another.

9:30 Slight change in plans – all passengers will go to the 7th deck rather than split between the 7th and 15th today due to rain. We will be on the starboard side. In other news, I got a call today that my great grandmother is now in hospice. She fell and broke her hip about a week ago, survived surgery, but is having trouble with rehab. Hoping to get off this boat to see her! She’s 97.

9:40 Seems to be a miscommunication between the bridge and staff – all guests were moved to the port side during this trip outside.

10:30 Just got back from outside – got to visit the port side of the 7th deck today. Very good view of what’s going on down below, some of the best pics yet! We got some good walks in, and I tried to have a run. I had to stop pretty soon only because N95 masks were definitely not made to run with! They make it fairly hard to breathe faster than you would normally, making it feel like you can’t catch a breath of fresh air. Can’t wait until we can actually go outside and get a full lung of normal air!

Military trucks lining an exit to the cruise.

A person in protective gear.

A person in protective gear guarding the exit of the ship.

The 7th deck of the ship – our one hour walk.

The 7th deck of the ship – our one hour walk.

So.. many.. vehicles!

This is how you wear this thing, right?

Someone about to be taken to a Japanese hospital.

12:09

Captain announcement! Coronavirus is now officially known as Covid-19 (coronavirus disease 2019). Laundry is at full capacity, and we’ll get another chance for laundry! This is great, because we don’t have as much laundry this time. We should be able to get most of everything washed. Social media is really reaching the captain – he recognized the huge amount of support coming from around the globe. He says “clearly, the world is watching us, supporting us, and driving us until the end of this difficult time. Buon appetitio!”

Fun fact! The tv is having an interesting problem today. Everyone’s TV is in French/Spanish! 😅

13:16 Captains announcement! 44 new cases of covid-19, totaling 218 now. All guests that are 80 years or older in interior staterooms, or 80 years or older with chronic medical conditions have been tested already. Those who test negative will have the option of disembarkation to government quarantine areas in japan to finish their quarantine. Those guests who were roommates of someone who tested positive cannot disembark are this time.

Looks like they’re going to go ham for Valentine’s Day. Our UK friends across the hall are excited for fish and chips!

The menu for valentines day.

Our lunch!

13:52

Received an email from the embassy. Looks like they will be offering voluntary disembarkation to guests aboard, starting with those most vulnerable (chronic health conditions, etc.) to Japanese government quarantine facilities. We would likely be the last to receive this offer, but are healthy and in good spirits.

A letter from the US embassy.

15:00

Our cruise directors brought us board games!

16:15 The cruise directors made an announcement letting us know that there was new entertainment on our stateroom televisions, such as work out videos, stretches, magic lessons with Sunny Chen (fun fact, an internationally famous magician is quarantined with us, check him out), or napkin folding lessons on how to make a candle. A well-being message was also shared, asking us to make a steady routine for our lives while in the staterooms.

16:55 Captains announcement! Process of disembarking is well underway. His last announcement is being printed and sent to us so that we are able to determine if we want to stay on the boat or not. We think we will go ahead and stay on the boat. He stressed to us the importance of wearing our masks at all times outside of the room.

19:06 Captains announcement! As he put it, another day down, and we’re one step closer to being done with our extended stay together. Guests that are identified as priority (chronic diseases, comorbidities, 80+) will receive notice tonight by Japanese health officials regarding the option to stay on the ship, or be looked after by the Japanese government on land. More videos have been uploaded to the tv – one of which from Princesses Chief Medical Officer, providing information on the recommendations from global health organizations and the Japanese health ministry regarding covid-19. Some are anxious about the spread of the virus, but the captain hopes that this will address each concern anyone might have. He states that keeping everyone informed is one of their top priorities. We still have barges helping us perform essential marine operations, and there is no need to go out to sea for the time being. We will stay docked to daikoku pier in Yokohama until further notice. The captain has been receiving a good amount of letters – he is pulling three quotes from these daily, and sharing with the crew. He reminds us that the health and well-being of everyone aboard is their top priority. We were assured that everything was being done to bring this trying time to an end. Six days to go, whoop!

20:30 Got dinner! Today, the food situation was much a bit better. We liked both of our dinners compared to other meals, and we even got KIT KATS! We got some other Japanese snacks as well, such as (we think) fried/baked noodles! It’s nice to be able to try new types of snacks even while confined. I’m ready for kettle cooked BBQ chips (or crisps, depending on your neck of the woods), though.