60 days ago, we interviewed Doris* (*not her real name) from Singapore because there was an outbreak of COVID-19 in the building she lived in and she was feeling unwell herself. Now that almost 2 months has passed, we checked in on her to see what’s happened since.
“Working from home is not so bad.”Q: Hi Doris, welcome back! What’s happened since the last time we spoke? How’s Singapore and how are you?
A: Right after we did the last interview, Singapore went into lockdown, although they didn’t call it that but the ‘COVID-19 circuit breaker’ period, which is interesting because when abbreviated to CCB it becomes a local swear word. Singapore has been in a state of standstill ever since. I’ve been generally healthy since I stopped leaving the house almost entirely but the construction site across my apartment then became a new cluster with more than 30 people infected, maybe much more.
Were there any new infections in your building after the 3 you last talked about? And did you get tested for COVID-19 yourself?
Thankfully, no. And no I didn’t go get tested because I just kept getting better. One morning, I woke up and I was full of energy all over again and just like that I knew I was going to be okay.
What are the numbers of COVID-19 infected, recovered and demised in Singapore right now?
Singapore has 34,861 cases in total, of which 21,699 have been discharged and 23 have died. I checked those numbers just for you. Personally I don’t check anymore because it’s just the same bad news day after day and no longer interesting.
What’s open and what’s closed in Singapore these days? Have you gone out to work yet?
At the point of me answering this interview, most businesses are closed, schools are on term break and no entertainment facilities are open. F&B establishments are open only for take out. Supermarkets, pharmacies and clinics are the only consumer businesses going on as before. Singapore is like a dead city right now. I haven’t gone back to work since I was first ordered to work from home by my company earlier this year.
Is mask-wearing mandatory? And are people still encouraged to stay home?
Yes. It is now illegal to go out without a mask. You can be fined $300 and up if you’re caught outdoors not wearing a mask. Everybody is encouraged to stay home. You’re not even supposed to go visit family living in different households unless you can prove that the particular family member desperately needs help. The authorities even closed all parks to make that an impossible activity as well.
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Why do you think Singapore has been unable to get its coronavirus epidemic under control in recent days despite having been said to have done well in the early days of the pandemic?
At some point, I think it’s around early April or late March 2020, a shopping centre known as Mustafa Centre was identified as a cluster. Many of the patrons of that shopping centre were construction industry foreign workers from India or Bangladesh who lived in dormitories. Some time after, a few foreign worker dormitories became clusters and since then the virus has been spreading through various foreign worker dorms with no signs of stopping.
Most of the tens of thousands of COVID-19 infected in Singapore are now foreign workers living in dorms. They say it’s the squeezy living conditions (I heard it’s 20 men to a toilet) that made it easy for the virus to get out of control. Because many of those workers are still living in dorms, the situation is not under control. I am not sure why nobody wants to move them out of the dorms until the virus stops spreading. Is it an issue with money or space or ???
Singapore is reopening this week. Can you tell us what will be allowed and what wouldn’t be?
Some essential businesses like pet care, hairdressing and repair services will be allowed to reopen like before, but not dining or retail. Marriages and wakes will resume, capped at 10 attendees per session. Religious venues will be open but only 5 households may worship at any one time with safe-distancing measures. Most significantly, schools will reopen, with most students going to school on a bi-weekly basis while graduating cohorts will get to go to school all the time. You are now allowed to visit your parents or grandparents, but each household can only have 1 visit per day and 2 visitors each time.
What do you miss most about life before this pandemic?
Dining out. I have a crazy relentless craving for sashimi and special broth ‘beauty’ hotpot right now because they are not meals you can cook at home.
Which 3 items or people are now most important to you?
Family (pets included), food delivery apps, computer with built-in camera.
Lastly, what else have you learned in the time since we last spoke that you didn’t know before?
Social gatherings via Zoom just don’t really work. Working from home is not so bad. I know some people can’t stand it but me and others like me will certainly miss this part of the pandemic most when it one day ends.
Doris has a full schedule of grooming (pets included) and repair services booked this week for when Singapore reopens. She looks forward to being able to colour her hair again most of all.
Follow the latest in our COVID-19 Diaries series here.
If you’re in a country that has been affected by the novel coronavirus and would like to share information about the situation where you’re at, do get in touch with us here.
Other interviews with Doris:
COVID-19 Diaries: What It’s Like Living In A Building With 3 Confirmed Cases
Photographs courtesy and copyright of Doris. Interviewer: Sy
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It’s so intriguing to see how different areas of the world are dealing with COVID-19 and it’s effects, both lasting and not. Thank you for sharing and I hope you all stay safe!
Thanks kellyannegg! Hope you stay safe too! 🙂